Staff Backend Engineer (no Japanese required, up to 30M, overseas applicants welcomed)

Company Description

Our client is a fast-rising AI startup creating their own proprietary LLM that is searching for a Staff level iOS Engineer for its B2C-focused mobile app. The primary language would be English (conversational Japanese would be a plus but not strictly required). The salary would be up to 30M JPY / annum and you'd work on a hybrid system of 2-3 days a week in office. Pre-IPO stock options may also be offered depending the on the person. For those located overseas it would require relocation to Japan (with visa sponsorship provided).

Position Description

This position takes complete technical ownership of the backend architecture and system infrastructure for an upcoming global consumer platform driven by advanced, proprietary AI. As a Staff-level technical leader, you will design highly available and scalable distributed systems, ensuring reliable integration with complex, high-load AI inference pipelines. You will identify performance bottlenecks, drive standardization across CI/CD pipelines and shared infrastructure, and mentor both senior and junior engineers to elevate technical excellence across the entire engineering organization.

Ideal Candidate

• Technical Expertise: 10+ years of hands-on experience designing, developing, and operating distributed systems supporting large-scale traffic. Must have development experience in performance-critical languages such as Go (Rust or C++ would also be nice but not required)
• Staff-Level Qualifications: Deep, proven experience architecting and scaling complex backend systems (databases, caching strategies, distributed tracing), specifically requiring a Big Tech or hyper-growth startup background.
• Execution at Startup Speed: The ability to navigate high ambiguity and deliver Big Tech-level code quality at the speed of a pre-launch startup.
• Leadership Capabilities: Proven ability to drive technical consensus among complex stakeholders, lead high-uncertainty projects, and elevate engineering culture through code reviews and mentorship.

Why Join?

+Massive Financial Backing: Excellent funding allowing for a multi-year runway and deep stability without losing startup speed.

+Silicon Valley-Tier Perks: Enjoy premier compensation paired with highly progressive benefits

+True Work Flexibility: Complete flextime with a permanent, country-wide remote option, fully supported by relocation packages and ongoing global language programs

+Define Next-Gen AI: Move past standard API wrappers to design foundational interfaces for actual next-generation intelligence

Note: there are a series of screening questions should you apply but none are marked as 'mandatory' so you wouldn't automatically be disqualified based on any single answer