VP of Engineering, AI & FinTech

Vice President of Engineering

Location: NYC (in-person)

About the Opportunity

We are seeking a bold, execution-focused

VP of Engineering

to partner directly with our Founder/CEO in building a billion-dollar company. This is an early-stage executive leadership role—functionally a pre-CTO position—owning the entire technical organization and shaping the future of AI-powered retail infrastructure.

Our mission is to build the category-defining operating system for physical retail stores—replacing outdated, generic platforms with intelligent AI agents that help small business owners reduce operating costs and increase revenue.

We are post-product-market fit, achieved 4x revenue growth in 2025, maintain 96% retention, and are scaling at 20% month-over-month growth. Backed by Y Combinator and leading venture investors, we have strong runway and significant expansion plans.

What You’ll Own

Engineering Leadership \& Scale

• Build and lead a high-performance engineering team, starting with a 5-person org and scaling rapidly
• Recruit exceptional talent and personally drive key senior hires within the first 90 days
• Manage a $2–3M engineering budget with accountability for velocity, quality, and reliability
• Establish strong engineering culture, execution rigor, and performance standards

Architecture \& Technical Strategy

• Architect a scalable, resilient system capable of supporting daily high-volume retail workflows
• Design and integrate AI agents directly into customer workflows
• Embed fintech capabilities across the platform (instant funding, ACH, payroll, B2B payments)
• Ensure long-term scalability, performance, and security across AWS infrastructure

Product \& Executive Partnership

• Partner closely with the Founder/CEO on product roadmap and strategic direction
• Serve as a key thought partner in company-wide decisions
• Present technical strategy, risks, and performance metrics to the Board
• Engage directly with customers to inform product decisions

Ideal Background

• 8\+ years of engineering experience, including 2–3\+ years in leadership
• Prior startup experience required (not first startup)
• Demonstrated success scaling a small engineering team (e.g., 5 → 10\+)
• Experience in FinTech, particularly payments or transaction systems
• Strong hands-on familiarity with:
• Node.js
• TypeScript
• Next.js
• tRPC
• AWS cloud infrastructure
• Comfortable leading investor-facing technical discussions

What We’re Looking For

• Thrives in high-intensity, high-ambiguity startup environments
• Executes quickly with minimal onboarding
• Brings a strong network and the ability to close top engineering talent
• Builder mindset with deep ownership mentality
• NYC-based or willing to relocate (no relocation support provided)

Not a Fit If You:

• Prefer stability over rapid change
• Seek a purely IC role
• Require extended ramp-up periods
• Are currently optimized for large, highly bureaucratic environments