Viam helps companies unlock the power of AI, data and automation in the physical world. We provide a single platform for engineers of all disciplines to solve problems together and build solutions that are fast and future-proof. Viam powers solutions across robotics, food and beverage, climate tech, marine, industrial manufacturing, and more. Founded in 2020 by former MongoDB co-founder and CTO Eliot Horowitz, Viam is headquartered in New York City.

Lead Engineer, Camera/Video 

New York, NY - Hybrid environment where the expectation is 3+ days a week in office (1900 Broadway New York, NY). 

As Lead Engineer of Camera/Video, you will manage a critical team that is responsible for ensuring seamless image, video, and audio streaming end-to-end for Viam's users. We are an agile team that responds quickly to platform and customer needs. Along with managing and providing technical direction, you will remain hands-on and have the opportunity to contribute to solutions. The tech stack primarily includes Golang, C and C++.

You will work at the cutting edge of the IoT landscape: developing stable functionality across a wide range of devices connected to machines on the edge with varying internet connections.

Our work includes configuring Linux device drivers, format compression, encoding, and decoding image streams and audio chunks taken from webcams, depth cameras, microphones, speakers, and more. Many of Viam's customers are building solutions using the Viam platform with cameras as a starting point,  so it is essential that we reliably support a wide range of camera types. Additionally, we enable customer scenarios with camera setups and regularly debug streaming issues such as performance problems and flaky network or hardware connections. 

The Camera/Video team is responsible for:

• Supporting a wide variety of cameras and hardware configurations
• Implementing and optimizing memory-efficient encoding/decoding frameworks
• Optimizing CPU utilization on System on Chip devices
• Creating solutions that allow customers to build upon camera functionality

You'll be:

• Leading a specialized team of engineers focused on video and audio technology (currently it is almost 100% video with the
• Providing technical direction in a niche domain with high customer impact
• Contributing to solutions for camera integration and video processing
• Collaborating closely with Robotics, Computer Vision, and Solutions Engineering teams
• Responding quickly to high-urgency customer needs while maintaining code quality
• Balancing tactical solutions with long-term technical vision
• Testing implementations on a variety of camera hardware

We're looking for someone who:

• Has experience in camera and video technology, streaming protocols, or related fields
• Is proficient in Golang, C and C++; Python knowledge is a plus
• Understands memory optimization and CPU efficiency on constrained hardware
• Experience with streaming technologies (RTSP, etc.) and camera integration is an added plus
• Is comfortable in a fast-paced environment with rapidly changing priorities
• Can effectively balance customer responsiveness with technical excellence
• Has experience leading engineering teams or initiatives

Benefits:

• 100% covered medical/dental/vision insurance plans, commuter benefits
• Competitive salary & equity packages (see below)
• Reproductive Health Benefits, including Fertility Benefits and Abortion Access Travel Benefits
• 25 days paid vacation and generous holiday observances
• One Medical Membership
• Class Pass & Citi Bike memberships
• Free lunch every day that you’re in the office
• Paid parental leave

The starting salary for this role is between $205,000 - $235,000/year. Your offer will vary based on several factors, including experience level, skillset, market location, and balancing internal equity relative to peers at the company. We recognize that the person we hire may be less experienced or more senior than the one described in this job description. The updated salary range will be communicated to you as a candidate in these situations. In addition to cash compensation, Viam offers a comprehensive Total Rewards package that includes equity grants, health benefits, and more.