Founding Software Engineer (Simulation)

Company DescriptionMercator is building AI agents that coordinate global supply chains. Today’s systems leak $1.7T in waste each year in retail alone - in overproduction, lost revenue, and unnecessary emissions.Mercator’s founders are seasoned technical operators with a decade of experience leading cutting-edge AI and simulation efforts across Google (Gemini, Tensorflow, & Google X). We recently raised $5M in seed funding from leading Silicon Valley investors and are scaling our small, elite engineering team to meet growing customer demand.Role DescriptionAs Mercator’s first product engineer, you’ll architect and build the core systems that power our simulation-driven product experience. You’ll work directly with customers to understand how they operate, translate real workflows into system design, and own the backend logic that turns complex scenarios into clear, actionable outcomes. You’ll also partner closely with the engineer building our web app to ship end-to-end features and ensure simulation outputs translate into intuitive product experiences.Like every early engineer, you’ll wear many hats:Talk to customers to understand their workflows, pain points, and desired outcomesDesign product and system architecture for new simulation-powered featuresImplement backend logic: state transitions, modeling, APIs, orchestrationCollaborate on user-facing behavior, flows, and UX with the application engineerShip fast, validate with customers, and iterate even fasterDebug issues (sometimes with a quick patch, sometimes improving system reliability)These features are built on top of a simulation engine that models complex, real-world operations; what you build will directly shape high-stakes decisions and outcomes.BenefitsComprehensive health, dental, and vision insuranceAs a company we’ll work from a fun destination (think: skiing, surfing) two weeks a yearApplicants must have valid U.S. work authorization. We are able to support H-1B transfers but are not initiating new visa sponsorships at this time.Compensation Range: $150K - $225K