At a Glance
- Tasks: Join a mission-driven startup to build innovative healthcare solutions for women.
- Company: Hesta Health, a pioneering healthtech startup focused on postnatal care.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, equity, mentorship from experienced co-founders, and 25 days annual leave.
- Other info: Dynamic environment with immediate impact and excellent growth opportunities.
- Why this job: Be the technical backbone of a company making a real impact in women's health.
- Qualifications: 5+ years in product teams, strong full stack skills, and ML/data science proficiency.
The predicted salary is between 36000 - 60000 £ per year.
Our client, Hesta Health, is reimagining women's healthcare starting with postnatal care. Women spend approximately 25% more of their lives in ill health than men, representing a $1 trillion annual lost opportunity globally. Hesta is changing that, and they want a brilliant engineer to help build it. Fresh from closing their seed round, they’re hiring their first Founding Engineer. You’ll be the technical backbone of the company — working directly with two exceptional co-founders and their founding team to ship Hesta v1 and lay the foundations for what comes next.
The Role
This is a rare chance to join a mission-driven healthtech startup at day zero and own the entire technical build. You’ll work across the stack — frontend, backend, infrastructure — while embedding clinical-grade reliability, data privacy, and AI capabilities from the ground up.
What you’ll own:
- Build end-to-end product features across the full stack (frontend, backend, infra)
- Integrate AI/ML capabilities — risk stratification, smart triage, personalisation
- Build privacy-first, regulatory-compliant infrastructure (UK GDPR, NHS DSPT, MHRA)
- Shape and evolve the architecture and technical foundations as the company scales
- Establish a lightweight QMS to enable audit-readiness and regulatory compliance
- Contribute to a fast, iterative product loop — design, ship, learn
Who You Are
Essential:
- 5+ years in high-impact, early-stage product teams: you’ve shipped and scaled full stack products
- Strong backend (Node.js, Python/Flask, FastAPI) and frontend (React, Next.js, Vue) fundamentals
- ML/data science proficiency: Python, SQL, pandas, scikit-learn, PyTorch/TensorFlow
- Experience with cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure) and containerisation (Docker, Kubernetes)
- Proven ability to build data-secure, privacy-compliant infrastructure
- Product-minded: you think in outcomes, not just code
- Startup-ready: resourceful, comfortable with ambiguity, bias to action
Bonus:
- Experience in women’s health, digital therapeutics, or regulated healthtech
- Deployed LLMs or predictive models in production environments
- Familiarity with FHIR, HL7, or secure health data pipelines
- Hands-on LLM work: prompt engineering, RAG, fine-tuning (LoRA/QLoRA)
The Package
- Competitive salary + meaningful equity
- Work directly with and be mentored by two highly experienced co-founders
- Spacious office in Victoria (bike storage, changing facilities, good coffee)
- 25 days annual leave + public holidays
- Immediate, company-defining impact — this is day zero
Interview Process
- Values & Competencies interview (1 hour, virtual)
- Technical interview — 90 mins (45 min chat + 45 min live task)
- Final 2-hour in-person interview with co-founders
Hesta strongly encourages applications from people of colour, the LGBTQ+ community, people with disabilities, neurodivergent people, parents, carers, and people from lower socio-economic backgrounds.
Interested? Reach out to Kelly Gauthier (kelly@highersearch.co) or George Alexander (george@highersearch.co)
This company is not currently offering sponsorship to foreign candidates. If you are not able to live and work in London without sponsorship, please do not apply.
Founding Engineer in City of London employer: Higher - AI recruitment
Contact Detail:
Higher - AI recruitment Recruiting Team
StudySmarter Expert Advice 🤫
We think this is how you could land Founding Engineer in City of London
✨Tip Number 1
Network like a pro! Reach out to people in the healthtech space, especially those connected to Hesta Health. A warm introduction can make all the difference, so don’t be shy about sliding into DMs or sending LinkedIn messages.
✨Tip Number 2
Show your passion for women’s healthcare! When you get the chance to chat with the team, share why this mission resonates with you. It’s not just about coding; it’s about making a real impact in people's lives.
✨Tip Number 3
Prepare for the technical interview by brushing up on your full stack skills. Make sure you can confidently discuss your experience with Node.js, Python, and any AI/ML projects you've worked on. They want to see your thought process!
✨Tip Number 4
Apply through our website! It’s the best way to ensure your application gets seen. Plus, we love seeing candidates who take that extra step to connect directly with us.
We think you need these skills to ace Founding Engineer in City of London
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Your Passion: When you're writing your application, let your enthusiasm for women's healthcare shine through. We want to see that you’re not just a brilliant engineer, but also someone who genuinely cares about making a difference in this field.
Tailor Your CV: Make sure your CV is tailored to the role of Founding Engineer. Highlight your experience with full stack development and any relevant projects that showcase your skills in AI/ML and data privacy. We love seeing how your background aligns with our mission!
Be Clear and Concise: Keep your application clear and to the point. We appreciate straightforward communication, so avoid jargon and focus on what makes you a great fit for Hesta Health. Remember, we’re looking for someone who can communicate effectively across the team.
Apply Through Our Website: Don’t forget to apply through our website! It’s the best way for us to keep track of your application and ensure it gets the attention it deserves. Plus, it shows you’re serious about joining our mission-driven team.
How to prepare for a job interview at Higher - AI recruitment
✨Know Your Tech Stack
Make sure you’re well-versed in the technologies mentioned in the job description, like Node.js, Python, and React. Brush up on your full stack knowledge and be ready to discuss how you've used these technologies in past projects.
✨Showcase Your Problem-Solving Skills
During the technical interview, be prepared to tackle real-world problems. Think aloud as you work through challenges, demonstrating your thought process and how you approach problem-solving in a startup environment.
✨Understand the Mission
Hesta Health is focused on women's healthcare, so do your homework on the industry and their mission. Be ready to discuss how your skills can contribute to their goals and why you're passionate about making an impact in this space.
✨Prepare for Cultural Fit
The values and competencies interview is crucial. Reflect on your experiences and how they align with Hesta's mission-driven approach. Be ready to share examples that highlight your resourcefulness and ability to thrive in ambiguous situations.