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Lightspeed Renderer - Senior Software Engineer

Canva

Canva

Software Engineering
Melbourne VIC, Australia
Posted on Mar 30, 2026

Job Description

  • Join the team redefining how the world experiences design.

Hey, g'day, mabuhay, kia ora, 你好, hallo, vítejte!

Thanks for stopping by. We know job hunting can be a little time consuming and you're probably keen to find out what's on offer, so we'll get straight to the point.

Where and how you can work

Our flagship campus is in Sydney. We also have a campus in Melbourne and co-working spaces in Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide. But you have choice in where and how you work, we trust our Canvanauts to choose the balance that empowers them and their team to achieve their goals.

What you’d be doing in this role

As Canva scales change continues to be part of our DNA. But we like to think that's all part of the fun. So this will give you the flavour of the type of things you'll be working on when you start, but this will likely evolve.

  • Design, develop, and deploy novel solutions to our rendering technologies using Rust alongside wGPU, Data Oriented Design, and WebAssembly.

  • Build and optimize text, integration, graphics, and orchestration features, ensuring smooth and efficient rendering performance.

  • Research, advocate for and implement novel ways of achieving superior performance under unique constraints.

  • Take ownership of projects, improve processes, and proactively drive initiatives that contribute to team and company goals.

  • Identify opportunities for cross-team collaboration to unlock new insights and innovations.

You're probably a match if

  • Experience with Rust, C++, or C for performance-driven development.

  • Proficiency in frontend development (TypeScript/JavaScript) and integrating native code via Wasm.

  • Passion for writing performance-focused code, with a deep understanding of asynchronous programming, data structures, solution design, and architecture patterns.

  • Passion for performance debugging and benchmarking, ensuring efficient and optimized solutions.

  • Proven ability to collaborate effectively within a team, communicate ideas clearly, and contribute to shared goals.

  • Strong problem-solving skills, with experience in breaking down complex projects into actionable tasks.

Nice to have:

  • Experience in game engine development or working with Entity Component Systems (ECS) and other data-oriented architectures.

  • Strong background in graphics programming using WGPU, WebGL, OpenGL, Vulkan, or similar technologies.


About the team

The Editing Group at Canva is responsible for the core design experience that powers millions of creations every day. From intuitive design tools to real-time collaboration, this group ensures that Canva’s editor remains smooth, scalable, and feature-rich. Engineers in the Editing Group tackle complex challenges like rendering performance, interactive design elements, and seamless cross-platform editing, all while keeping the experience intuitive for users of all skill levels. Whether it’s enhancing text capabilities, refining image editing, or optimising the user interface, the Editing Group is at the heart of Canva’s mission to make design simple and accessible.

Lightspeed Renderer is Canva’s next-generation, general-purpose renderer: it’s our way to deliver dramatically faster first paint, smoother interactions, and consistent fidelity across browsers and OSes while making rendering dramatically cheaper for Export and AI workloads.

What's in it for you?

Achieving our crazy big goals motivates us to work hard - and we do - but you'll experience lots of moments of magic, connectivity and fun woven throughout life at Canva, too. We also offer a range of benefits to set you up for every success in and outside of work.

Here's a taste of what's on offer:

  • Equity packages - we want our success to be yours too

  • Inclusive parental leave policy that supports all parents & carers

  • An annual Vibe & Thrive allowance to support your wellbeing, social connection, office setup & more

  • Flexible leave options that empower you to be a force for good, take time to recharge and supports you personally

Check out lifeatcanva.com for more info.

Other stuff to know

We make hiring decisions based on your experience, skills and passion, as well as how you can enhance Canva and our culture. When you apply, please tell us the pronouns you use and any reasonable adjustments you may need during the interview process.

We celebrate all types of skills and backgrounds at Canva so even if you don’t feel like your skills quite match what’s listed above - we still want to hear from you!

Please note that interviews are conducted virtually.