Co-Founder / CTO at Consumer AI Startup
About UsPrimal's building a personal, AI-native utility system for human connection and commerce. We're taking a radically different approach in the consumer AI space by NOT focusing on general intelligence or reasoning. But rather, we’re leveraging intelligent systems to help us solve our most pressing human coordination challenges. We’re essentially building a “dumb AI” that’s lite, simple, ethical, and useful for everyday consumers.Led by a design founder and ex-VC, Primal’s been incubating in stealth for the past four years. Now we’re excited to expand our founding team and bring on a technical co-founder who can help us chart the engineering and AI direction for our company.This is a ground-floor opportunity to build a novel, category-defining product, establish its technical foundation, and scale with a world-class team gearing up to go viral.The RoleAs the CTO at a design-led company, your primary role will focus on translating existing product design into scalable, backend architecture. However, this is not just a technical role — you'll be a full partner working to build the company from the ground up, and will be deeply involved in shaping our market narrative, fundraising cycles, and (non-traditional) company culture.If you’re a scrappy, product-obsessed builder who’d rather focus on advancing novel, consumer experiences than frontier AI research, then this role is for you.Key Responsibilities:Take full ownership over our technical vision and underlying infrastructureLead our AI/ML research and development processes, selecting appropriate models, frameworks, and approachesMake strategic decisions regarding build vs. buy, open-source vs. proprietary, and how our technical partnerships will be structuredBuild the initial product from 0→1, writing production code and making sharp technical tradeoffsPartner with co-founders on fundraising, commercial development, product rollouts, and GTM strategyRecruit, hire, and lead our engineering teams as we scaleRepresent the company to investors, partners, consumers, and the broader dev communityWhat We're Looking ForRequired:5–10 years of software engineering experience, with clear examples of taking consumer products from zero to meaningful scaleGenuine AI/ML depth — not just API integration, but an understanding of how models work, where they fail, and how to build reliable systems around them (e.g. deep experience developing RAG systems, agentic architectures, context engineering, and/or custom neural networks)Strong full-stack instincts: able to make pragmatic architectural decisions and build end-to-end when needed, without being precious about the stackExperience with the practical realities of consumer product security — user auth, data handling, regulatory considerations — at a level appropriate to a founding teamA demonstrated ability to hire, mentor, and set technical culture, even if at a small scaleNice to Haves:An interest in computer visionFamiliarity with privacy-enhancing technologies (PETs) and confidential computingExperience with lower-level ("systems") programming languages (Rust, C++)Some technical thought leadership and/or the desire to influence and educate the publicThis Role Would Be Perfect for Someone Who:Built something cool in the last cycle, and is now looking for their next big thingRelishes the opportunity to build a novel consumer product from scratchHas deep founder DNA with sharp product instinctsDesires a healthy amount of autonomy over technical product decisionsIs a true systems-thinker who thrives in complex stacks and hybrid architecturesIs comfortable wearing multiple hats when going from 0→1Can translate highly technical concepts into crisp, clear sound bitesIs a natural team-builder and notorious talent magnetIs innately curious about human needs and behaviorsKnows when and how to delegate to coding agentsCan move fast with minimal processOperates with extreme high integrityGenuinely wants to bring fun, safe AI to the massesHas a contrarian...almost rebellious spiritStill has a chip on their shoulder with something left to prove*Note: This role may require traveling between NYC and SF for extended periods of timeWhat We OfferEquity & Compensation:Significant equity stake (20-30%) as a true co-founder, not an employeeCompetitive salary post-raise (initially may be minimal or deferred)Standard 4-year vesting with 1-year cliffFamily-friendly perksPrimal is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all team members.