At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead the technical direction of an innovative AI platform and evolve its architecture.
- Company: Exciting London AI startup with a focus on automation and growth.
- Benefits: Competitive salary over £100,000 plus equity and flexible hybrid work.
- Other info: Join a startup with a healthy runway and a vision for sustainable success.
- Why this job: Be the first dedicated engineer and make impactful decisions in a dynamic environment.
- Qualifications: Senior engineer with real production AI experience and a passion for autonomy.
The predicted salary is between 90000 - 100000 £ per year.
A London AI startup is building the bridge between how non-technical teams already work and the agent-powered systems that can do that work for them. The product watches how a business operates, learns its processes, and automates them without an engineer in the room. Founded by two operators who have scaled and exited businesses before, V1 is live, paying customers are in, and the £375,000 seed just closed. Burn is low, runway is healthy. The vision is a strong, profitable business, a sensible exit, and decent lives in the meantime.
You would be the first dedicated software engineer. This is a senior role with real ownership, real decisions, and real accountability. The founders are technically capable, and one of them built the product himself, but they need to move into growth. This isn’t a 9-5 and it’s not 9-9-6. You are judged on your output.
Location: London, hybrid (1 to 2 days a week in a co-working space)
Salary: up £100,000 + equity
Interview process:
- Intro call with AG Talent
- Intro call with one of the founders to discuss the company, role, and your experience
- Whiteboarding with another founder. Two problems shared in advance, one internal, one customer-facing
- Final conversation with both founders
The role:
- Own the technical direction of the platform. Architecture decisions are yours.
- Take a PHP/Laravel codebase built at pace and evolve it into something robust and scalable. This will likely be a migration to TypeScript.
- Own the LLM layer across OpenAI, Gemini, and Anthropic, deciding what goes where and what comes next.
- Build with and alongside AI. Agents, LLMs, and automation are core to the product and to how you work.
- Speak to customers directly and translate what you hear into product decisions.
Your experience:
- Senior-calibre engineer who has owned outcomes end to end, ideally inside a startup under around 60 people.
- Real production AI experience. You have shipped LLM features into a real product with real users and dealt with what broke.
- PHP, ideally Laravel; otherwise Symfony. Does not need to be your current language. If you used it earlier in your career and the concepts are still familiar, that is enough.
- TypeScript and JavaScript exposure useful but not heavy. The platform is backend weighted.
- Workflow orchestration or agentic systems experience is a strong advantage.
- You want autonomy and accountability, not structure and sign-off.
- You like the idea of a sustainable, profitable business more than the idea of a billion-pound valuation.
- Comfortable shipping AI-assisted code and pushing the boundaries of what that enables.
Apply or DM for more information.
Software Engineer employer: AG Talent
Contact Detail:
AG Talent Recruiting Team
StudySmarter Expert Advice 🤫
We think this is how you could land Software Engineer
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Reach out to people in the industry, especially those who work at startups or have experience with AI. Use platforms like LinkedIn to connect and engage with them. You never know who might have a lead on your dream job!
✨Tip Number 2
Prepare for those interviews! Since you'll be whiteboarding with the founders, practice solving problems out loud. Get comfortable explaining your thought process and decisions. It’s all about showing how you think and approach challenges.
✨Tip Number 3
Show off your passion for AI! When chatting with the founders, share your experiences with LLMs and automation. Talk about projects you've worked on and how you’ve tackled real-world issues. This will help you stand out as someone who truly gets the product.
✨Tip Number 4
Don’t forget to apply through our website! We want to see your application come through directly. It shows initiative and gives us a chance to get to know you better right from the start. Plus, it’s the best way to stay updated on your application status!
We think you need these skills to ace Software Engineer
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Your Passion: When you're writing your application, let your enthusiasm for AI and software engineering shine through. We want to see that you’re genuinely excited about the role and the impact you can make in our startup.
Tailor Your CV: Make sure your CV highlights relevant experience, especially with PHP, Laravel, and any AI projects you've worked on. We love seeing how your past roles have prepared you for this unique opportunity, so don’t hold back!
Be Authentic: We appreciate honesty and authenticity in applications. Share your real experiences, challenges, and successes. This helps us get a sense of who you are beyond just your technical skills.
Apply Through Our Website: For the best chance of getting noticed, apply directly through our website. It’s the easiest way for us to keep track of your application and ensures it lands in the right hands!
How to prepare for a job interview at AG Talent
✨Know Your Stuff
Make sure you’re well-versed in the technologies mentioned in the job description, especially PHP and Laravel. Brush up on your AI experience too, as you'll need to demonstrate how you've shipped LLM features in the past.
✨Prepare for Whiteboarding
Since there’s a whiteboarding session with one of the founders, practice solving problems on a whiteboard. Focus on articulating your thought process clearly, as they’ll be looking for how you approach challenges, not just the final answer.
✨Show Your Ownership Mindset
This role is all about accountability and ownership. Be ready to discuss specific examples from your past where you took charge of a project or decision. Highlight how you’ve navigated challenges and what outcomes you achieved.
✨Engage with the Founders
During your conversations with the founders, don’t hesitate to ask insightful questions about their vision and the product. This shows your genuine interest in the company and helps you understand how you can contribute to their goals.