About this role
Founding Engineer
New York, New York | Hybrid
4 - 12 Years of Experience
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Who is Recruiting from Scratch:
Recruiting from Scratch is a premier talent firm that focuses on placing the best product managers, software, and hardware talent at innovative companies. Our team is 100% remote and we work with teams across the United States to help them hire.
Founding Engineer
Location
New York, NY — Tribeca
Work Arrangement: Hybrid — 4 days in-office per week Position: Full-time Company Stage: Seed-stage fintech / insurance technology startup, raised $7.5M Team Size: Approximately 12 employees, with a small engineering and data science team Experience: 4–12 years of software engineering experience Compensation: $150,000–$300,000 base + competitive equity Visa: Open to eligible OPT and H-1B transfers; no new visa sponsorship
Company Description
We are building an insurance technology platform that uses AI and predictive modeling to help homeowners manage the rising cost of home insurance. Our models analyze tens of millions of U.S. home insurance renewals to predict premium changes and support a three-year price guarantee, including reimbursement when premiums increase beyond the agreed terms.
The company is live across all 50 U.S. states and works with thousands of distributors. With $7.5 million in seed funding and rapidly growing revenue, the team is preparing to expand its product offering, including bringing auto insurance out of beta.
You'll join a small, high-energy team at an important stage of growth, working closely with the CTO and other early team members. As a founding engineer, you'll have significant ownership over architecture, product development, and technical decisions. This is a backend-heavy full-stack role for someone who enjoys building products from the ground up, solving ambiguous problems, and moving quickly from idea to production.
What You Will Do
Build and ship products end-to-end: Own features from initial product discussions and technical design through implementation, testing, deployment, and production support.
Develop backend services and APIs: Build reliable backend systems, APIs, and data workflows that support insurance products and customer-facing experiences.
Drive product expansion: Help launch the auto insurance product beyond beta and integrate new products into the existing platform.
Shape system architecture: Make important decisions around backend architecture, infrastructure, scalability, and long-term system design as an early member of the engineering team.
Contribute across the full stack: Work primarily on backend systems, with some frontend development using TypeScript, Next.js, React, and Tailwind.
Improve scalability and reliability: Build systems that can support growing customer demand, additional products, and expanding distribution.
Build internal tooling: Develop tools that allow non-engineering teammates to resolve common issues independently and reduce the engineering team's support workload.
Use AI-assisted development tools: Incorporate AI coding tools into your workflow to accelerate development, improve productivity, and ship efficiently.
Own technical decisions: Work autonomously, identify problems before they are escalated, and make pragmatic decisions in a fast-moving startup environment.
Collaborate closely with leadership: Work with the CTO and the broader team to influence product direction and establish engineering practices as the company grows.
Ideal Candidate Background
Required Experience
4–12 years of professional software engineering experience, with strong backend or full-stack experience.
Experience building and shipping production software products.
Demonstrated ownership of features from initial design through production.
Strong proficiency in Python and/or TypeScript.
Experience designing APIs and working with relational databases.
Experience at an early-stage startup or evidence of building zero-to-one products within a larger organization.
Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to work independently with minimal direction.
A product-oriented mindset and interest in contributing to decisions beyond implementation.
Comfort working across backend systems, frontend features, and architecture as needed.
Willingness to work on-site in Tribeca, New York City, four days per week.
Technical Skills
Core Engineering
Backend development and API design.
Python and/or TypeScript.
Relational databases and data modeling.
Full-stack product development.
System architecture and scalability.
Production deployment, debugging, and reliability.
Relevant Technologies
Backend: Python, FastAPI.
Database: PostgreSQL.
Frontend: TypeScript, Next.js, React, Tailwind.
Payments and integrations: Stripe, Auth0, Canopy Connect.
Development workflow: AI-assisted coding tools.
Candidates do not need to have used every technology listed. Prioritize strong engineering fundamentals, practical backend experience, production ownership, and the ability to learn new technologies quickly.
Preferred Background
Experience building B2B2C products or platforms serving both businesses and consumers.
Experience at an early-stage startup or as an early engineering hire.
Experience launching new products or taking existing products from beta to broader adoption.
Experience building scalable APIs, internal tooling, and integrations.
Frequent use of AI-assisted coding tools in day-to-day engineering.
Experience in fintech, insurance technology, payments, or other regulated industries.
Interest in insurance affordability, predictive modeling, or technology-driven financial products.
Experience working closely with a CTO or founding team on architecture and product decisions.
Working Style and Culture
High ownership: Takes responsibility for outcomes rather than waiting for detailed instructions.
Product-minded: Understands customer needs and makes practical engineering trade-offs.
Autonomous: Can identify problems, propose solutions, and execute independently.
Startup-oriented: Comfortable with ambiguity, shifting priorities, and a small team.
Execution-focused: Ships working software quickly without sacrificing important quality standards.
Technically versatile: Can work across backend, frontend, integrations, and architecture.
Proactive problem-solver: Looks for ways to improve systems and reduce repetitive work.
AI-enabled: Uses modern AI coding tools to increase development speed and effectiveness.
Collaborative: Works effectively with engineering, operations, and other non-engineering stakeholders.
Compensation and Benefits
Base salary: $150,000–$300,000, depending on experience and fit.
Equity: Competitive equity.
Work arrangement: Four days per week in-office in Tribeca, New York City.
Relocation: Relocation support available.
Visa support: Eligible OPT and H-1B transfers are listed as supported; new visa sponsorship is not available.
Ownership and impact: Opportunity to join early and influence product direction, architecture, and engineering practices.
Product scope: Work across backend systems, customer-facing features, internal tooling, and new insurance products.
Career growth: Help shape the technical foundation of a growing company approaching its next stage of expansion.
Why Join?
Join at an early stage: Become a founding engineer at a seed-stage company with $7.5 million raised and growing revenue.
Own meaningful product work: Take responsibility for features and products from concept through production.
Influence architecture: Help shape foundational engineering decisions as the platform scales.
Expand into new products: Contribute to the launch of auto insurance and future product lines.
Work closely with the CTO: Have direct input into technical direction and product decisions.
Build with modern tools: Work with Python, FastAPI, PostgreSQL, TypeScript, Next.js, and AI-assisted development workflows.
Solve a real consumer problem: Help build technology designed to improve homeowners' ability to manage insurance costs.
Receive competitive compensation: Earn $150,000–$300,000 in base salary, plus competitive equity and relocation support where applicable.
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