Open Whisper Systems

Making private communication simple.

Founded 2012
1-15 employees
  • Digital Communication
  • Headquarters address
    2973 16th Street, San Francisco, CA 94103, USA

    Open Whisper Systems is making private communication simple. We design open protocols, develop Open Source software, and give it away for free.

    It's challenging work, and we pay ourselves to take it on, but we're not a business. We started this project because we think making things is fun, privacy is valuable, and cryptography is remarkable.

    Working at Open Whisper Systems is an opportunity to collaborate with passionate people in an environment where it's possible to be creative and effective.

    Highlights

    1. Not VC Funded - We're not a business. We'd rather think creatively than think about the dough.
    2. Small Team - We like working closely with a few people to build something great. We're passionate, but not wingnuts.
    3. Open Salaries - We have an open process for determining how much everyone is paid.
    4. Open Source - Everything we produce is open source. Every time we write code, we get to share it with the world.

    (Not Really) Benefits

    1. Health - No gym membership, but any time you feel like doing push-ups, we'll do them with you.
    2. Meals - No catered meals, but sometimes we cook together. And if you lose a bet, it probably means a sushi dinner is on you.
    3. Equipment - Most of us use our own laptops, but we've got your surfboard covered.

    We're Looking For

    • Server Developer*. We're seeking a full-stack engineer with a penchant for server-side Java, high performance server architecture, and scaling tens of millions of users with hundreds of thousands of requests per second. Help take ownership of a unique infrastructure with novel challenges that is both high scale and aspires to "zero knowledge." A small team means you will be responsible for everything on the spectrum from architecting major features to devops and deployment. This is an opportunity to play a major part in building and maintaining a service that serves rather than leverages its user base.

    • Android Developer*. Is the pleasure center of your brain directly wired to the experience of a slick UX or a nice animation? Do you hunt down memory leaks and StrictMode violations for fun? We're looking for someone with deep knowledge of the Android framework and an equally strong intuition for pairing beautiful app experiences with beautiful code. You'll be the architect of major features, making your code available to the world. You don't need to be a security expert; it's knowing how to make complicated systems simple to use that's at the heart of what we do.

    • Desktop Developer* (Web Developer). Our desktop client is a cross-platform JavaScript application. We're looking for a developer to join us in making high-level architectural decisions, building out major features, and shipping regularly to a growing user base.

    No experience with cryptography necessary, just solid web development experience, an eye for good design, and the desire to ship a first-class experience that is beautiful, rich, and reliable. Time spent with Node and Electron is a plus.

    • Designer. Signal is all about making privacy simple and accessible. We're looking for generalists with UX and graphic design experience who are eager to have a real impact on product direction.

    Working at the intersection of usability and security presents the difficult design challenge of distilling complex behaviors into intuitive interactions. Help us provide a seamless experience across our Android, iOS, and desktop clients.

    Send us a note at workwithus@whispersystems.org. We look forward to hearing from you.

    Tech stack

    Android, iOS, Electron, Dropwizard, Postgres, , Redis
    Open Whisper Systems - Company Photo
    Open Whisper Systems - Pre-standup run
    Open Whisper Systems - We take paid trips to Hawaii a few times a year.
    Open Whisper Systems - Some of the gang
    Open Whisper Systems - Hackathon in Zurich
    Open Whisper Systems - Company Photo