Staff Software Engineer (Backend)

The Role

You’ll build the backend that makes AI employees possible. This is a foundational engineering role. We process millions of signals — lead data, email engagement, deliverability metrics, behavioral patterns — to make autonomous decisions. The backend is core to everything we do: it powers the AI, runs the platform, and determines how well Ava performs for every customer.

You’ll own major parts of it. What that looks like concretely:

• High-throughput AI orchestration. Design and build the services and pipelines that allow Ava to process massive volumes of signals and make fast, reliable decisions.
• Platform infrastructure. Artisan replaces an entire sales stack: email infrastructure, CRM, lead database, campaign engine, inbox management, and AI coordination — all in one product. You’ll own real pieces of this platform.
• High ownership, end to end. Design it, build it, deploy it, monitor it. We don’t separate architecture from implementation. You own outcomes, not tickets. Moving and iterating very fast. You ship constantly.

Who You Are

• 6+ years of backend experience, ideally at a high-growth startup where you owned systems end to end
• A 5x engineer who knows how to leverage Claude Code effectively
• Strong experience building and operating data-intensive services at scale
• Deep understanding of distributed systems, database performance, and API design
• Comfortable with cloud-native infrastructure: containers, orchestration, CI/CD, and monitoring
• Strong opinions on reliability, observability, and testing — with good judgment on when to move fast
• Clear communicator who can explain systems to engineers and product leaders alike
• TypeScript/Node preferred; Python, Go, or similar is fine if fundamentals are strong

Why This Role

• The problem is genuinely interesting. Autonomous AI agents interacting with real people, managing real infrastructure, and making real decisions creates backend complexity that is non-trivial and growing fast.
• You’ll have real ownership. Small team, large scope. The systems you build directly power what customers use — no layers between you and impact.
• The pace is high and the bar is higher. We ship weekly, iterate constantly, and expect engineers to drive outcomes.

Details

• Location: San Francisco, New York, or Remote (US)
• Team: Engineering
• Reports to: Sam Stallings, CTO
• Interview Process: Introductory chat with our recruiter, 60-minute technical interview with an engineer, second 60-minute technical interview with an engineer, 30-minute interview with Sam, our CTO, 30-minute culture and values interview with Jaspar, our CEO
• Our Culture and Values: Founder mindset. Everyone acts like an owner: take initiative, think big, challenge ideas, and push for 10× outcomes. Obsessed with impact. We apply the 80/20 rule, kill sunk costs quickly, and focus on what actually moves the needle. Customer-first, always. Every decision starts with the customer experience. High standards, every detail. Quality matters in everything we ship, from product and code to copy and design. Clear, direct communication. We value candor, fast responses, and real feedback. Winning team energy. Positive vibes, low ego, zero drama. We genuinely enjoy building together.
• Compensation Range: $225K - $300K