Product Engineer - Agentic A.I

SalesApe.ai; United Kingdom; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A pioneering AI technology company in the UK is looking for a Product Engineer to develop AI-powered tools that enhance productivity for SMBs. This hands-on role involves prototyping solutions, collaborating closely with sales and growth teams, and significantly impacting customer success. Ideal candidates have extensive software development experience, strong communication skills, and thrive in dynamic environments.

Qualifications

• 5+ years in commercial software development with 2 years on agentic or AI-native products.
• Excellent communication skills for technical and non-technical audiences.
• Ability to thrive in ambiguous, fast-moving environments.

Responsibilities

• Prototype and own AI-powered tools and agents that solve real-world bottlenecks.
• Collaborate with commercial stakeholders to ensure effective solutions.
• Maintain a flexible backlog prioritised by ROI and urgency.

Skills

Python

React

Next.js

Django

MySQL

Agile development

Tools

Git

CI/CD

Docker

Airflow

LangChain

Job description

Why SalesApe?

Join SalesApe, one of the fastest-growing AI companies, recognised as a leader in cutting-edge AI technology and backed by over $20 million from top VCs.

We're at the dawn of a powerful evolution, set to transform society with our tech. Our mission? To tackle inequality by empowering a huge market of non-tech SMBs-93% of all businesses, think construction, automotive, real estate, and more. While the tech industry has compounded its growth with computing power, these businesses have been technically starved.

With AI agents and our natural language interface technology, we're unlocking huge productivity gains for our clients. It's deeply rewarding to see firsthand the transformation in small businesses as they embrace their agent-not just as a tool, but as a trusted, hard-working member of their team. The emotional bond our clients feel toward their agent is undeniable-they often tell us their 'Ape' has become part of the family. Our vision is to become the ' brain' of a business spinning out agent worker, freeing up time and simplifying operations, to ensure humans spend more time in real-life interaction.

If you're ready for intense, high-energy, meaningful work, come make a real impact with us at SalesApe
Founder Elevator Pitch on our Mission and Purpose:

As we started building with large language models and AI-powered natural language interfaces, I had an aha moment. It hit me just how significant this inflection point is: compute-the raw power of computers-is now accessible to people who don't use computers."

"And when I thought about that, I realized the closest invention humanity has seen to this shift was electricity. When electricity arrived, it didn't just light up homes-it transformed industries, democratized wealth, and empowered everyone, from factory owners to farmers, to grow and thrive. Today, with AI, we have the opportunity to do the same for the real economy."

"For the last two decades, the tech industry has had an incredible advantage. Computers have been like co-pilots for us, quietly amplifying our productivity and enabling us to grow faster than ever before. But 95% of businesses-builders, plumbers, and real estate agents-have been technically starved. These businesses make up 50% of GDP, five times larger than the entire tech industry, but they've never had access to the tools they need to compete."

"This is the inequality we're solving. APE AI is democratizing technology, bringing the power of compute to businesses that have been left behind. And what's so rewarding is that we're not just helping faceless corporations-we're empowering real people. Small business owners who pour their hearts into their work. People whose success directly impacts their families, their communities, and society at large. It's deeply rewarding to see firsthand the transformation in small businesses as they embrace their agent-not just as a tool, but as a trusted, hard-working member of their team."

"For me, this mission is personal. I've spent my career building companies that encourage people to connect in real life, to be physically active, and to engage with their communities. This isn't just about productivity-it's about health, happiness, and thriving societies. Humans weren't built to spend their lives staring at screens. We're wired to interact, to move, to be part of the real world. And what excites me is that Ape AI is helping to make this possible-empowering businesses that create real-world value to thrive at the same pace as the tech giants."

"This isn't just about technology. It's about fairness. It's about giving the power of compute to the people who need it most, so they can grow, thrive, and make a difference. That's our mission, and it's something we can all be proud of.

Role Overview

A Product Engineer is a hands-on, mission-aligned engineer embedded directly in one of our commercial pods (Sales, Growth, CS, or Implementation). You're not building requirements from a doc-you're discovering the problem, validating it with customers, and shipping the solution, fast.

You'll prototype and own AI-powered tools and agents that solve real-world bottlenecks, while collaborating daily with commercial stakeholders to ensure what you build actually moves the needle.

Why This Role is Essential

In today's fast-paced tech landscape, the ability to take an MVP from concept to reality is critical. Product Engineers not only solve complex technical challenges but also ensure that every feature is closely aligned with evolving customer needs. Your work in rapid prototyping, rigorous testing, and continuous improvement will drive both product excellence and long-term business impact.

Defining the Role: Product Engineer vs. Product Manager

While Product Engineers and Product Managers work hand in hand, your focus will be on the "how" of product development. You'll write code, build prototypes, and refine features with precision-balancing rapid experimentation with the discipline of building production-quality systems. This technical focus complements the Product Manager's role in defining the "why" behind product vision and strategy.

Core Responsibilities

1. Embed with a Commercial Pod (Scored: Proximity to Value, Ownership, Commercial Intuition)

• Partner deeply with Sales, Growth, CS, or Implementation teams.
• Live at the point of value-join calls, shadow workflows, and spot pain points before they become tickets.
• Own feature design, build, and validation with pod leads.
• Example: You might prototype a lead scoring tool that increases conversion, then assess whether it should scale org-wide.

2. Prototype Fast, Ship Faster (Scored: Generalist Agility, Rapid Experimentation)

• Build 0→1 tools in 7-day sprints or less.
• Stay scrappy: test hypotheses quickly and validate with real users.
• You'll own backend integration, agent tuning, and data handling.
• Example: Build a lead routing tool in week one, iterate based on feedback by week two.

3. Maintain an Agile, Commercially-Aligned Backlog (Scored: Communication, Autonomy, Ways of Working)

• Collaborate daily with pod leads; co-own a flexible backlog prioritised by ROI and urgency.
• Use structured tooling and clear documentation to manage shifting priorities.
• Push back diplomatically when needed, always protecting delivery velocity.

4. Design for Handoff & Scalability (Scored: Productionization, Engineering Collaboration)

• Once a prototype has real user traction, prepare it for core engineering.
• Document architecture and edge cases.
• Write clean, reproducible code with automated test coverage.
• Lead structured handoff sessions with core engineering to ensure smooth deployment.

5. Decide What Should Scale (Scored: Systems Thinking, Cross-Pod Awareness)

• Not everything needs to scale.
• You'll assess when to keep things local to a pod vs. promote org-wide adoption.
• Analyze dependencies, maintainability, and multi-pod usability before advocating for rollout.

Essential Skills & Qualifications

Your Toolkit
• Languages & Frameworks: Python, React, Next.js, Django, MySQL
• Bonus: Experience with agentic tools, LLMs, or voice-based AI agents
• Stack: Git, CI/CD, Docker, Airflow, LangChain (or similar)

You Might Be a Fit If You...

• Have 5+ years in commercial software development, with at least 2 years working on agentic or AI-native products
• Thrive in ambiguous, fast-moving environments, taking initiative when others wait
• Can context switch like a startup founder, moving between debugging backend systems and co-creating feature scope with a GTM leader
• Write code that's both shippable and shareable-built to test but ready to scale
• Care about the humans using your tools as much as the tools themselves

Soft Skills

• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills-capable of holding meaningful technical conversations with both technical and non-technical audiences.
• A bias for action: you move quickly, iterate fast, and are relentless in driving product impact.
• Ability to thrive in ambiguity and proactively solve problems without waiting for direction.

Growth Opportunities

As a Product Engineer, you will have opportunities to advance into senior technical roles, lead development teams, or specialize in areas such as system architecture, data analytics, or AI/ML. Continuous learning and a passion for innovation are essential for long-term career growth in this rapidly evolving field.