Head of Software Engineering

Duku AI; Greater London; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

A pioneering AI technology firm in the United Kingdom is looking for a hands-on leader to oversee and drive engineering execution. The successful candidate will play a pivotal role in shaping the technical roadmap, train AI agents, and deploy software daily. Ideal applicants should have a strong background in Python, TypeScript, and fluency with AI and LLMs. This is an exciting opportunity to be part of a venture-backed startup that's revolutionizing software quality. Join us and help accelerate innovation in autonomous testing.

Qualifications

• Proven ability to execute projects from zero to production.
• Experience in fast-paced startup environments is preferred.
• Strong understanding of AI technologies and LLMs.

Responsibilities

• Own engineering execution from end-to-end.
• Train AI agents to adapt in real-time.
• Collaborate closely with product founders to shape the roadmap.
• Deploy software daily and run experiments on models and pipelines.

Skills

Fluent in Python

Experience with TypeScript

AI/LLMs fluency

Product management skills

Job description

QA slows the world down. Flaky tests kill trust, stall releases, and bleed engineering velocity.

Duku AI is ending that era.

We’re building autonomous agents that think like engineers : they run every critical user journey, catch failures before users do, and self-heal as the codebase evolves. Real AI teammates, not test scripts that break on impact.

We’re venture-backed and led by operators who’ve scaled Meta’s testing infrastructure, launched Uber’s global playbooks, and grew Deliveroo from zero to hypergrowth. We know what elite execution looks like and we’re hunting for one more builder to help us rewrite the rules of software quality.

What You Do

• You will own engineering execution end-to-end.
• You will take ideas from zero to production.
• You will help define the technical DNA of the company.Ship fast, learn faster : We deploy daily, not monthly
• Talk to users, shape the roadmap : Sit in the trenches with founders on calls that define what we build
• Train AI agents: Design LLM-powered testers that explore, learn, and adapt in real time
• Own the stack :Python, TypeScript, cloud infra, from commit to production
• Turn prototypes into production : Run real experiments on models, embeddings, and retrieval pipelines

This is a hands-on leadership role for someone who thrives without guardrails.

What We’re Looking For

• Relentless drive: You execute fast, adapt faster
• Startup scar tissue : You’ve shipped product with no safety net
• Fluency with AI/LLMs : LangChain, vector stores, prompt engineering
• Product obsession : You care more about outcomes than outputs

Ideal Background

There’s no perfect pedigree. We hire for mindset, not credentials. That said, you might have:

• Shipped AI features in prod
• Built something from 0 to 1
• Thrived in chaos with high ownership

Why This Matters

Software is accelerating. QA hasn’t kept up. Autonomous testing is inevitable, and we’re building it.

Five years from now, every high-velocity team will rely on AI agents like ours to ship faster, safer, and smarter.

Join now, and help make that future real, before someone else does.