The Principal Software Engineer will lead technical initiatives, define architecture, prototype ideas, and foster an innovative engineering culture, working cross-functionally to turn visions into execution.
Role Description
We’re looking for a Principal Software Engineer to shape the future of Dropbox through bold new ideas and technical leadership. You’ll help define the vision, architecture, and execution for our most forward-looking products — building the foundation for what comes next at Dropbox.
This role sits at the heart of innovation, blending hands-on engineering with strategic thinking. You’ll explore new product spaces, prototype ideas that don’t yet have a home, and guide how we integrate new technologies — whether we build them or bring them in. Along the way, you’ll help foster a strong, collaborative engineering culture and partner closely with product, design, and strategy to turn high-potential ideas into real impact.
Responsibilities- Build and foster a strong engineering culture focused on excellence, velocity, and innovation
- Define the architecture and integration strategy for new initiatives, including both internally developed and acquired products
- Conduct technical due diligence on potential M&A targets to assess scalability, quality, and strategic fit
- Rapidly prototype new product ideas and validate emerging opportunities that fall outside existing teams
- Partner cross-functionally with product, design, and strategy teams to translate vision into technical execution
- Maintain a high technical bar and guide the team through complex architectural decisions
- Contribute to shaping Dropbox’s long-term innovation roadmap through technical insight and experimentation
- 10+ years of full-stack engineering experience, including 3+ years in a technical leadership role
- Proven success operating at both startup and enterprise scale—building early MVPs and scaling to millions of users
- Deep understanding of product architecture evolution and trade-offs between speed and scalability
- Experience with technical diligence and evaluating software systems for integration or acquisition
- Some experience in engineering management preferred
- Strong bias toward experimentation and comfort navigating high-ambiguity problem spaces
- Experience leading 0→1 product development or founding early-stage startup teams
- Demonstrated success incubating and scaling new technologies or products within a larger organization
- Strong background in distributed systems design, data-intensive applications, or cloud infrastructure
- Familiarity with modern AI/ML technologies, developer platforms, or productivity tools
US Zone 1
This role is not available in Zone 1
US Zone 2
$248,600—$336,400 USD
US Zone 3
$221,000—$299,000 USD
Top Skills
AI
Cloud Infrastructure
Distributed Systems Design
Full-Stack Engineering
Ml
Dropbox Los Angeles, California, USA Office
Los Angeles, CA, United States
Similar Jobs at Dropbox
Artificial Intelligence • Cloud • Consumer Web • Productivity • Software • App development • Data Privacy
The Principal Software Engineer will lead the vision and execution for Developer Productivity, enhancing workflows and integrating AI tools to streamline software delivery across Dropbox's multi-product stack.
Top Skills:
AICi/CdDistributed SystemsLlms
Artificial Intelligence • Cloud • Consumer Web • Productivity • Software • App development • Data Privacy
The Senior Full Stack Engineer will design and develop user-friendly experiences, lead product enhancements, mentor junior engineers, and participate in on-call rotations to ensure service reliability.
Top Skills:
AngularCSSHTMLJavaScriptMongoDBMySQLNode.jsPostgresPythonReact
Artificial Intelligence • Cloud • Consumer Web • Productivity • Software • App development • Data Privacy
The Senior Principal Product Manager at Dropbox will define and lead the multi-product strategy, focusing on enhancing user engagement across the Dropbox ecosystem. Responsibilities include aligning product direction with company strategy, leading cross-functional teams, and establishing a dedicated multi-product team.
What you need to know about the Los Angeles Tech Scene
Los Angeles is a global leader in entertainment, so it’s no surprise that many of the biggest players in streaming, digital media and game development call the city home. But the city boasts plenty of non-entertainment innovation as well, with tech companies spanning verticals like AI, fintech, e-commerce and biotech. With major universities like Caltech, UCLA, USC and the nearby UC Irvine, the city has a steady supply of top-flight tech and engineering talent — not counting the graduates flocking to Los Angeles from across the world to enjoy its beaches, culture and year-round temperate climate.
Key Facts About Los Angeles Tech
- Number of Tech Workers: 375,800; 5.5% of overall workforce (2024 CompTIA survey)
- Major Tech Employers: Snap, Netflix, SpaceX, Disney, Google
- Key Industries: Artificial intelligence, adtech, media, software, game development
- Funding Landscape: $11.6 billion in venture capital funding in 2024 (Pitchbook)
- Notable Investors: Strong Ventures, Fifth Wall, Upfront Ventures, Mucker Capital, Kittyhawk Ventures
- Research Centers and Universities: California Institute of Technology, UCLA, University of Southern California, UC Irvine, Pepperdine, California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy, Center for Quantum Science and Engineering
