Senior Software Developer, Proactive – Apple – Waterloo, ON

Waterloo, Ontario is quickly becoming one of Canada’s most important tech hubs — and Apple’s Search and Data Foundations team is at the centre of it. This Senior Software Developer role offers the chance to build the next generation of on-device data and search infrastructure that powers Apple Intelligence, reaching millions of users around the world every single day.

This isn’t a role where you’ll be maintaining legacy systems or working in isolation. You’ll be collaborating across teams and organizations, writing performance-critical code that runs in resource-constrained environments, and contributing to foundational technologies like data pipelines, intelligent indexing, and search systems that sit at the heart of Apple’s intelligent user experiences.

About the Role: Senior Software Developer, Proactive – Search and Data Foundations

The Search and Data Foundations team is a central pillar of the Apple Intelligence Platform. Your work will span a broad technical stack — from foundational data storage and retrieval to intelligent indexing and search technology. You’ll ship production code that directly impacts how users experience Apple’s intelligent features on their devices.

Success in this role requires more than just strong coding skills. You’ll need to thrive in a fast-paced, collaborative environment, bring a deep understanding of systems programming, and be genuinely excited about building privacy-preserving, high-performance software that runs on Apple’s devices at scale. Cross-team collaboration and strong technical communication are a big part of how this team operates.

Benefits and Salary

Apple is well known for offering a competitive total compensation package. While the specific salary for this role is not listed in the posting, Apple typically provides a comprehensive suite of benefits including health coverage, employee stock purchase plans, and access to professional development resources. As a member of a high-impact engineering team, you’ll have the opportunity to work on cutting-edge technology in one of Canada’s most vibrant tech cities.

Responsibilities

As a Senior Software Developer on the Search and Data Foundations team, your day-to-day work centres on building and shipping high-performance, on-device intelligent systems. You’ll be involved at multiple layers of the technical stack, and your contributions will ship to millions of Apple devices used by real people every day.

• Design and build state-of-the-art, on-device, privacy-preserving intelligent systems
• Contribute across the stack, including foundational data storage, indexing, and search technologies
• Write performance-critical code engineered to run in highly resource-constrained environments
• Ship production code that runs on millions of Apple devices used daily
• Collaborate across multiple teams and organizations within Apple to deliver groundbreaking technology
• Develop and maintain data pipelines and intelligent indexing infrastructure within the Apple Intelligence Platform

Requirements / Skills

The ideal candidate is a strong systems programmer with a solid foundation in computer science and a passion for building reliable, high-performance software. Apple values engineers who can work both independently and collaboratively, and who bring clear, effective technical communication skills to complex problem-solving.

• B.S. or M.S. in Computer Science, or equivalent practical experience
• Strong computer science fundamentals, including algorithms, data structures, and systems concepts
• Ability to write reliable, resilient, performant, and well-tested code in production environments
• Strong problem-solving and debugging skills, particularly in complex systems
• Hands-on experience with at least one compiled language such as C/C++, Objective-C, Swift, Go, Java, or Rust, including multi-threaded application development
• Experience building production software systems within large engineering projects
• Familiarity with database systems and operating system concepts is a strong asset
• Experience with macOS/iOS development and performance profiling or tracing tools is an advantage

How to Apply

To apply, visit the official Apple job posting using the link below. Make sure your resume is up to date and reflects your most relevant systems development experience before submitting.

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