At a Glance
- Tasks: Design and build autonomous agents for real-time game testing across multiple devices.
- Company: Exciting early-stage startup revolutionising game development with AI technology.
- Benefits: Equity ownership, flexible hours, and a culture of trust and impact.
- Other info: Collaborate directly with founders and game studios to drive innovation.
- Why this job: Join a pioneering team and shape the future of game testing with cutting-edge AI.
- Qualifications: Experience with vision-driven agents and strong computer vision skills.
The predicted salary is between 50000 - 70000 £ per year.
About us
We're an early‑stage startup built on a simple belief: game developers should be building worlds, not chasing bugs. We're replacing manual QA with autonomous agents that truly understand gameplay. Our small, focused team combines deep machine learning research with strong commercial execution, driven to solve some of the hardest problems in game development. Just over a year in, we've built category‑leading technology, gained real traction, and partnered with some of the world's most storied game studios. We're backed by top‑tier investors and incubators, including SVV and EWOR.
The role
We are looking for a Founding Applied ML Engineer to own the moment where our models stop predicting and start acting in real games. You'll be the person who takes the multi‑modal model and turns it into reliable agents that tap, swipe, navigate, and verify flows across real devices; Android, iOS, PC. This role sits at the intersection of ML, automation, and systems engineering: you'll design how bots observe the screen, decide what to do next, and recover when the real world doesn't behave like a demo. If you want your work to live in production, catch real bugs, and influence how an entire industry tests games, this is the seat.
Key responsibilities
- Design End‑to‑End Game Agents: Build systems that connect perception (pixels, UI, simple state) to concrete actions (taps, swipes, clicks), so agents can reliably drive real games on mobile and desktop.
- Build Cross‑Device Automation: Develop mechanisms to replay complex user flows across a wide range of devices, OS versions, and aspect ratios without relying on brittle coordinates or hard‑coded timings.
- Automate Critical User Journeys: Turn core flows; tutorials, core loops, purchases, and other high‑value behaviors, into repeatable automated tests that can run on every build or on demand.
- Harden Agents for Production: Instrument, debug, and improve reliability under real‑world conditions (slow networks, inconsistent load times, flaky SDKs), and own the quality bar until QA teams trust running these unsupervised.
- Own the Production Standard: Create and maintain internal eval suites that measure what actually matters.
- Collaborate with Customers: Work with QA and engineering leads at game studios to understand their workflows, prioritize what to automate next, and incorporate their feedback into the roadmap.
You're a good fit if you...
You've built vision driven or multimodal agents using video, not just text or images, with a strong computer vision foundation across models. You're hands on with vision agents and VLMs such as LLaVA, CLIP, and Flamingo, and you've applied them in messy, real world environments like automation, robotics, autonomy, AV, or complex UI driven systems. You're comfortable working closely with QA and testing leads, and you've done this in an AI product startup, ideally at the zero to one stage.
Build things that actually touch the real world
Think in loops, not scripts. You're more interested in building agents that observe → decide → act → recover than recording click macros. You know how to combine simple perception (what's on screen) with control logic (what to do next) so systems stay robust when UIs, timings, or devices change.
Like talking to users as much as to your IDE
You're comfortable jumping on calls with QA / engineering leads, asking blunt questions about their workflows, and turning vague complaints ("this flow keeps breaking") into concrete automation that saves them time.
Bonus: You enjoy games or complex interactive systems
You don't have to be a hardcore gamer, but you're genuinely curious about how interactive experiences are built, broken, and tested; and you like the idea of agents learning to navigate them.
What's on offer
High trust, high impact: ship real product fast, work directly with founders.
Equity: Meaningful equity ownership. You'll share in the upside you help create.
Flexible hours, and a culture built on trust and output.
Get on board. Apply now. Think you have the skill and drive to thrive in this role? We can’t wait to meet you and get a taste of your work.
Founding Applied AI/Systems Engineer employer: ManaMind
Join our dynamic early-stage startup where innovation meets passion for gaming. As a Founding Applied AI/Systems Engineer, you'll be part of a small, dedicated team that values creativity and collaboration, allowing you to make a significant impact on the future of game development. With flexible hours, meaningful equity ownership, and a culture built on trust, this is an exceptional opportunity to grow alongside industry leaders while shaping cutting-edge technology.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Founding Applied AI/Systems Engineer
✨Join Local Tech Meetups
Get out there and mingle with fellow developers by joining local tech meetups. It’s a fantastic way to meet people who might be working at ManaMind or know someone who does. Plus, you can pick up some trendy tech skills and trends while you're at it!
✨Contribute to Open Source Projects
Show off your coding chops by jumping into open-source projects. Not only does this give you practical experience, but it also gets you noticed in the dev community. You'll create a killer portfolio that speaks volumes about your skills to ManaMind.
✨Tap into Online Developer Communities
Don’t underestimate the power of online developer communities like GitHub, Stack Overflow, and even Reddit. Participate in discussions, share your projects, and build your visibility. We can often find opportunities through these channels that can lead to a full-time gig at companies like ManaMind.
✨Explore Job Boards Specifically for Tech Roles
Keep your eyes peeled on job boards that focus on tech roles. Sites like TechCareers or Stack Overflow Jobs can often have listings for companies like ManaMind that might not show up on broader job sites. Make it a habit to check these regularly, and don’t hesitate to apply directly through our website!
We think you need these skills to ace Founding Applied AI/Systems Engineer
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show off your coding skills:When applying for a software engineering role, it's super important to showcase your coding skills. Make sure your CV includes your tech stack, any relevant programming languages you’re comfortable with, and examples of projects you've worked on. If you have a GitHub profile, link it up! We love to see code in action.
Tailor your portfolio:For a full-time role, we’d expect to see some solid examples of your work in your portfolio. Make sure to include at least two or three projects that highlight your problem-solving skills and your ability to work with different technologies. Focus on the projects that are most relevant to the position at ManaMind.
Craft a killer cover letter:Your cover letter is your chance to stand out—make it personal! Explain why you want to work at ManaMind and how your skills align with the role. Show us your passion for software development. We dig enthusiastic candidates who understand the value of collaboration and continuous learning!
Be clear and concise:When it comes to writing your CV and cover letter, clarity is key. Avoid jargon that could confuse us and stick to simple, direct language. Highlight your achievements with quantifiable results where possible, and keep everything easy to read. A well-organised application goes a long way!
How to prepare for a job interview at ManaMind
✨Brush Up on Your Coding Skills
For a full-time software engineering role, it's crucial that we stay sharp with our coding abilities. Expect technical questions that might involve solving problems on the spot or discussing algorithms. Practise on platforms like LeetCode or HackerRank to get comfortable with the types of questions that often come up.
✨Know Your Tools and Frameworks
Make sure we’re well-acquainted with the tools and technologies listed in the job description. Familiarise ourselves with any specific frameworks or programming languages mentioned. If ManaMind uses React or Node.js, for instance, be ready to discuss how we’ve used them in previous projects or coursework.
✨Showcase Your Projects
Bring along a portfolio that highlights our best work. This could be code samples, GitHub repositories, or any side projects we’ve built. Make sure we can talk through our thought process for each project, especially the challenges we faced and how we solved them—this shows our problem-solving skills in action.
✨Prepare for Behavioural Questions
While technical skills are key, full-time positions also require cultural fit. Be ready to discuss our previous experiences and how we handle teamwork, conflict, and deadlines. Brush up on the STAR method—Situation, Task, Action, Result—to clearly articulate our past experiences when discussing how we've contributed to a team.
