Principal Software Engineer - Video - Design Experience - Open to remote across Australia and New Zealand

Location: Team Engineering

Team: Country Wellington / New Zealand

About the Role

Join the team redefining how the world experiences video creation at Canva. As a Principal Software Engineer - Video - Design Experience, you'll be the technical visionary leading our mission to democratise video creation through world-class rendering engines, scalable infrastructure, and AI-powered creativity. This technically ambitious role sits at the intersection of engineering, creativity, and innovation, powering millions of users from everyday creators to global brands. Open to remote across Australia and New Zealand, you'll work in a hybrid model that trusts Canvanauts to find the balance empowering teams to achieve crazy big goals. You'll architect Canva's video stack, designing cutting-edge rendering engines, optimising composition pipelines, and solving complex export challenges while pioneering AI features like real-time generative tools and smart editing workflows. Leading alongside talented engineers, you'll mentor teams, shape architectural standards, and turn Canva into an AI-first creative platform. Our Video group delivers seamless, professional-quality experiences worldwide, and your expertise in high-performance video systems will push the boundaries of browser-based creation. Canva's design-focused, innovative, and collaborative culture thrives on change as we scale. With equity packages, inclusive parental leave, Vibe & Thrive allowances, and flexible options, we celebrate diverse skills and backgrounds. If you have deep video engineering experience and a passion for empowering creators, join us to build the future of video at Canva.

Key Responsibilities

• Architect and lead Canva’s video technology stack, balancing performance, scalability, and user experience
• Design cutting-edge rendering engines and optimise video composition pipelines
• Drive performance optimisation and solve complex export cost and reliability challenges
• Mentor engineers and shape architectural standards for video technology
• Lead innovative features like AI-powered effects and advanced international language support
• Partner with research teams to embed AI and ML into video creation processes
• Build scalable, high-performance rendering systems powering millions of daily exports
• Pioneer next-gen rendering pipelines and cross-platform export engines
• Collaborate with design and product teams to push boundaries of browser-based video creation
• Ensure seamless, professional-quality video experiences for creators worldwide

Required Qualifications

• Extensive experience building high-performance video and graphics rendering engines
• Deep expertise in video editing, composition, or similar creative software
• Proven skills in scalable system architecture supporting millions of users
• A track record of technical leadership in video or digital content creation tooling
• Experience with cross-platform development and engine consolidation
• Strong background in performance optimisation for video processing and export systems
• Demonstrated ability to mentor engineers and shape architectural standards

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience integrating AI/ML into video creation workflows
• Knowledge of browser-based video rendering technologies
• Familiarity with international language support in creative tools
• Prior work in democratising creative tools for non-professionals
• Expertise in real-time generative video tools

Required Skills

• Video rendering engine development
• Graphics pipeline optimisation
• Scalable system architecture
• Technical leadership and mentoring
• Cross-platform development
• Performance profiling and optimisation
• AI/ML integration in creative tools
• Browser-based video technologies
• Video composition and editing expertise
• Export system reliability engineering
• Collaborative problem-solving
• Innovative thinking in design experiences
• User-centric engineering mindset
• Communication and stakeholder partnership
• Architectural decision-making

Benefits

• Equity packages to share in Canva's success
• Inclusive parental leave policies for all parents and carers
• Annual Vibe & Thrive allowance for wellbeing, social connection, and office setup
• Flexible leave options to recharge and thrive
• Hybrid work model open to remote across Australia and New Zealand
• Opportunities for moments of magic, connection, and fun in a collaborative culture
• Virtual interview process with adjustments available
• Access to flagship Sydney campus and ANZ hubs

Canva is an equal opportunity employer.