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Toptal: Senior Rust Engineer — Production Backend Systems (Remote - LATAM)
Headquarters: Remote
URL: https://www.toptal.com/
About the Role
We're looking for Senior Rust Engineers to take real ownership of a high-performance, production backend. You'll be working on mission-critical systems where performance, security, and reliability aren't nice-to-haves — they're the job. Whether the work is hardening core services for a cybersecurity product or extending a Rust-based backend that powers a cross-platform application, this role is for someone who can navigate complex, unfamiliar codebases quickly and start shipping production-ready code fast.
What You'll Do
- Build, optimize, and maintain high-performance backend services in Rust.
- Take ownership of core backend architecture, including remediating vulnerabilities and improving CI/CD workflows.
- Interface with PostgreSQL for complex data management, persistence, and schema-oriented design.
- Design and work with schema-oriented service patterns (e.g., gRPC) where applicable.
- Deploy and maintain services on AWS.
- Jump into an existing, unfamiliar codebase and reach full productivity within the first 1–2 weeks.
- Submit clean, high-quality code that holds up to rigorous review and peer scrutiny.
- Take increasing ownership of backend direction as the system evolves or transitions from a legacy team.
What You Bring
- Expert-level or extensive senior-level experience with Rust in a production environment.
- Strong experience with PostgreSQL and SQL database design.
- Strong experience with AWS for hosting and deployment.
- Proven track record on large-scale, mission-critical, or high-stakes systems where performance and reliability matter.
- Experience working as a senior individual contributor on evolving production systems.
- Ability to explain complex architectural decisions and take full ownership of submitted code.
- Comfortable working independently and ramping quickly on unfamiliar codebases.
Nice to Have
- Familiarity with GitHub-based development workflows.
- Experience with gRPC or Avro-based schema design.
- Exposure to Flutter-based product environments (web, mobile, or desktop).
- Comfort using AI-assisted coding tools (e.g., Claude) without sacrificing code quality.
Compensation
- Rate: $35-$45/hr.