Staff Engineer, Experimental Projects

Stripe is a financial infrastructure platform for businesses. Millions of companies—from the world’s largest enterprises to the most ambitious startups—use Stripe to accept payments, grow their revenue, and accelerate new business opportunities. Our mission is to increase the GDP of the internet, and we have a staggering amount of work ahead. That means you have an unprecedented opportunity to put the global economy within everyone’s reach while doing the most important work of your career.

Stripe's Experimental Projects team is our in-house innovation lab where we rapidly transform ideas into working prototypes. We operate as an idea incubator, building and testing new concepts with real users, sometimes going from concept to functional prototype in just days.

As a Software Engineer on the Experimental Projects team, you'll be at the forefront of innovation at Stripe, turning promising ideas into tangible solutions that could shape the future of our platform. You'll have the autonomy to identify opportunities, rapidly build prototypes, and work directly with users to validate and iterate on your solutions. 

This role combines technical excellence with creative problem-solving – you'll work across our entire technology stack to bring ideas to life, sometimes in just days. 

Your work will help us discover new ways to empower businesses worldwide, contributing directly to Stripe's mission of increasing the GDP of the internet. Whether it's creating new developer tools, exploring novel payment experiences, or inventing entirely new products, you'll have the freedom to experiment and the resources to make a significant impact.

• You will operate with high autonomy to identify and champion technical solutions that address areas of high business ambiguity and opportunity, translating complex user needs into long-lasting platform strategy.
• You will be at the forefront of innovation, turning high-leverage, promising ideas into tangible, robust solutions that could shape the future of our platform and our product roadmap.
• You will combine technical excellence with creative problem-solving, working across our entire technology stack to bring ideas to life rapidly, ensuring the majority of your impact remains technical in nature.
• You will frequently serve as a key engineering representative when engaging with senior leaders and decision-makers across large groups within Stripe.

We’re looking for someone who meets the minimum requirements to be considered for the role. If you meet these requirements, you are encouraged to apply. The preferred qualifications are a bonus, not a requirement.

• 12+ years of engineering experience or equivalent combined work experience reflecting domain expertise 
• Experience in rapidly developing prototypes and iterating based on user feedback
• Demonstrate strong product intuition and experience leading initiatives spanning multiple teams and leveraging deep domain expertise to influence tech roadmap planning and execution
• Have experience building and shipping products from scratch
• Experience leading and influencing technical roadmaps for initiatives spanning multiple, highly interacting teams.

• Are comfortable with ambiguity and fast-paced environments
• Have a passion for working on side-projects, open source, or similar self-driven initiatives you’re proud of
• Bring energy and enthusiasm that inspires collaboration