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Founding Software Engineer Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Tamarind

Founding Software Engineer

San Francisco, CA · On-site

$200 - $250/hr

About the Role We're hiring three exceptional Founding Software Engineers to help us scale the computational biology platform that powers our drug discovery pipeline. In this role, you'll collaborate ...

Leap Health, Inc.

Founding Software Engineer

Manhattan, NY · On-site

$150 - $200/hr

About the Role As a Founding Software Engineer , you will build the AI and automation systems that power Leap's clinical and business operations. You will own large surface areas across product, data ...

Navi AI

Founding Software Engineer

San Francisco, CA · On-site

About the role This is a founding engineering role. You'll own entire systems end to end - the ... About you * 5+ years of professional software engineering experience, with a track record of ...

Leap Health, Inc

Founding Software Engineer

New York, NY · On-site +1

$200K - $250K/yr

About the Role As a Founding Software Engineer , you willbuild the AI and automation systems that power Leap's clinical and business operations. You will own large surface areas across product, data ...

Tamarind

$200 - $250/hr

About the Role We're hiring three exceptional Founding Software Engineers to help us scale the computational biology platform that powers our drug discovery pipeline. In this role, you'll collaborate ...

Farsyt

Founding Software Engineer

Cambridge, MA · On-site

... the founding team. Responsibilities : • Build and ship backend systems (APIs, services, data ... engineering fundamentals (debugging, data modeling, system design) • Good product instincts ...

Unsiloed AI

Founding Backend Engineer

San Francisco, CA · On-site

$150K - $300K/yr

We are hiring a Founding Software Engineer in San Francisco. We are building a small, talent-dense team. This role will define the engineering archetype at Unsiloed AI and set the ceiling for the ...

Rockstar

Founding Software Engineer

San Francisco, CA · On-site

$150K - $250K/yr

They are hiring a full-stack software engineer to help shape the future of healthcare. This engineer will be on the front lines of the most ambitious product bets-owning development of core features ...

Rockstar

Founding Software Engineer

San Francisco, CA · Remote

$150K - $250K/yr

They are hiring a full-stack software engineer to help shape the future of healthcare. This engineer will be on the front lines of the most ambitious product bets-owning development of core features ...

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Founding Software Engineer information

See salary details

$63.5K

$147.5K

$205.5K

How much do founding software engineer jobs pay per year?

As of Sep 7, 2026, the average yearly pay for founding software engineer in the United States is $147,524.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $120,000.00 and $173,000.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is a founding software engineer?

Founding Software Engineers are among the first technical hires at a startup or newly formed company. They play a critical role in building the initial product, setting up the technical foundation, and often shaping the company's engineering culture and processes. In addition to coding, they may also be involved in architecture decisions, hiring, and even strategic business discussions. This role typically requires broad technical expertise, entrepreneurial spirit, and the ability to work in fast-paced, ambiguous environments.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a founding software engineer?

To thrive as a Founding Software Engineer, you need deep expertise in software architecture, full-stack development, and problem-solving, often demonstrated by a strong technical background and relevant degrees. Familiarity with cloud platforms, version control systems (like Git), and modern programming languages or frameworks is essential, along with startup exposure or experience. Initiative, adaptability, and outstanding communication are crucial soft skills for shaping the product vision and collaborating in a small, fast-moving team. These capabilities are vital for efficiently building robust products from scratch and driving early-stage company growth.

What are some unique challenges faced by founding software engineers in an early-stage startup environment?

Founding Software Engineers in early-stage startups often navigate rapidly shifting priorities and must wear multiple hats, from architecting core systems to handling on-call troubleshooting. The role typically requires balancing the need for quick feature delivery with building scalable, maintainable code. Close collaboration with co-founders and other early team members is essential, as decisions made at this stage have a lasting impact on the product and company culture. Adaptability, strong communication, and ownership are key, as resource constraints and ambiguity are common.

What is the difference between Founding Software Engineer vs Software Engineer?

AspectFounding Software EngineerSoftware Engineer
Required CredentialsBachelor's or higher in CS or related field; startup experience often preferredBachelor's degree in CS or related field; entry to mid-level experience
Work EnvironmentEarly-stage startup, high responsibility, flexible rolesEstablished companies or startups, structured teams, defined roles
Employer & Industry UsageFounding teams of startups, tech companiesTech firms, corporations, startups
Search & Comparison IntentUnderstanding startup roles, early-stage responsibilitiesStandard software development roles, career progression

The main difference is that a Founding Software Engineer is an early team member in a startup, often taking on broader responsibilities and helping shape the company's technical foundation. A Software Engineer typically works within established teams on specific projects, with more defined roles and responsibilities.

How much do founding software engineers make?

Founding software engineers often receive higher compensation than standard engineers, including equity or stock options, as they help establish the company's technology. Salaries typically range from $100,000 to $200,000 or more, depending on the company's size, funding stage, and location, with early-stage startups sometimes offering lower salaries but greater equity potential.

What does a founding software engineer do?

A founding software engineer is a key early team member responsible for designing, developing, and implementing the core software products of a startup or new project. They often work closely with founders to establish technical architecture, write code, and set development standards, typically using programming languages like Python, Java, or JavaScript. This role requires strong problem-solving skills, adaptability, and the ability to work in a fast-paced, evolving environment.
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Founding Software Engineer jobs near you
Infographic showing various Founding Software Engineer job openings in the United States as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 89% Full Time, 8% Part Time, and 3% Contract. Highlights an 88% Physical, 3% Hybrid, and 9% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $147,524 per year, or $70.9 per hour.

Founding Software Engineer

SupportFinity™

San Francisco, CA • On-site

$200 - $250/hr

Other

Posted 12 days ago

Job description

Company Description

Kalos is an early stage, high-growth startup based in San Francisco, CA. We built Blue – an AI Agent that is the world's best performance marketer. Blue works 24/7 to build and optimize ad campaigns to help our customers grow faster.

We are 5 people, and you'd be #6 on the team. Our early customers include well-known Silicon Valley tech companies, including multiple unicorns. We have more demand than we've been able to service. We're hiring on many fronts and it's time to go faster.

Role Description

As a founding engineer, you won’t just write code — you’ll help shape product, culture, and the trajectory of the company. You'll have an important voice in our technical stack, direction, and vision.

This is a full-time Software Engineering role. The current team is in San Francisco, and this role is in person at Kalos HQ.

We work hard and we know we're building a generational company. If you're looking for the ride of a lifetime, this might just be what you're looking for.

What You'll Do
  • You will build new features 0 ->1 fast and iterate across our product based on customer feedback
  • Own and ship core product features end-to-end across our AI agent, integrating LLMs and building workflows to delivering great UX
  • Collaborate directly with the founders on product vision, roadmap, and architecture
  • Lay the foundations for engineering culture, tooling, and processes
  • Help build and mentor the early team as we scale
Qualifications
  • 4-10 years experience building software with a strong track record and ability to work full-stack
  • Startup mindset — resourceful, sharp, and entrepreneurial, who is excited to take early ownership
  • Love to move fast, to learn, and to always-be-improving
  • Experience using LLMs in production and interest in staying at the cutting edge of AI
  • Experience in designing and building scalable systems. Knowledge of modern software engineering practices and frameworks
  • You care deeply about users and love shipping polished, impactful work
  • Strong product intuition — you think beyond the code
About the company

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