Sr. Staff Data Architect
Waymo Open · verified Oct 24, 2026 At a glance
Senior Data Architecture & Governance role at Waymo. Mountain View · $298,000–$368,000 base.
dataroles summary, based on the employer's posting.
What you'll do
- Set the Data Lake’s global architecture direction, moving it from ad hoc work toward a scalable production analytics platform
- Lead cross-domain pipeline design and coordinate dependencies across shared infrastructure and product teams
- Replace tangled data lineage with linear DAGs and Lakehouse/Medallion practices
- Run design reviews that set expectations for modular code, testing, dependency registration, and environment setup
- Build reusable pipeline frameworks and integrate privacy, access controls, and compliance into core data architecture
What you bring
- A bachelor’s, master’s, or doctoral degree in computer science, computer engineering, or an equivalent field
- At least twelve years leading design, delivery, and operations for multi-petabyte data lakes or warehouses in fast-growing companies
- A record of leading architecture and governance changes that moved data platforms from ad hoc processes to standardized practices
- Expertise with distributed batch and streaming systems, plus the ability to align senior leaders, engineering teams, and data scientists
Who this fits
This senior architecture role suits someone who has led large-scale data platform and governance changes while balancing analyst speed with central controls. The role is based in Mountain View, and the listing describes a full-time position.
From the employer
Waymo is an autonomous driving technology company with the mission to be the world's most trusted driver. Since its start as the Google Self-Driving Car Project in 2009, Waymo has focused on building the Waymo Driver—The World's Most Experienced Driver™—to improve access to mobility while saving thousands of lives now lost to traffic crashes. The Waymo Driver powers Waymo’s fully autonomous ride-hail service and can also be applied to a range of vehicle platforms and product use cases. The Waymo Driver has provided over ten million rider-only trips, enabled by its experience autonomously driving over 100 million miles on public roads and tens of billions in simulation across 15+ U.S. states.
You will:
• Define and drive the global architectural roadmap for Waymo's Data Lake, governing the transition from ad-hoc processing to a production-grade, highly scalable analytical ecosystem.
• Serve as the ultimate Tech Lead (TL) over cross-domain data pipelines, governing dependencies and maintaining platform consistency across both centralized infrastructure and embedded product domains.
• Champion and enforce linear DAG architectures and modern Lakehouse/Medallion standards to untangle highly coupled, opaque "spaghetti" lineage.
• Chair centralized Data Design Review forums, establishing unified standards for modularized code, testing suite enforcement, DAG dependency registration, and environmentalization.
• Architect common, self-service frameworks and "Managed Pipeline Services" (like hardened wrappers and templates) for downstream consumption by Data Engineers and Product Data Scientists.
• Oversee core integration strategies for Data Governance, ensuring privacy (GDPR), access Control (IAM/RBAC), and pipeline compliance are deeply baked into core architecture.
You have:
• BS/MS/PhD in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or equivalent.
• 12+ years of experience leading the design, implementation, and operations of multi-Petabyte Data Lake/Data Warehouse solutions in high-growth companies.
• Proven track record of being the Lead Architect driving significant data governance and data platform maturity transitions (e.g., ad-hoc ➔ standardized).
• Deep experience driving a data infrastructure org through rapid growing phrase, effectively balancing speed for analysts with central governance guardrails.
• Expert-level technical depth in distributed batch/streaming frameworks (e.g., C++, Flume, Apache Spark, Flink).
• Highly effective cross-functional influencer; capable of driving alignment across hundreds of Stakeholders (Director+ levels, Embedded Eng, Data Science).
We prefer:
• Hands-on knowledge of cloud-native or internal release hardening ecosystems (e.g., Canary/CAS, CI/CD pipelines, container orchestration).
• High proficiency with Google-internal pipeline/data stacks (Flume, SQLP, Rapid, CAS, F1).
The expected base salary range for this full-time position across US locations is listed below. Actual starting pay will be based on job-related factors, including exact work location, experience, relevant training and education, and skill level. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for the role location or, if the role can be performed remote, the specific salary range for your preferred location, during the hiring process.
Waymo employees are also eligible to participate in Waymo’s discretionary annual bonus program, equity incentive plan, and generous Company benefits program, subject to eligibility requirements.
Salary Range$298,000—$368,000 USD
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