Empathic — Founding Engineer

Empathic — Founding Engineer Type: Full-time | On-site | San Francisco, CA Compensation: $175,000–$250,000 + 1%–6% equity Hiring count: 1 Visa sponsorship: Yes — H-1B, O-1 Reports to: Founder (name/LinkedIn not provided on the role page) About Empathic Empathic is building an iMessage friend for young women — what the founder believes will be the most important cultural and social change of our lifetime. The company is at the frontier of human-AI interaction, designing realistic real-time interfaces that feel present and proactive rather than sterile and turn-based. Currently in market with 130 paying customers, day-one retention at 80%+, and week-two retention at 70%+. Raised $2.7M led by BoxGroup at a $30M valuation; founder is a Thiel Fellow and third-time founder (YC W21, previous exit). Founded: 2026 (see flag — conflicts with traction/funding narrative) | Team size: 1–10 | Total funding: $2.7M Industry: Consumer Tech Website: empathic.so Office: San Francisco (SoMa / upper SoMa) Why Candidates Should Join Engineer #1, direct to founder: First engineering hire, working hand-in-hand with a Thiel Fellow / three-time founder on the hardest problems in real-time AI. Proven traction, complexity about to explode: 130 paying customers with 80%+ day-one and 70%+ week-two retention; joining right as the technical surface area expands into voice and video. Full ownership across the stack: Backend infra, ML integration, in-house memory systems, latency, and voice interfaces — plus setting the engineering bar and helping recruit the team. Intake Call Summary No intake call transcript was present on the role page — only an "Intake Video" embed (Contrario × Empathic). Summary cannot be authored from the HTML; pull from the video if a written summary is needed. The Role This is engineer number one — working directly with the founder on the most technically interesting problems in real-time AI interaction, from memory systems and latency optimization to voice and video interfaces that feel delightful at scale. What You'll Be Doing Optimize inference costs across smaller models (currently a couple thousand dollars/day in Anthropic credits) Own and evolve the in-house memory system that powers better agentic interactions Ship latency and information-compression improvements across the stack Build the content recommendation engine that surfaces interesting content to users Design and ship voice interfaces with the latency, presence, and nuance that make them feel real rather than robotic Set the bar for code quality and engineering taste; help recruit the next engineers Tech stack: Backend (Python, Go, Rust, TypeScript, or similar) + distributed systems; full-stack with ML model integration; real-time / latency-sensitive infrastructure; voice/video systems. (No single stack specified on the page.) Requirements 3+ years backend + full-stack shipping experience (excluding internships) Raw intelligence + ability to move fast (founder priority over seniority) In-person San Francisco, 9-to-6 minimum, high-intensity culture Former founder or early-stage engineer preferred Green Flags Former founder or founding engineer Top-school background with high raw intelligence Taste and judgment on AI-generated outputs Deep technical taste before AI tools Genuine fascination with real-time, latency-sensitive, or voice-first systems Red Flags Career engineer mindset; sees the role as just a job Candidates from lower-tier schools with multiple company hops Cannot articulate taste or judgment on AI outputs Unwilling to work at startup intensity or in-person No demonstrated shipping or production ownership Only worked on small features at large companies Role Details Salary$175,000–$250,000Equity1%–6%On-site policy100% in-person, San Francisco (SoMa / upper SoMa); relocation support for qualified candidates; 9-to-6 minimum, intensity beyond a standard 9-to-5Visa sponsorshipH-1B, O-1Employment typeFull-timeLocationSan Francisco, CA Benefits & Perks: Up to 6% equity · medical/dental/vision via employer ICHRA (covers most Gold and Platinum plans) · 401k plus match · work computer and peripherals · free lunch and dinner daily · monthly bonus for living within half a mile of the office · relocation support for qualified candidates. Screening Questions None listed on the role page. (Stage 2 is a 20-minute founder screening call covering behavioral overview and general background fit, but no specific screening questions were provided.) Interview Process Stage 1 — Pending Approval — Candidates awaiting initial approval. Stage 2 — Screening call with founder (20 minutes) — Behavioral overview and general background fit. Stage 3 — Technical interview 1 — Algorithmic problem-solving; LeetCode-style array manipulation, starting easy and escalating. No AI tools allowed. Stage 4 — Technical interview 2 — System design deep-dive to assess architecture thinking. Stage 5 — On-site with founder (half day) — Design problems, pair programming, and technical areas the candidate indicates strength in; final team-fit evaluation. Stage 6 — Offer Extended Stage 7 — Candidate Hired — Candidate accepts and starts. Ideal Companies & Backgrounds Not provided on the role page. Ideal Candidate Profiles Not provided on the role page. Rejected Candidate Feedback None provided on the role page. Sourcing notes The body "Must-Have" adds useful detail beyond the sidebar Requirements: 3+ years professional engineering (excluding internships), with at least 1 year in a senior or ownership capacity ; proficiency in 1 backend language + distributed systems; track record shipping full-stack to production; raw intelligence prioritized over years; 100% in-person SF. Body "Nice-to-Have": former founder/founding engineer (single strongest signal per founder); frontend proficiency + design taste; experience optimizing real-time / latency-sensitive / voice-video systems; genuine passion for AI and human interaction.