Director of Engineering

Role Overview: We are seeking a hands-on Director of Engineering to lead the design, development, and scaling of AI-first products and platforms in Bengaluru, Karnataka, India. This pivotal role bridges engineering execution, architecture, AI-driven product strategy, and cross-functional leadership. It's a high-ownership position for individuals who thrive on building and scaling real-world systems, rather than solely managing teams or conducting research.

Key Responsibilities:

• AI-First System Design & Product Thinking: Drive AI-first methodologies across product, workflows, and user experiences. Lead the integration of LLMs, agent-based systems, and automation into internal and external products. Evaluate AI tools and platforms, making informed build vs. buy decisions. Ensure responsible AI usage, prioritizing privacy, reliability, and trust.
• Engineering & Architecture: Own end-to-end system architecture, encompassing backend, frontend, mobile, and AI layers. Design scalable, modular, and future-ready systems. Conduct thorough code and architecture reviews to ensure performance, security, and maintainability. Strike a balance between rapid delivery and long-term technical excellence.
• Infrastructure, DevOps & Reliability: Manage cloud infrastructure (AWS), deployments, and cost optimization. Build highly reliable systems optimized for AI workloads, focusing on latency, throughput, and observability. Establish best practices for CI/CD, monitoring, logging, and security. Ensure production readiness of AI systems with robust fallbacks, guardrails, and evaluation mechanisms.
• Team Leadership: Lead, mentor, and cultivate a high-performing engineering team. Set clear engineering standards and continuously elevate code quality. Drive the adoption of AI tools within the engineering workflow. Recruit engineers with strong technical acumen and an AI-first mindset.
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner closely with Product, Design, Sales, and Marketing teams. Translate complex business needs into scalable technical solutions. Clearly articulate technical trade-offs to non-technical stakeholders. Contribute actively to roadmap planning, emphasizing impact and feasibility.
• Business & Operational Awareness: Understand the complete lifecycle of an AI-driven startup, including product development, go-to-market strategies, sales, and customer support. Contribute to decisions regarding vendors, tooling, and cloud costs. Operate with a profound sense of ownership that extends beyond core engineering responsibilities.

Ideal Candidate Profile:

• 10+ years of comprehensive engineering experience.
• Proven experience in both corporate and startup environments.
• Strong hands-on expertise, preferably in backend or full-stack development.
• Demonstrated ownership in a Series A/B startup context.
• Experience building and deploying AI-powered systems.
• Proficiency with infrastructure, DevOps, and production systems.
• Exceptional communication skills with a strong alignment to business and product goals.
• A pragmatic, decisive, and execution-focused approach.

What This Role Offers: A high-impact leadership role providing direct influence over product strategy and architecture. This is an ideal opportunity for individuals who view AI as a fundamental system primitive, not merely an add-on feature.