Founding Engineer (AI)

Founding Engineer / Member of Technical Staff

Conditions

Posted Date Mar 14, 2026 Employment Type Full-time Experience Level Mid-Senior level Location San Francisco Bay Area Annual Salary 180,000 USD Category ** Programming ** Company **sartre group **

Founding Engineer / Member of Technical Staff

Role: Founding Engineer / Member of Technical Staff Company: Venture-backed AI startup (early stage) Location: San Francisco, CA (in-office) Funding: ~$5M Seed Compensation: $150k–$220k base + meaningful early equity Visa: Sponsorship possible for exceptional candidates

Why this role is interesting

• Join as one of the first engineers at a newly funded AI startup
• Build AI systems from scratch, not maintain legacy platforms
• Work directly with the founder shaping both product and architecture
• Apply LLMs, agents, and real-time systems to a large real-world industry

About the company

You could be joining a recently funded startup building an AI-native platform using large language models, AI agents, and real-time decision systems to modernise parts of the insurance industry.

The company recently raised a $5M seed round and is now hiring some of its first engineers to help build the core platform.

As an early engineer, you would play a key role shaping both the technical foundations and the product direction as the company scales.

Technology

Current stack includes: Searching for Development & Programming roles that provide visa sponsorship? Connect with international employers through Development & Programming Jobs with Visa Sponsorship opportunities actively seeking talented professionals.

• Python
• Next.js / TypeScript
• GCP
• LLMs and agent frameworks
• Embeddings and vector systems
• Real-time decision systems

Problems you could be solving

• Designing and building AI voice agents interacting with real users
• Embedding LLMs directly into operational workflows
• Building real-time decision systems handling high volumes of interactions
• Integrating AI systems with complex legacy infrastructure
• Shipping production systems quickly in a small founding engineering team

What we’re looking for

• Strong full-stack engineering ability
• Experience building production systems involving LLMs or applied AI workflows
• Ability to design and build systems from zero to one
• Comfort working in early-stage startup environments
• Strong ownership mindset and product thinking

Explore our comprehensive directory of visa sponsorship jobs from employers worldwide who are ready to sponsor talented international professionals. Ideal background

• Experience working on AI agents, LLM infrastructure, or applied AI systems in production
• Engineers who enjoy solving difficult problems, moving quickly, and building new systems from scratch will thrive in this environment.
• The team works closely in person in San Francisco, which suits engineers who enjoy high ownership and fast iteration.
• Candidates already based in the US are welcome, and the company is also open to relocation from Europe or other regions.
• Visa sponsorship available for exceptional candidates.

Who this role is great for

This role tends to suit engineers who:

• Enjoy building systems from scratch rather than maintaining legacy codebases
• Want high ownership and direct influence on product direction
• Are excited by LLMs, AI agents, and applied AI systems
• Prefer small, high-velocity teams over large engineering organisations

Compensation

$150,000 – $220,000 base salary Meaningful early-stage equity Compensation may be higher depending on experience.

If you are interested in building ambitious AI systems early in a company’s journey and working closely with a founding team, we would be happy to hear from you.

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