Senior Android Engineer at Medium

Job description

About Medium Medium is one of the world's most influential writing platforms, connecting millions of readers with ideas that matter. We're a small, dedicated team that cares deeply and takes real ownership of the problems we tackle, moving fast while building something that lasts. Our actions and decision-making are guided by four principles : Humans First, Deepen Understanding, Orient for Impact, and Ladder Together. About the Role We're looking for a Senior Mobile Engineer to help build and evolve the Android experience that millions of readers and writers rely on every day. You'll own Android features end to end. That means digging into what users actually need, building it, shipping it, and paying attention to how it actually performs once it's out in the world. You'll work closely with our design team the whole way through. This is a product engineering role at heart. We don't have a dedicated product team, so you won't be handed a fully-specified ticket and told to go build it. Rather, you'll be the one figuring out what's worth building in the first place, partnering with design and other engineers, and making good calls when the ask is vague or doesn't quite solve the real problem. Android is where you'll spend most of your time, but we want someone who can also hold their own on at least one other platform, whether that's web, iOS, or backend. That range matters: it means you can see how a feature fits into the bigger picture, make good calls about where logic should live, and work credibly with whoever owns that other platform. What You'll Do Own Android features end to end. Understand the problem, build it, ship it, and see how it actually does Shape what gets built, not just how it gets built. Push back on scope, propose simpler solutions, and raise platform constraints early rather than after the fact Write idiomatic, well-tested Kotlin and Compose UI that fits naturally into the team's existing architecture Work directly with iOS, web, or backend engineers depending on what a feature needs, and help decide where functionality should live Partner with our leadership team, design team, and engineers in the US and France to turn a rough idea into something that actually ships well on Android Bring superb judgment to ambiguous requests. You can ask good questions, spot edge cases early, and propose reasonable first steps when the full scope isn't clear yet Own shaping product and feature spaces, maintaining and driving a sense of forward momentum even when the final destination of your work may not be clear Help raise the bar for the mobile team on code quality, testing, and product thinking Attend Medium's twice-yearly, in-person offsites (hosted in locations around the U.S.) What You Have You've spent several years building production Android apps and you're genuinely fluent in Kotlin, Jetpack Compose, coroutines and Flow, and modern Android architecture You're an expert with all things Android engineering, but you can also hold your own on at least one other platform (web, iOS, or backend) and can work credibly there when a feature calls for it You think like a product engineer. You don't just build what's asked, but can own and appreciate the impact at a product impact altitude of your work.You understand the problem underneath the request, push back when something doesn't add up, and care about whether it actually worked once it shipped You've worked closely with designers and engineers on other platforms before. You're good at explaining a technical tradeoff in a way that actually lands for someone who isn't an engineer You have good instincts about systems, you're adaptable, and you're genuinely eager to learn. You can advocate for an approach while staying open to a better one. We care a lot about collaboration and psychological safety here. We want someone who adds to it You have the ability to push forward in ambiguity and make great trade off decisions to keep a project moving Nice to Haves Experience using AI to improve a team's leverage, reach, output and impact You've owned product direction yourself rather than just executing someone else's plan You personally use Medium and are genuinely excited to contribute to its mission, which is empowering humans to write meaningfully for other humans Benefits In addition to the new skills you'll pick up, here's what else you'll enjoy by working at Medium: Working with a fully distributed team: We’re fully remote and have teammates across the U.S. & France Healthcare benefits covered at 100% for employees and 80% for dependents Generous parental leave policy Mental health support through Spring Health (or find a provider through Rula or Kaiser Mental Health Network) Financial wellness support through Northstar Stipends for co-working, professional development, wifi, and a one-time home office bonus Unlimited PTO and standard company holidays A discounted Medium membership Why Medium We're a small team doing meaningful work. Beyond guiding your team's execution, you'll have real influence over engineering strategy, culture, and direction. You'll work alongside people who are genuinely good at what they do and who care about building something worth building. At Medium, inclusion, diversity, and equity are core to how we work and what we build. We believe a more inclusive team creates a better product—one that’s intuitive, thoughtful, and serves a wide range of users. We strive to foster a supportive, fun, and challenging environment where people from all backgrounds can thrive. We welcome applicants from all walks of life and strongly encourage those from historically underrepresented groups to apply. Our hiring process is built to ensure fairness and equal opportunity for everyone. Even if your experience doesn’t match every requirement, we’d still love to hear from you—your perspective and passion matter more than checking every box. Learn more about our mission, operating principles, and culture: Yes to a diverse community Be part of a better internet Medium Rules Operating Principles Read about our story here . Read our guidance on AI use for candidates . We believe human ideas have the power to change how people think, for the better. That belief shapes how we hire. We use AI tools ourselves, but we’ve thought carefully about where it adds value and where it gets in the way of something important. Salary Range $165,000 — $215,000 USD GDPR Notice We will process your personal data as part of our recruitment process, in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). For details on how we use your data, including the legal bases for processing, how long we retain it, and your rights under GDPR, please refer to our Privacy Notice . We may retain your information for future job opportunities based on our legitimate interest in building a talent pool. You can object to this at any time by contacting us at recruiting@medium.com . CCPA Notice If you are a California resident, you have rights under the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), as amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (CPRA). These include the right to know what personal information we collect about you, the right to request deletion or correction of your data, and the right to opt out of certain uses. During the hiring process, we may collect personal information such as your name, contact details, resume/CV, employment history, education background, and any information gathered through interviews or assessments. We may share this information with service providers who support our recruitment process, in compliance with CCPA/CPRA. This information is used solely for recruitment and hiring purposes. We do not sell or share your personal information as defined under CCPA/CPRA. Candidate data is retained for up to 48 months for our legitimate business purposes and in accordance with applicable laws. To exercise your rights or request more information, please contact us at recruiting@medium.com . This notice can also be found on our Privacy Notice .

Requirements

Must-haves

Own Android features end to end. Understand the problem, build it, ship it, and see how it actually does
Shape what gets built, not just how it gets built. Push back on scope, propose simpler solutions, and raise platform constraints early rather than after the fact
Write idiomatic, well-tested Kotlin and Compose UI that fits naturally into the team's existing architecture
Work directly with iOS, web, or backend engineers depending on what a feature needs, and help decide where functionality should live
Partner with our leadership team, design team, and engineers in the US and France to turn a rough idea into something that actually ships well on Android
Bring superb judgment to ambiguous requests. You can ask good questions, spot edge cases early, and propose reasonable first steps when the full scope isn't clear yet
Own shaping product and feature spaces, maintaining and driving a sense of forward momentum even when the final destination of your work may not be clear
Help raise the bar for the mobile team on code quality, testing, and product thinking
Attend Medium's twice-yearly, in-person offsites (hosted in locations around the U.S.)
What You Have
You've spent several years building production Android apps and you're genuinely fluent in Kotlin, Jetpack Compose, coroutines and Flow, and modern Android architecture
You're an expert with all things Android engineering, but you can also hold your own on at least one other platform (web, iOS, or backend) and can work credibly there when a feature calls for it
You've worked closely with designers and engineers on other platforms before. You're good at explaining a technical tradeoff in a way that actually lands for someone who isn't an engineer
You have the ability to push forward in ambiguity and make great trade off decisions to keep a project moving

Nice-to-haves

Experience using AI to improve a team's leverage, reach, output and impact
You've owned product direction yourself rather than just executing someone else's plan
You personally use Medium and are genuinely excited to contribute to its mission, which is empowering humans to write meaningfully for other humans

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