💻Database Engineer (Prague/EU)
topk.io
Posted on Nov 5, 2025
💻
Database Engineer (Prague/EU)
Location: Prague/Remote (EU)
Skills: Rust, distributed systems, storage engines, query compilers
We're building the future of search technology with a focus on lightning-fast queries, distributed architecture, and novel indexing approaches. Our database engineering team works at the intersection of systems programming, algorithmic optimization, and distributed computing to power our next-generation search platform.
We're a small but ambitious team, headquartered in San Francisco with a growing engineering hub in Prague, Czech Republic. As a Database Engineer in our Prague office, you'll be responsible for creating highly performant storage and query systems that can process complex search operations across massive datasets while maintaining millisecond-level response times.
Culture
Innovation-first. Every team member is encouraged to think outside the box, challenge existing designs, and bring fresh ideas to the table.
Ownership. We don't have junior/senior titles - we hire skilled and talented people to take full ownership of their domain and empower them to build the best solutions possible.
Agency. We're a flat team of doers - no professional managers. When something needs fixing, we don't wait for permission, we just make it better.
Vibe. We’re a team of kind, authentic people who share a common hobby - building cool shit.
About the role
You will be building TopK’s core database, including our distributed query engine and storage format.
Your job will be:
Optimizing query compilation and query plan rewrites.
Improving query execution at both node-level (e.g. compute kernels) and system-level (e.g. workload scheduling).
Building high-performance integrations with existing storage systems.
Exploring new data structures and algorithms to effectively index and search terabytes of data in O(10ms).
Requirements
Production-grade experience with Rust
Experience building distributed systems (e.g. distributed databases, message queues, storage systems, …)
Experience with low-level performance optimizations (e.g. kernel bypass, SIMD, cache-friendly algorithms, …)
Proven track record of your abilities (e.g. published papers, open-source contributions, strong references, …)
Interview Process
We absolutely do not want to waste time by 7-stage long-form interviews. We have a simple process:
Introductions - Talk to one of the founders, discuss your previous experience, and explore what interests you about TopK.
Technical interview (one of)
Algorithms/low-level interview
System design interview
Culture fit - You’re welcome to join us for a day in the office or we can grab lunch so you can meet the entire team (if feasible).
Decision and potential offer
Perks & benefits
Compensation: We offer a competitive salary and early-stage equity packages.
Equipment: You'll get a beefy MacBook Pro.
People: Team events, dinners, off-sites, hangouts.
Flexibility & PTO: We only care that the software is good & customers are happy.
Location: Cool office in Prague.
If this sounds like your cup of coffee, reach out to us at careers@topk.io. Join us in building the future of search—we'd love to have you! 🥷
