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Founder Cto Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Cold Start Ventures

CTO Co-Founder

New York, NY · On-site

... CTO co-founders to lead new companies in our portfolio. Each venture is backed by tier-1 VCs with $1.5M+ in committed day-one capital . You'll join as a true co-founder - with the equity, influence ...

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Founder Cto information

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$25.5K

$166.5K

$276.5K

How much do founder cto jobs pay per year?

As of Jun 9, 2026, the average yearly pay for founder cto in the United States is $166,511.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $132,000.00 and $195,000.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What are some common challenges a Founder CTO faces when building and scaling an engineering team?

As a Founder CTO, one of the biggest challenges is balancing hands-on technical work with the strategic responsibilities of building and leading a team. Early on, you may be directly involved in coding and architecture decisions, but as the company grows, you'll transition to hiring, mentoring, and setting technical direction. Recruiting top talent, establishing scalable development processes, and maintaining a strong engineering culture are all key tasks. Navigating these shifts while aligning technology with business goals can be demanding but also highly rewarding for those passionate about both leadership and innovation.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a Founder CTO, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Founder CTO, you need deep technical expertise in software development, system architecture, and product management, often backed by experience in startups or leadership roles. Familiarity with cloud platforms, development frameworks, and agile project management tools, as well as knowledge of cybersecurity best practices, are typically required. Exceptional problem-solving, visionary leadership, and strong communication skills set outstanding Founder CTOs apart. These qualities are crucial for driving technological innovation, building scalable products, and guiding teams through the challenges of early-stage company growth.

What are Founder CTOs?

Founder CTOs are individuals who both co-found a company and serve as its Chief Technology Officer. They are responsible for shaping the technical vision, building and leading the engineering team, and making key decisions about technology strategy and product development. As co-founders, they also help set the company's overall direction and culture, often working closely with other founders such as the CEO. Founder CTOs typically combine deep technical expertise with entrepreneurial drive, playing a critical role in early-stage startups.

What is the difference between Founder Cto vs CTO?

AspectFounder CtoCTO
CredentialsTypically technical expertise, entrepreneurial experienceTechnical leadership, management experience
Work EnvironmentStartup, early-stage companyEstablished company, larger teams
Employer & IndustryFounded by the individual, startup industryHired by the company, various industries
Search & Comparison IntentUnderstanding startup technical leadershipComparing technical executive roles

The Founder Cto is a technical leader who co-founds a startup, often wearing multiple hats and shaping the company's technology from the ground up. A CTO, on the other hand, is a senior executive hired by an established organization to oversee technology strategy and operations. While both roles require strong technical skills, the Founder Cto is more entrepreneurial and hands-on in a startup environment, whereas the CTO typically operates within a larger, structured company.

More about Founder Cto jobs
What job categories do people searching Founder Cto jobs look for? The top searched job categories for Founder Cto jobs are:
Founder Cto jobs near you
Infographic showing various Founder Cto job openings in the United States as of May 2026, with employment types broken down into 95% Full Time, 2% Part Time, and 3% Contract. Highlights an 95% Physical, 1% Hybrid, and 4% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $166,511 per year, or $80.1 per hour.

Entrepreneur in Residence - Technical Co-founder (CTO)

FutureSight

Boston, MA • On-site, Remote

Full-time

Posted 4 days ago

Job description

The Opportunity
FutureSight is seeking an applied AI builder to co-found and lead the technical direction of a new B2B AI venture from the ground up. This is a co-founder partnership with founder-level equity and founder-level authority, not a salaried executive role.
We are not looking for someone who manages engineers from a distance or adds AI language to a traditional CTO resume. We are looking for someone who can take a vague problem, frame it clearly, design the right system, and turn it into something customers actually use and trust. If you've gone from ambiguity to working product before - and you want to do it again with the backing of an experienced venture studio - this is the opportunity.
This is a full-time, exclusive commitment to building and owning a single B2B AI venture from the ground up.
About FutureSight
FutureSight is a leading venture studio that co-creates world-class software companies with values-driven entrepreneurs from inception to exit. We are a team of founders, operators and designers with experience successfully bringing software to market at scale.
You'll co-create with a proven studio team, including:
  • John Carbrey - 4x founder, bootstrapped to $100M ARR
  • Joshua Auslander - Seasoned CFO and strategic advisor with $200M aggregate exits
  • Alan Smith - Globally recognized early stage validation expert, 24 products launched, an exit, 5M+ books sold
  • Prathna Ramesh - Early-stage investor and capital strategy advisor
The Partnership
  • Founder-level equity with meaningful ownership from inception, aligned across funding rounds
  • Founder-level authority, including co-decision rights on product, technology, hiring, fundraising, and strategy
  • Pre-seed capital committed by FutureSight for early hires and MVP development, with potential for follow-on funding
  • A proven process and playbook for taking ventures from 0 to 1, informed by the studio team's prior experience and mistakes
  • Studio resources, including embedded design, engineering, growth, and fundraising support from day one
  • Investor and advisor network across B2B AI and early-stage capital markets
  • A true co-creation model in which you operate as CTO with the studio as your partner - building alongside you, not above you
What you'll own
As Co-Founder & CTO, you will set the technical direction of the venture and lead its execution. This is a co-founder role, not a CTO hire.
  • Technical Direction - Own problem framing, architecture, system design, and product judgment from day one, translating rough product intent into structure, context, and specs that both humans and AI systems can execute against
  • Build - Use modern tools and frontier models to move fast without sacrificing quality or maintainability, designing agentic systems with first-principles thinking and knowing when orchestration adds genuine leverage versus when simplicity is the better call
  • Customer & Market - Be the primary technical voice in early customer conversations, understanding real workflows and shaping the right product rather than just shipping quickly
  • Traction Before Scale - Prove there is something worth scaling before thinking about scaling it, focusing on traction first and team-building second
  • Capital - Contribute to fundraising, from investor conversations to due diligence
  • Team - Recruit and grow a technical team when the time is right, and establish the cultural foundation of the company
Co-Founder Profile
  • Proven track record of shipping AI products to real users under real-world constraints - not research, experiments, or prototypes
  • Deep practical experience with frontier models, LLM-based systems, and agentic architectures, with strong system design instincts and a bias for simplicity and maintainability
  • Strong translation layer skills - able to turn messy product intent into clear structure, constraints, and specs that both humans and AI systems can act on
  • Close to the customer, comfortable in customer conversations, and able to let real workflows shape what you build
  • Rigorous about verification - feedback loops, evaluation, and systems that can be trusted
  • Prior experience as a technical co-founder or early engineering leader, with fundraising experience a strong plus
  • Founder at heart - energized by ambiguity, able to go far alone, and ready to commit fully
How to Apply
Please submit your resume, LinkedIn profile, and a brief note on why this venture aligns with your goals as a founder. We will move quickly for the right candidate.
FutureSight is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion. We welcome applicants of all backgrounds and experiences.

Apply