Founding Engineer - AI / Firmware

Jobot; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 160,000 - 250,000; Full time

Job summary

A stealth-mode AI startup is seeking a Founding Engineer to join their mission-driven team. This role involves building intelligent products that work with messy, real-world data, requiring expertise in firmware, machine learning, and system deployment. Join a dynamic environment where you can shape the culture and technology of the company.

Benefits

Great Benefits

Growth Opportunity

Great Culture

PTO

401K

Qualifications

• At least 5 years of professional engineering experience, preferably in a startup.
• Experience with firmware/hardware and sensor data.
• Proficiency in backend programming and APIs.

Responsibilities

• Build systems for real-world sensor and time-series data.
• Deploy and maintain machine learning models in production.
• Design APIs and backend services for hardware-software integration.

Skills

Problem-solving

Collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Tools

Git

Cloud platforms

Job description

2 days ago Be among the first 25 applicants

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This range is provided by Jobot. Your actual pay will be based on your skills and experience — talk with your recruiter to learn more.

Base pay range

$160,000.00/yr - $250,000.00/yr

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Job details

This Jobot Job is hosted by Sydney Weaver

Are you a fit? Easy Apply now by clicking the "Easy Apply" button and sending us your resume.

Salary $160,000 - $250,000 per year

A Bit About Us

A stealth-mode, venture-backed AI startup working at the intersection of software and hardware is looking for a Founding Engineer to join its small, mission-driven team. This company has already secured capital from top-tier investors including the same backers of OpenAI. They are building intelligent, real-world products designed to operate in environments where data is messy, constrained, and valuable. If you’re excited by low-level systems, machine learning, and seeing your code come to life on a physical device—this is the opportunity to own the full engineering lifecycle.



Why join us?


Great Benefits, Growth Opportunity, Great Culture, PTO, 401K, and much more!

Job Details

You’ll join as one of the first engineers and help shape both the product and the culture of the company. This startup is solving complex problems involving real-time sensor data, edge computing, and production-grade ML—blending Firmware embedded systems with modern software architecture. You’ll work directly with the founding team to architect, build, and deploy systems that interact with real-world environments. This role is ideal for someone who has meaningful experience shipping products end-to-end and thrives in high-ownership, low-bureaucracy environments.

Responsibilities

• Build systems capable of ingesting, processing, and acting on real-world sensor and time-series data
• Deploy and maintain machine learning models in production, both in the cloud and at the edge
• Design and implement APIs and backend services to support hardware-software integration
• Optimize systems for low-latency and low-power scenarios where data throughput is limited
• Collaborate cross-functionally with hardware, product, and data science
• Help define technical strategy and make foundational architectural decisions
• Take products from prototype to scale, including manufacturing, firmware integration, and post-deployment support
  
  

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree and at least 5 years of professional engineering experience (startup experience preferred)
• Experience with firmware/hardware and working with sensor data
• Proficiency in backend programming, APIs, and solid understanding of both SQL and NoSQL databases
• Hands-on experience with cloud platforms and version control systems such as Git
• Proven track record of building and deploying systems that interact with real-world sensor or time-series data
• Hands-on experience developing and shipping a hardware product through its full lifecycle
• Experience working with embedded systems or low-power, edge-computing devices
• Strong problem-solving skills and a collaborative, startup-ready mindset
  
  

Interested in hearing more? Easy Apply now by clicking the "Easy Apply" button.

Jobot is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We provide an inclusive work environment that celebrates diversity and all qualified candidates receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.

Sometimes Jobot is required to perform background checks with your authorization. Jobot will consider qualified candidates with criminal histories in a manner consistent with any applicable federal, state, or local law regarding criminal backgrounds, including but not limited to the Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring and the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance.

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Seniority level

• Seniority level

  Not Applicable

Employment type

• Employment type

  Full-time

Job function

• Job function

  Engineering and Information Technology

• Industries

  Hospitals and Health Care, Non-profit Organizations, and Government Administration

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