Founding Software Engineer

Harnham; New York (NY); On-site; USD 200,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

An innovative startup in the financial compliance sector is seeking a Founding Full Stack Engineer with a backend focus. This role offers the chance to lead the development of core infrastructure and data systems, collaborating closely with the founding team. You'll design high-scale APIs and support AI-driven tooling, playing a key role in shaping the company's architecture and culture. With significant ownership over system design and deployment, your contributions will directly influence early customer success in a fast-paced environment. Join a dynamic team and make a lasting impact in a rapidly growing industry.

Benefits

Equity

Full ownership of projects

Direct collaboration with founding team

Qualifications

• 4-6 years in software engineering, ideally at a startup.
• Strong backend fundamentals and experience with cloud services.

Responsibilities

• Design and scale backend systems for AI compliance tools.
• Build full stack from data modeling to API design.

Skills

Software Engineering

Cloud-Native Services

Backend Development

Data Architecture

API Development

Leadership

Education

Degree in Computer Science

Degree in Engineering

Tools

Python

Postgres

AWS

Terraform

React

Job description

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

Base pay range

$200,000.00/yr - $230,000.00/yr

Founding Full Stack Engineer

$200,000 - $230,000 + Equity

On Site – New York City

THE COMPANY

Our client is a high-growth startup in the financial compliance sector. Backed by top venture capital and scaling rapidly, they are seeing profits double every quarter. To keep pace with their expansion, they’re building out their team to further innovate on their AI-powered platform.

THE COMPANY

Our client is a venture-backed, high-growth startup at the intersection of AI and financial compliance. With revenue doubling quarter over quarter, they’re scaling aggressively to meet market demand—and building a product that helps institutions navigate regulatory complexity with confidence. The founding team includes repeat operators and technologists from top-tier institutions.

This is a rare opportunity to get in early and help define the architecture, culture, and direction of a company poised for long-term impact.

THE ROLE

They’re looking for a Founding Full Stack Engineer with a backend focus to lead the development of their core infrastructure and data systems. You’ll work closely with the CTO and founding team to build high-scale APIs, shape the data layer, and support AI-powered tooling that automates compliance workflows.

You'll have meaningful ownership across system design, deployment, and product development—and your work will directly impact early customer success.

Key responsibilities include:

• Designing and scaling backend systems to support AI-first compliance tools
• Building out the full stack from data modeling to API design to frontend support (React)
• Working with the founding team to define engineering best practices and tech stack decisions
• Deploying secure, maintainable systems in a fast-moving, zero-to-one environment
• Collaborating with product and ML engineers to integrate LLM-driven features

YOUR EXPERIENCE

• 4–6 years of experience in software engineering, with at least two roles under your belt
• Most recent experience at a startup (Seed to Series B preferred)
• Strong backend fundamentals and experience building cloud-native services (Python preferred)
• Solid understanding of data architecture, system design, and API development
• Degree from a top university in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field
• Leadership experience in college or beyond—whether as a TA, student group lead, or peer mentor
• You thrive in ambiguity, move quickly, and write code that scales

BENEFITS

• Full ownership and direct collaboration with the founding team
• NYC-based team, working onsite for high-bandwidth decision-making

HOW TO APPLY

Please express your interest by submitting your resume via the Apply link

KEYWORDS

Full Stack | Backend Engineering | Python | Postgres | AWS | Terraform | React | AI Infrastructure | FinTech | Early-Stage Startup | Founding Engineer | LLM Integration | Compliance Tech | Venture-Backed | Scalable Systems

Seniority level

• Seniority level

  Mid-Senior level

Employment type

• Employment type

  Full-time

Job function

• Job function

  Engineering, Research, and Management

• Industries

  Engineering Services, Accounting, and Financial Services

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