Founding Engineer
We're hiring a Founding / Senior Software Engineer to join a well-funded, early-stage AI product team based in London. This is a hands-on, high-ownership role for someone who enjoys building real products from the ground up and wants meaningful influence over technical direction, architecture, and delivery.
The product is already live, customer-facing, and built around applied AI rather than research. The focus is on shipping reliable systems that solve real operational problems at scale.
This role suits engineers who thrive in ambiguity, enjoy working close to customers, and are motivated by impact rather than hierarchy.
What You'll Be Doing
Building and shipping core product features using Python and TypeScript
Designing and owning backend-leaning full-stack systems
Working with LLMs and AI-driven workflows in production
Building event-driven systems and third-party integrations
Taking ownership from problem discovery through to delivery
Balancing speed vs scalability depending on context
Contributing to engineering best practices around testing, reliability, and security
Tech Environment
Languages: Python, TypeScript
Architecture: Cloud-native, distributed systems, event-driven design
AI: Practical LLM usage in real-world products
Infrastructure exposure: Kubernetes, serverless, modern cloud platforms (experience here is a plus, not a blocker)
What We're Looking For
5-10+ years' experience in full-stack software engineering (backend-leaning)
Proven experience shipping AI-powered products end-to-end
Early-stage startup experience strongly preferred
Comfortable working directly with customers and stakeholders
Strong ownership mindset; enjoys building, not just maintaining
Backgrounds as an ex-founder or founding engineer are very welcome
What's Not a Fit
Long tenures exclusively in large or highly process-driven organisations
Engineers who prefer narrowly scoped, ticket-based work
People uncomfortable with in-person collaboration or ambiguity
Location & Package
London-based
5 days onsite
Salary: £150,000 - £220,000 (experience dependent)