The Founding Engineer will design and build scalable backend systems, mentor team members, and engage in architecture and product decisions in a startup environment.
About Loop
Loop AI is a San Francisco–based tech company founded in 2022. We provide a Delivery Intelligence Platform for data-driven digital food brands, helping them optimize operations and make informed decisions. As a early stage AI startup, we are revolutionizing the restaurant industry by streamlining and automating back-office operations through cutting-edge AI technology. Loop is at the forefront of food-tech innovation, building solutions that power the future of digital-first restaurants.
About the Role
We are looking for a Founding Engineer with 4+ years of backend engineering experience to join our fast-growing team. This role is ideal for someone who thrives in a startup environment, has a strong sense of ownership, and can design, build, and scale backend systems from the ground up. You’ll be among the first engineers in our US team, working hand-in-hand with the founders on high-impact product and engineering decisions.
At Loop, you will play a critical role in shaping our backend architecture, driving technical excellence, and mentoring peers, while also engaging with customers to ensure our solutions address real-world challenges in the food-tech space.
Key Responsibilities
- System Architecture: Design and implement scalable backend system architecture to support current needs and long-term vision. Drive system performance, scalability, and reliability improvements across services. Establish engineering best practices for code quality, testing, CI/CD, and monitoring. Collaborate closely with product and leadership to align technology strategy with business goals.
- Critical Thinking & Problem Solving: Apply first-principles thinking to solve complex technical challenges. Challenge existing assumptions and propose innovative, practical solutions. Evaluate trade-offs between speed and scalability, balancing short-term deliverables with long-term architecture goals.
- Team & Mentorship: Provide technical mentorship to mid-level and junior engineers. Review code and contribute to fostering a high-quality engineering culture. Take ownership of projects, driving them from conception to deployment.
Must-Have
- 4+ years of professional experience building and scaling backend systems.
- Deep expertise in Python, Django, PostgreSQL (or similar backend stack).
- Proven ability to architect, design, and optimize backend services in production environments.
- Hands-on experience with cloud platforms (preferably GCP), data pipelines, and orchestration tools like DBT.
- Strong debugging, troubleshooting, and performance optimization skills.
- Self-starter with ownership mentality, capable of driving projects independently in a fast-paced startup setting.
Nice-to-Have:
• Exposure to frontend technologies (React / JS frameworks) with willingness to learn.
• Experience building customer-facing products in B2B SaaS or food-tech / logistics platforms.
• Demonstrated ability to mentor engineers and contribute to scaling engineering teams.
• Strong product sense, with curiosity and passion for solving real-world customer problems.
• A mindset focused on quality, continuous learning, and customer delight.
Top Skills
Dbt
Django
GCP
Postgres
Python
Loop AI - Delivery Intelligence Platform San Francisco, California, USA Office
San Francisco, California, United States, 94104
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