Principal Rust Engineer - Language Runtime
Posted Updated
Description
Job Summary
Runtime VM
Compiler
Protocol Data Layer
Async Networking
Engineering Build
Team Enablement
Your background:
Additionally, it would be beneficial if you have:
We are Progress (Nasdaq: PRGS) - the trusted provider of software that enables our customers to develop, deploy and manage responsible, AI-powered applications and experience with agility and ease.
Were proud to have a diverse, global team where we value the individual and enrich our culture by considering varied perspectives because we believe people power progress. Join us as a Principal Rust Engineer and help us do what we do best: propelling business forward.Know more about.
We are building a production language runtime in Rust compiler, virtual machine, wire protocol client, and application server. You will join as a long-term technical owner of this system, working alongside experienced platform architects and a second FTE Rust engineer.
Runtime VM
- Implement and optimize an async register-based virtual machine with cooperative scheduling and built-in function dispatch.
- Translate language semantics from a reference C implementation into idiomatic, correct Rust.
Compiler
- Extend a multi-stage compiler pipeline (lexer, parser, AST, IR, codegen).
- Deliver new language features end-to-end with conformance and property-based tests.
Protocol Data Layer
- Extend a binary wire protocol implementation reverse-engineered from C source.
- Own TLS, authentication, and connection pooling.
Async Networking
- Maintain a Tokio-based async runtime handling thousands of concurrent requests with shared state and admission control.
- Contribute to HTTP, WebSocket, and gRPC server layers.
Engineering Build
- Manage a large multi-crate Cargo workspace dependency hygiene, CI performance, and release engineering.
Team Enablement
- Mentor senior engineers (20+ years platform experience) adopting Rust teaching-oriented code reviews, pair programming, and progressive ownership handoff.
- Document architecture decisions and maintain design docs as first-class deliverables.
Your background:
- Overall 10+ years of Software Engineering Experience
- 5+ years production Rust in systems software (runtimes, compilers, databases, or networking).
- Compiler or language runtime experience at least one of: parser, AST/IR, bytecode compiler, VM, or interpreter.
- Async Rust at scale Tokio, shared-state concurrency, cancellation safety.
- Large multi-crate workspace fluency.
- Ability to read large C codebases and derive correct Rust implementations.
- Mentorship mindset patience, clear communication, progressive handoff.
- Long-term ownership orientation multi-year commitment.
- Excellent written and verbal English.
- CS degree or equivalent (data structures, algorithms, OS, compilers)
Additionally, it would be beneficial if you have:
- VM design opcode dispatch, cooperative scheduling, register allocation.
- Binary protocol reverse-engineering and zero-copy parsing.
- Property-based testing (proptest, quickcheck).
- Concurrent data structures DashMap, Moka, lock-free patterns.
- Axum / Tower / WebSocket server experience.
- Developer tooling protocols (LSP, DAP).
- Observability tracing, OpenTelemetry, Prometheus.
- Database connectivity pooling, transactions, schema resolution.
- Experience onboarding engineering teams into Rust.
- AI-assisted development tools (Copilot, Claude).