Staff Engineer, Desktop (macOS)
Quick facts
- Pay
- USD 270000-350000 /Year
- Type
- Full-time
- Location
- San Francisco, California
- Industry
- Information Technology — 674 open jobs
- Visa in listing
- H-1B, OPT
- Apply
- Free to apply — never pay anyone for a job offer or visa sponsorship
Job description
About Wispr
Wispr is an AI research and product company building the voice interface for computing. AI can now reason, code, and act. Yet, humans still do the work of the interface. We think that’s backwards.
Our first products are Flow, which lets you speak naturally in any application, and Notetaker, which builds context across conversations. We’re building toward an interface that can perceive, understand, and take action with earned trust. That means solving hard problems across models, systems, and product - and caring about the final human experience as deeply as the technology underneath it.
About the role
You’ll own the architecture of our macOS platform and build its screen-context engine - the foundation that helps every feature understand what is happening on a user’s screen. You’ll solve the hardest desktop systems problems and create primitives that improve Wispr's products on macOS.
What you’ll do
- Build a reliable screen-context engine for dictation, Notetaker, Instruct Mode, and future products
- Set technical direction across accessibility, native integrations, memory, state, and background behavior
- Solve difficult performance, correctness, and cross-application failures
- Expand what Flow can understand while protecting performance and user privacy
- Turn OS-specific knowledge into durable foundations other engineers can extend
You may be a fit if
- You’ve designed a system or platform other engineers successfully built on
- You’ve recently shipped meaningful production code for a desktop application
- You debug unfamiliar systems from first principles
- You’ve owned a quality or UX metric, not only a feature roadmap
- You turn ambiguous technical problems into clear direction for a team
Prior experience with voice, ML, Electron, accessibility APIs, or macOS is not strictly required if you bring exceptional platform depth.
Get to know us
- Our Series B
- Advancing HCI
- Introducing Wispr Advanced Interfaces Lab
- Technical challenges behind Flow
Logistics
We sponsor H1B, O1, EB1, L1, STEM OPT, and more. We can't guarantee sponsorship for every role, but if we make you an offer we'll make every reasonable effort, with help from our immigration law firm.
We strongly encourage you to apply even if you don't meet every qualification. The strongest candidates we meet rarely do, so don't exclude yourself prematurely. We're rethinking how humans interact with AI, and doing that well demands diversity of perspective and experience.
We're committed to a fair and accessible interview process. If you need any accommodations or adjustments, please let us know.
Visa sponsorship record
No public sponsorship records foundWe didn't find H-1B, H-1B1, E-3 or green card (PERM) filings under the name Wispr in the Department of Labor and USCIS data. That doesn't mean the job can't be sponsored — the company may file under a different legal name, be new to sponsorship, or sponsor a visa that isn't in these datasets (for example H-2B or J-1).
Tip: ask the recruiter early, in writing, which visa they sponsor and whether they cover the legal and filing fees.
Which visas can work for this job
Occupation: Engineers, All Other (SOC 17-2199) — estimated from the job title.
- Mentioned in the listing
H-1B, OPT
- H-1B cap-exempt employer
Regular cap-subject employer — a new H-1B needs to win the lottery in March (unless you already hold cap-counted H-1B status).
- TN (citizens of Canada and Mexico)
This kind of role may fit the USMCA profession “Engineer” — it depends on the actual duties. No lottery, no cap; you need the matching degree or license.
- E-3 (Australia) and H-1B1 (Chile, Singapore)
Same degree requirement as H-1B, but no lottery and a separate quota that is rarely filled.
- O-1 (extraordinary ability)
For candidates with awards, publications, press, a high salary or critical roles at distinguished organizations. No cap, no lottery; the employer files a petition.
- STEM OPT extension (F-1 students)
Requires an E-Verify employer. We didn't find this company in the E-Verify list — ask HR.
Salary vs prevailing wage
Engineers, All Other · San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA. Annual prevailing wages set by the Department of Labor (OFLC).
| Level | Prevailing wage | H-1B lottery odds* |
|---|---|---|
| Level I | $98,051 | ~15% |
| Level II | $130,146 | ~31% |
| Level III | $162,261 | ~46% |
| Level IV | $194,355 | ~61% |
The listing has no salary, so we can't place it on a wage level. Ask the employer which wage level they'd file at: Level III–IV registrations get 3–4 entries in the H-1B lottery.
* Odds are DHS projections for the FY2027 wage-weighted lottery (actual results vary by year and employer). Since the FY2027 cap season the H-1B lottery is weighted by wage level: Level I = 1 entry, II = 2, III = 3, IV = 4. The level is set by the offered wage against the prevailing wage for the occupation and worksite. Separately, a $100,000 fee for new H-1B petitions for workers outside the US was announced in 2025; as of September 2026 a federal court ruling keeps it unenforceable while appeals continue — check the current status.
Sources: U.S. Department of Labor OFLC disclosure data (H-1B/H-1B1/E-3 LCA, PERM), OFLC prevailing wage data, USCIS H-1B Employer Data Hub, E-Verify participating employers. Data loaded: LCA FY2024–FY2026, PERM, USCIS Data Hub, OFLC wages; updated 2026-10-03. Employers are matched by name, so records of companies with similar names can occasionally be mixed up. This is general information, not legal advice — talk to an immigration attorney about your case.