Backend-Leaning Product Engineer

Job Description

Job Description

About the Role

We're a small, high-ownership product team building real-world AI and automation products. As a Backend-Leaning Product Engineer , you'll own customer-facing features end-to-end — from design through shipping and iteration. This is a foundational role where you'll make real product and engineering trade-offs, navigate messy integrations, and move fast with strong judgment. You'll work closely with founders and customers in a hybrid San Francisco environment.

This role is a great fit if you thrive in ambiguity, love shipping things that matter, and want outsized ownership at an early-stage startup.

What You'll Do

• Own features end-to-end from initial design through launch and iteration.

• Make product and engineering decisions independently, without heavy PM support.

• Build and maintain backend systems, APIs, data models, and automation pipelines.

• Integrate with external tools, legacy systems, and messy third-party services.

• Design workflows and orchestration layers for AI/automation-driven products.

• Debug production issues and apply strong engineering judgment under pressure.

• Balance full-stack work when required, with a clear emphasis on backend ownership.

• Collaborate closely with founders, customers, and cross-functional stakeholders.

What We're Looking For

Required:

• Backend-focused software engineering experience — you can design, implement, and ship customer-facing backend features independently.

• Proven track record of owning the full lifecycle of customer-facing features: ideation, implementation, and iteration based on feedback.

• Experience in early-stage startup or high-ambiguity environments (founding engineer, early engineer, or equivalent).

• Strong cross-functional collaboration and communication skills.

• Must be legally eligible to work in the US without employer visa sponsorship.

• Based in San Francisco or willing to relocate — hybrid/in-office required.

Nice to Have:

• Experience integrating with external systems, third-party APIs, or legacy platforms.

• Applied AI or workflow/orchestration experience: agentic workflows, RAG pipelines, or LLM-enabled features.

• Python proficiency; modern web/backend stacks are welcome — engineering quality matters more than specific stack.

• 0-to-1 product building experience.

Not a fit if you are: frontend-only, data/internal-tools-only, pure DevOps/SRE without product ownership, or pure research/ML without a shipping track record.

Compensation & Benefits

• Base salary: Up to $275,000 depending on experience

• Equity: Meaningful early-stage equity package

• Visa sponsorship: Not available — must be authorized to work in the US

Location

This role is on-site / hybrid in San Francisco, CA . Candidates must be based in SF or willing to relocate.