Technical Recruiter | Founding Talent Hire | Engineering & Applied AI Hiring | Must have startup exp

Optimal; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 112,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Optimal is seeking a Technical Recruiter in San Francisco (onsite) to lead founding talent hire for engineering and applied AI. You will help shape the hiring function from the ground up and partner with founders on strategy and execution.

You will own end-to-end recruiting for software, infrastructure, AI, and product engineering, build outbound pipelines, and create a fast-moving candidate experience that meets a high talent bar.

Qualifications

• 2+ years as a technical recruiter hiring engineering talent with a startup
• Proven track record sourcing, engaging, and closing engineers in competitive markets
• Hands-on experience building outbound sourcing pipelines from scratch
• Strong understanding of technical roles across software engineering, infrastructure, full-stack, and applied AI
• Startup / scale-up experience (fast-paced, early-stage)

Responsibilities

• Own full-cycle recruiting for software engineering, infrastructure, applied AI, and product engineering roles
• Build high-quality outbound sourcing pipelines targeting elite technical talent
• Partner directly with founders on hiring strategy, role calibration, interview design, and closing
• Create a high-touch, fast-moving candidate experience that reflects the company's talent bar
• Build the foundation of the function - systems, workflows, templates, and talent market maps

Skills

Technical recruiting

Full-cycle recruiting

Sourcing at scale

Outbound pipelines

Hiring for AI/ML roles

Hiring for software/infra

Stakeholder management

Job description

Technical Recruiter | Founding Talent Hire | Engineering & Applied AI Hiring | San Francisco (Onsite)

Must have high growth startup experience & Recent Engineering & AI Recruitment

Package: $112,000 - $130,000 base + up to $200,000 performance bonus + meaningful equity

Type: Permanent, full-time

Eligibility: Open to candidates with existing US work authorization

Non-Negotiables - please only apply if you have ALL of the following

• 2+ years as a technical recruiter hiring engineering talent with a startup
• Proven track record sourcing, engaging, and closing engineers in competitive markets
• Hands-on experience building outbound sourcing pipelines from scratch
• Strong understanding of technical roles across software engineering, infrastructure, full-stack, and applied AI
• Startup / scale-up experience (fast-paced, early-stage)
• Must have startup experience

Role Overview

A hyper-growth, venture-backed AI company is hiring one of its very first recruiters, and the mandate is huge. You'll own end-to-end hiring for engineering and technical roles and build the entire talent function from the ground up, working directly with the founders.

This is a founding-level seat at a company scaling fast, backed by top-tier investors, and setting an exceptionally high talent bar. You won't be slotting into someone else's process - you'll be the one designing it.

Key Responsibilities

• Own full-cycle recruiting for software engineering, infrastructure, applied AI, and product engineering roles
• Build high-quality outbound sourcing pipelines targeting elite technical talent
• Partner directly with founders on hiring strategy, role calibration, interview design, and closing
• Create a high-touch, fast-moving candidate experience that reflects the company's talent bar
• Build the foundation of the function - systems, workflows, templates, and talent market maps

Nice to Have

• Experience at a high-growth startup, AI company, or specialist technical recruiting agency
• A strong network across engineering, AI, startup, or quant communities
• Comfort operating with high agency in a scrappy, early-stage environment

This is a rare chance to build a talent function from zero at a rocketship. If you tick every box above and can work onsite in San Francisco, get in touch for a fast response.