Founding Engineer
Listed on 2026-08-27
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Software Development
AI Engineer (Applied/Software)
About the Role
This is a founding engineering position at an early-stage healthtech startup building AI-powered patient recruitment infrastructure for clinical trials. You'll work directly on the core platform — scaling AI agents, integrations, and multi-channel outreach — and have an outsized impact on product direction and architecture from day one.
What You'll DoOrchestrate a fleet of AI agents coordinating patient recruitment across hundreds of clinical trials in North America.
Build and maintain integrations into customer systems, including custom integrations for specific software versions or configurations.
Scale LLMs across voice, SMS, and email channels while keeping conversations consistent and personalized.
Tune AI agent conversations and build workflows for domain-specific logic (e.g., eligibility calculations, screening questionnaires).
Develop call center management tooling and scheduling algorithms for recruiters and clinical research coordinators.
Reverse-engineer legacy healthcare systems lacking public APIs to integrate with existing trial site tool stacks.
5+ years of experience in full-stack or AI/ML engineering, with at least 3 years shipping user-facing products in production.
Strong CS fundamentals from a rigorous academic background; demonstrated academic achievement (e.g., TA experience, high GPA, notable side projects, or internships at well-regarded companies).
Proficiency in Python, JavaScript, and Type Script; comfort working across frontend and backend layers.
Experience at a high-growth, top-tier startup or a large-scale engineering organization is strongly valued.
Hands-on experience building applied LLM or agentic AI products.
Ability to make architectural decisions, design systems, and operate as a technical thought partner.
Comfortable with ambiguity and self-directed work in an early-stage environment.
Healthcare or life sciences domain knowledge is a plus.
Base salary: $170,000 – $250,000 USD annually. Visa sponsorship is available.
LocationOn-site in Durham, NC, United States
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