Founding AI Engineer

About the Role This is a founding engineering role at a fast-moving, Berlin-based Y Combinator–backed startup operating at the intersection of generative AI and professional motion design. The company builds AI-powered tooling that transforms websites and text prompts into launch-ready product animations in seconds — compressing what used to take hours of motion design work into a matter of minutes. As a Founding AI Engineer, you will be one of the earliest technical hires, with significant ownership over the AI systems that power the core product. You'll work closely with a small, high-caliber team and shape both the technology and the culture from the ground up. The product has demonstrated strong early traction, reaching significant ARR within days of launch. What You'll Do Build and optimize AI systems that generate high-quality animations grounded in core motion design principles — including easing, non-linear movement, and visual hierarchy. Develop comprehensive evaluation frameworks to assess animation quality, combining automated metrics with expert validation from professional motion designers. Partner with motion designers and marketers to translate domain expertise into AI training data and evaluation criteria. Design and implement fine-tuning pipelines that enable the AI to learn domain-specific animation styles and brand guidelines. Create continuous feedback loops between user preferences, expert input, and model performance to drive ongoing quality improvements. Research and prototype state-of-the-art approaches for controllable, style-consistent motion graphics generation. What We're Looking For Must-have experience: 3+ years of hands-on experience as an AI/ML Engineer shipping production-quality systems. Proven experience building and optimizing AI systems for generative tasks — specifically in motion graphics or animation. Demonstrated ability to apply core motion design principles (easing, non-linear movement, visual hierarchy) within AI system development. Experience developing evaluation frameworks for generative AI model quality, including both automated metrics and expert validation pipelines. Experience designing and implementing fine-tuning pipelines for AI/ML models. Experience collaborating with designers or domain experts to convert domain knowledge into training data and evaluation criteria. Experience building feedback loops that incorporate user preferences and expert input to continuously improve model output. Experience researching and prototyping SOTA approaches for controllable and style-consistent generative AI. Proficiency with TypeScript, React.js, Next.js, PostgreSQL, and cloud platforms (GCP and/or AWS). Experience working with proprietary motion graphics engines. Nice to have: Familiarity with professional motion design tools (e.g., Adobe After Effects). Experience with video editing or content creation platforms. Strong CS fundamentals. Ideal candidate profile: You thrive in early-stage, ambiguous environments, take end-to-end ownership, and are energized by being a builder — not just an executor. You're comfortable operating without heavy structure and excited about the prospect of shaping both the product and the team. Compensation & Benefits Salary: €80,000 – €130,000 per year, depending on experience. Early-stage equity participation. Direct impact on product direction and company culture as a founding team member. Location Berlin, Germany — on-site. Candidates must be willing to work in-person in Berlin; relocation support is available if needed. Visa sponsorship is not available for this role.