Ad fatigue is killing engagement, but we're fixing it. Thanks (thanks.co) is building the world's first customer-first ad network, an advertising platform that delights consumers instead of just targeting them.

We’re seeking a Principal Engineer to help design and scale this groundbreaking platform. This is a senior technical leadership role: you’ll work closely with our founders, CTO, and product/engineering teams to shape technical strategy, solve complex challenges, and mentor others while remaining deeply hands-on.

What you’ll do

• Shape system architecture and guide technical strategy – contribute to long-term design decisions, advocate for scalability, reliability, and security across our stack, and help drive pragmatic tradeoffs aligned with business needs.
• Lead complex initiatives – break down ambiguous problems, scope complex projects, and shepherd them from idea to production.
• Raise the technical bar – champion engineering excellence in design, code quality, testing, performance, and developer productivity.
• Mentor and influence – provide technical guidance to senior engineers, foster growth across the team, and help establish a strong engineering culture.
• Lead by example – design and build critical features and infrastructure across the stack, setting examples of best practices in action.
• Cross-functional leadership – partner closely with product, design, and leadership to shape roadmaps, evaluate trade-offs, and ensure technical alignment with company vision.
• Scale operations – help define processes, observability, and reliability practices that keep our systems performant and resilient as we grow.

What we’re looking for

• Extensive experience with modern TypeScript / Node.js platforms and strong proficiency across the stack.
• Proven track record of architecting and scaling distributed systems in production.
• Deep expertise in system design, performance, reliability, and security.
• Strong judgment in balancing speed vs. quality, with an ability to cut through ambiguity.
• Clear, persuasive communicator who can influence across teams and functions.
• A history of technical leadership – mentoring engineers, guiding teams, and raising standards.
• Ownership mindset – you proactively drive initiatives from vision to execution.
• Collaborative and humble – you uplift those around you and lead with empathy.

• Experience in adtech or martech (ad serving, ranking, attribution, audience targeting, DSPs, etc.).
• Knowledge of Cloudflare ecosystem (Workers, Queues, KV, etc.).
• Familiarity with SRE practices and operating large-scale systems.

Nice to have

• Experience with analytics and data platforms such as ClickHouse or other OLAP systems.

Thanks' tech stack

• Turborepo / NodeJS / TypeScript
• React / NextJS / React Native
• Prisma / PlanetScale
• CloudFlare (Workers, Queues, KV, etc)
• Vitest / Playwright
• GitHub Actions
• DataDog / Sentry / OpenTelemetry
• Statsig

Why Thanks?

We're not just another adtech startup - we're rewriting the rules. Thanks is a Sydney-based, global-from-day-one company on a mission to kill ad fatigue and create advertising that consumers actually love. Our industry-leading engagement doesn't just capture attention; it delights, rewards, and transforms how people experience ads.

Here's why you'll love working with us:

• Direct Impact: Your work will shape our products and trajectory as we scale rapidly.
• Ownership and Autonomy: We'll give you the right tools, freedom, and collaborative environment to succeed and achieve your biggest goals.
• Competitive Package: Enjoy a competitive salary, and stock options.
• Growth Trajectory: Thrive in an environment of rapid change, constant challenges, and endless opportunities.
• Comprehensive Benefits: Enjoy a benefits package designed to support your needs and wellbeing.
• Flexibility: Work flexibly, with two required days (Tuesdays and Thursdays) at our Bridge Street office in Sydney.