At a Glance
- Tasks: Own and improve product surfaces using AI tooling, shipping changes directly.
- Company: Fast-growing AI startup with a mission-driven culture.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, share options, 33 days holiday, and health plans.
- Other info: Collaborative office environment with great coffee and social events.
- Why this job: Make a real impact by solving interesting problems in a dynamic environment.
- Qualifications: Experience in product ownership, AI tools, and a passion for building.
The predicted salary is between 60000 - 75000 £ per year.
About Nous
Nous is an AI agent that takes some of the load of life: making good decisions and acting for people in areas where they're not the experts, or aren't paying enough attention. We started with bills, where we're already saving households thousands, and we're now expanding into new categories. Think Amazon starting with books.
It's working. 20x year-on-year growth makes us one of the fastest-scaling startups in the UK, and an NPS of +70 (higher than Apple) says our users love it. On top of bill optimisation, we've just launched two more products: insurance, where we're the first in the UK to get regulatory approval to run the full discovery-and-purchase journey as an agent (not just hand you a link). And subscription management, where we use Open Banking to actively cancel unwanted subscriptions for people, rather than just draw them a pretty graph.
We're a certified B Corp, and that's how we hold ourselves to the mission rather than just talking about it. We've stacked the deck: a founding team with multiple exits, and investors including the founders of Monzo, Wise, Booking.com, lastminute.com, Onfido, Funding Circle, Tide and Habito.
The problems are hard, and that's the point. Talk is cheap, and that goes for agents too. To have real impact, an agent has to break out of the sandbox and act in the real world, where there are consequences. That means solving all the thorny, frustrating, genuinely interesting problems the real world throws up.
How we build (worth reading before the role)
Most companies split the thinkers, the doers and the builders. We don't. Something special happens when they're the same people: a small team that builds and owns the tools for its own problems understands those problems from the inside. So the rule at Nous is simple. The person who feels the problem should be the one who builds the fix.
This isn't brand new. A sharp generalist could always wire something together with no-code and low-code tools to solve a problem. The catch was the ceiling: those tools were far more limited than real code, so you hit a wall the moment the problem got interesting. Unless you had superhuman levels of stubbornness and a high tolerance for using tools for things they really weren't designed for. What's changed is that ceiling. With AI tooling and a lot of context, you're now building much closer to real code, and shipping it on the live product. You can change how our WhatsApp agent handles a tricky conversation, dig through Open Banking data to find money we should be saving people, prototype a feature, or automate a process that used to eat someone's week.
And you're not doing this around engineering, you're doing it alongside engineers. Engineers build the safe surfaces you ship on (the tools, the infrastructure, the context APIs, the guardrails), and they're who you pull in when you reach the edge of what's safe to touch alone.
None of that works without a particular kind of person: not a software engineer, but someone who builds like one.
The role
You'll own a product surface and make it better, end to end, without waiting for an engineer to do it for you.
The clearest version of this already exists on the team. Ben joined as a PM, not an engineer. Engineering set him up with the right infrastructure and a context API, and now he ships changes to Nora (our customer-facing WhatsApp agent) himself, pulling people in only when he's blocked.
Worth being upfront: we've never hired for this profile directly before. The people doing it today grew into it here (Ben from product, Gen from ops) once we set them up with the tooling and context to build. You'd be the first we bring in, so expect the role to shift a bit as we figure out what works.
Depending on where you're strongest and where we need you most, the first surface might be:
- Nora and our AI agents. Find where she struggles in real conversations, improve how she handles them, build and run the evals that tell us whether she's getting better, and tighten the recovery flows for when things go wrong.
- Open Banking and subscriptions. Dig into the data behind our subscription product, spot the patterns, and build the logic that decides what's worth cancelling or flagging. Then work out how we cancel them automatically. Real money back in people's pockets.
- Whatever's most broken. New products and surfaces appear constantly. You'll take a rough, messy problem and turn it into something shipped and improving.
What you'll actually do
- Take a product problem from rough to shipped, with AI tooling (Claude Code, Cursor, whatever gets it done) as your main working environment.
- Answer your own questions. When you need to know how many members hit a broken flow last week, write the query and find out. Don't file a ticket and wait.
- Ship on the safe surfaces: prompts, agent behaviour, configuration, workflows, data pipelines, internal tools. Know where the edge is, and pull in an engineer before you cross it.
- Live close to the user. Read the conversations, watch where the product delights people or falls over, and let that drive what you build next.
- Own the outcome. A feature isn't done when you've shipped it, it's done when it's working for members.
About you
- You build without precise instructions. You've been a founder, an early PM, or the generalist who ends up owning the thing nobody else will. Give you a problem and some context and you start building. You don't wait for a spec or a map.
- AI tooling is already how you work. Not "ChatGPT wrote my cover letter". You use Claude Code, Cursor or similar as your working environment: prototyping, querying data, navigating systems, automating your own work. You've felt the shift where one person with the right tools does in an afternoon what used to take a sprint, and you've leaned into it. You're getting a sense of what problems are now much easier, and which aren't.
- You're not a software engineer, and you don't need to be. You're technically fearless yet humble about your limitations. You'll happily get under the bonnet, read enough code to be dangerous, write a bit of SQL, and pick up a new tool before anyone hands it to you. And you have good judgement on when you should ask for help.
- You've got product judgement. You can tell a real problem from a shiny one, you frame things around what changes for the member, and you kill your own ideas as readily as you back them.
- You've been at this a while. You've done the doing long enough to have the scars, and you've owned something real before. This isn't a first job, and you'll be trusted to own a surface early.
Nice-to-haves:
- You've built and shipped your own thing: a startup, a side project, an internal tool that took off.
- You've worked with LLMs, agents or evals, or with messy real-world data (Open Banking, financial, operational).
- Startup experience where you wore several hats and none of them fit.
How we work
We keep the middle thin, on purpose. There's barely any middle management, which means fewer bottlenecks and room for exceptional people to have real impact without first being promoted into managing others. It's a real bet, not a free lunch. Instead of a manager buffer, you get lots of context and colleagues who help because they're invested, not because an org chart says so. If you need a clear remit handed down before you can move, this probably won't suit you.
Your first 90 days are built around getting you to real ownership safely: pairing when you want it, lots of context, and people who want you to ship. We celebrate the person who built the unglamorous version this week, not whoever thought of it first.
We're office-first, near Farringdon. We do a lot of our best thinking together and being in the same room helps, though we're pragmatic about heads-down work when you need it.
Remuneration and benefits
Compelling package including share options with life-changing upside. We've raised enough to pay real salaries, and we all share in the upside. If we win, we win together.
- A great office set up for collaborative work (we already need more whiteboards)
- The equipment, setup and training you need to do your best work
- A high-context environment with real exposure to the big decisions, in the room when it happens
- Very good coffee
- A well-stocked kitchen (featuring a wildly popular toastie maker)
- Informal social every week, something bigger every month
- 33 days paid holiday (including bank holidays)
- Health and dental cash plans, including an employee assistance programme
- Travel benefits, including the cycle-to-work scheme and season ticket loans
If you don't tick every box but think you'd be great at this, get in touch anyway.
Product Builder in London employer: Nous
At Nous, we pride ourselves on being an exceptional employer that fosters a collaborative and innovative work culture. Located in Farringdon, our office-first environment encourages teamwork and creativity, while offering generous benefits such as meaningful share options, 33 days of paid holidays, and a well-stocked kitchen to keep you energised. With ample opportunities for personal and professional growth, including mentorship and the chance to lead impactful projects, you'll find a rewarding career path that aligns with your passion for product engineering.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Product Builder in London
✨Get Involved in Startup Events
Dive into the local startup scene! Attend pitch nights, hackathons, and networking events. It's a great way to meet founders and like-minded folks. Plus, you never know who might put in a good word for you at a startup like Nous!
✨Show Off Your Creativity
Startups love unique ideas! Create a portfolio or a personal website showcasing your past projects, especially those relevant to startups. This personal touch can really make you stand out when you're applying for that full-time gig at Nous.
✨Leverage Startup Communities Online
Get active on platforms such as Indie Hackers, Startup Grind, or even LinkedIn groups focused on startups. Participating in discussions can increase your visibility and open up potential job leads, especially at buzzing companies like Nous.
✨Direct Applications are Your Best Bet
Don't shy away from applying directly through our website. Startups often check their own portals first before other job sites. Tailor your application to show how you can add value to Nous — a personal touch goes a long way!
We think you need these skills to ace Product Builder in London
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Your Entrepreneurial Spirit:When applying for a role in startups and entrepreneurship, it's crucial to highlight any experience you have with starting your own projects or businesses. We love seeing examples of your initiative, so sprinkle in stories of how you’ve taken risks or solved problems creatively—this is what makes you stand out!
Tailor Your CV for Impact:In the startup world, your CV should reflect not just your experience, but the impact you've made. Use quantifiable achievements to show your contributions, like percentage increases in growth or revenue. Remember, we’re looking for go-getters who know how to get results!
Craft a Provocative Cover Letter:Your cover letter is a chance to showcase your passion and motivation for working at Nous. Don't just list your skills—share your vision and what excites you about the entrepreneurial journey. Connect your personal aspirations with what we need, and let your enthusiasm shine through!
Keep Your Portfolio Handy:If you have a portfolio showcasing any past projects or entrepreneurial efforts, definitely mention it in your application. Though not always necessary for full-time roles, it can provide us with deeper insights into your work style and creativity. If you have a blog, products, or any innovation, we'd love to see it!
How to prepare for a job interview at Nous
✨Show Your Entrepreneurial Spirit
In startups, they love seeing passion and initiative. Be ready to share any personal projects or ideas you've worked on. This shows you’re not just about the 9-to-5, but you’re invested in creating value, which is key in this fast-paced environment.
✨Brush Up on Your Problem-Solving Skills
Expect to be thrown some curveballs during the interview—startups often face unexpected challenges. Having a couple of examples up your sleeve where you’ve creatively solved problems will really impress them. It's all about how you think on your feet!
✨Know Your Stuff About the Industry
Since you're applying for a full-time role, they’ll want to see you've done your homework. Make sure you understand where the startup stands in its industry, including competitors and market trends. It’s a great way to show you're genuinely interested and can contribute from day one.
✨Show Flexibility and Adaptability
Startups can pivot quickly, so highlight your adaptability. Share examples of when you've successfully navigated change or taken on roles outside your comfort zone. This shows you’re ready for whatever comes your way, which is crucial in a startup atmosphere!