AI Operator - Platform Delivery

Distyl; San Francisco (CA); Hybrid; USD 140,000 - 200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Medical insurance

Flexible time off

401(k) and planning

Wellness benefits

In‑office lunches

AI tools access

Job summary

Distyl AI is seeking a results-driven Technical Program Manager to orchestrate multi‑team software and AI programs. You will own roadmaps, align engineering, product, and research, and translate ambition into actionable plans with clear milestones.

You’ll drive architecture tradeoffs, establish sprint cadences, and create templates to scale programs. This role demands hands-on leadership, ownership, and a bias for rapid execution in a fast‑growing AI platform company.

Qualifications

• Strong track record leading complex, multi‑team technical programs end to end.
• Ability to own roadmaps, drive accountability, and ship with cross‑functional teams.
• Experience shaping architecture discussions, tradeoffs, and execution plans.

Responsibilities

• Own the Program Roadmap: define scope, sequencing, dependencies across engineering workstreams.
• Drive Cross Functional and Technical Alignment: partner with engineering leads and executives.
• Manage Technical Tradeoffs: evaluate scope, timeline and dependencies with engineers.
• Operate at Maximum Velocity: keep programs moving in fast changing environments.
• Operate as an AI Native TPM: leverage frontier AI tools to improve engineering workflows.
• Write the Playbook: establish practices, sprint cadences, and reporting templates for scale.

Skills

Technical program management

Cross-functional leadership

Architecture discussions

AI tools usage

Communication

Ambiguity management

Job description

About Distyl AI

Distyl is an applied AI technology company partnering with the world’s most ambitious institutions to rearchitect critical operations for the frontier of AI. Our customers include the largest companies in telecom, healthcare, insurance, manufacturing, consumer goods, and global social organizations.

About Distyl AI

Distyl is an applied AI technology company partnering with the world’s most ambitious institutions to rearchitect critical operations for the frontier of AI. Our customers include the largest companies in telecom, healthcare, insurance, manufacturing, consumer goods, and global social organizations. We research and deploy technologies that power AI-native operations — both for our partners and for Distyl itself. Our work spans research into self-constructing systems, the development of the most reliable execution of AI systems, and products that transform mission-critical workflows. As a result, Distyl's technologies affect some of the world's largest operations — from hundreds of millions of consumer interactions to tens of millions of supply chain transactions and millions of patient journeys. Distyl is backed by leading investors including Lightspeed Venture Partners, Khosla Ventures, Coatue, DST Global, and the board-members of 20+ F500s.

What We Are Looking For

Distyl deploys production AI into some of the most complex operating environments in the world, and does it in weeks. That requires people who move without getting stuck, own outcomes without being asked, and treat ambiguity as a problem to solve, not a reason to slow down. At Distyl, this role sits inside our platform and product organization as the technical program manager behind everything we ship. You bring order to complex, multi team technical programs, you understand the engineering tradeoffs well enough to make real calls, not just relay them, and you close the gap between ambition and execution. The right person is deeply engaged: in the standup, in the architecture discussion, in the data, never hovering above it. You hold engineering, product, and research teams accountable to a shared roadmap without needing a title to do it. You'll drive the operating rhythm of Distyl's platform and product teams, ensuring platform capabilities are built and shipped with the same rigor and velocity we demand of client programs. You'll track scope, sequence dependencies, and create the forcing functions that keep engineering teams moving. This role is the operational and technical backbone behind product delivery. If you can run a technical program end to end, hold yourself and others to an uncompromising standard, and are energized by complexity rather than daunted by it, this role was built for you.

Key Responsibilities

• Own the Program Roadmap Define scope, sequencing, and dependencies across engineering work-streams. A program doesn't ship until success is defined, ownership is clear, and technical risk is understood.

Drive Cross Functional and Technical Alignment

Partner directly with engineering leads on architecture, scoping, and tradeoffs, and with executives on priorities and reporting. Navigate technical and business stakeholders with confidence, and surface risks before they become blockers.

Manage Technical Tradeoffs

Understand system design well enough to evaluate scope, timeline, and dependency tradeoffs directly with engineers, rather than translating secondhand.

Operate at Maximum Velocity

Keep programs moving in fast changing environments. Adapt quickly when priorities or requirements shift without losing momentum or dropping balls.

Operate as an AI Native TPM

Use the latest models and tools yourself, evaluate where AI can change engineering workflows, and push your teams to keep reinventing how they work.

Write the Playbook

Author the program management practices, sprint cadences, and reporting templates that let Distyl run technical programs at scale. Distyl TPMs should be the envy of the industry.

Who You Are

• A Chaos Wrangler: You bring order to ambiguity without slowing things down. You identify what's unclear, make it clear, and keep the program moving.
• A Background That Proves It The strongest candidates have run complex, multi team technical programs end to end, as Technical Program Managers at high growth software or AI companies. We're also open to Chiefs of Staff, COOs, or other operators from high intensity environments, provided you can point to real technical programs you've shipped, not just status meetings you've run.
• Accountable: You hold yourself and your teams to a high bar. Missed deadlines have explanations and plans — not excuses.
• A Strong Communicator Across All Levels: You switch seamlessly between technical deep-dives with engineers and high-level strategic conversations with executives
• A Raiser of the Bar: You have seen what excellence looks like at scale — and you use that benchmark to raise the operating cadence of every team you join. You don't just know what good looks like in theory; you've lived it, and you won't accept less
• Comfortable in Chaos: You thrive in fast-moving environments where priorities shift and the path forward isn't always clear. You find the path anyway
• AI-Native, Not Just AI-Curious: You actively use frontier AI tools in your daily work and have a track record of reinventing your own workflows as the technology evolves. You have strong opinions about what's changing fast, and you hold yourself and your teams to the standard of staying ahead of it — not catching up to it
• Travel: Expect ~20% travel.

What We Offer

• The base salary range for this role is $140K – $200K, depending on experience, location, and level. In addition to base compensation, this role is eligible for meaningful equity, along with a comprehensive benefits package
• 100% coverage of medical, dental, and vision insurance for employee and dependents
• Flexible time off
• Retirement and financial planning benefits, including access to pre-tax HSA, FSA, and commuter accounts, 401(k), and financial coaching resources
• Comprehensive wellness benefits, including physical fitness, mental well-being, and fertility and family-building benefits through Carrot
• Complimentary in‑office lunches and snacks provided
• Access to state‑of‑the‑art AI models, generous usage of modern AI tools, and real‑world business problems
• Ownership of high‑impact projects across top enterprises
• A mission‑driven, fast‑moving culture that values curiosity, pragmatism, and excellence

Distyl has offices in San Francisco and New York. This role follows a hybrid collaboration model with 3+ days per week (Tuesday–Thursday) in‑office. We believe diverse perspectives make our work stronger and more impactful. We are an equal opportunity employer and evaluate all applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected characteristic. We encourage candidates from all backgrounds to apply.