Founding Software Engineer - Backend

Founding Backend Software Engineer to work directly with the CTO to design, prototype, and productionize AI-powered systems from first principles. This is a founding role with ownership over architecture, product direction, and engineering culture. You will rapidly prototype concepts, ship AI-driven features end-to-end, set early engineering standards around testing and reliability, translate ambiguous problems into concrete experiments, and lead architecture decisions. Collaboration spans diverse customers and industries; experience with legacy systems/COBOL or program analysis is a plus. The role emphasizes systems thinking, fast prototyping, and world-class AI engineering.