Founding Design Engineer
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Reach the decision-maker — $5About the role
### **About the Role**
This is a founding\-level, high\-ownership position sitting at the intersection of design and engineering. You'll be the sole bar\-raiser for frontend UX across a fast\-moving, early\-stage B2B SaaS company building an AI\-powered pricing optimization platform. Your work will ensure that human\-authored and agent\-written UIs feel like one coherent, polished product — covering everything from the design system and component library to conversational surfaces on platforms like Slack and Microsoft Teams.
You'll work shoulder\-to\-shoulder with the founders and a small, tight\-knit engineering team, with enormous scope and direct influence over the product's quality and direction from day one.
### **What You'll Do**
* **Own the design system end\-to\-end:** design tokens, a shadcn/ui\-based component library, and Tailwind CSS conventions applied consistently across the product suite. * **Define and enforce frontend patterns** using React Query, React Hook Form, and Zod — ensuring agent\-written PRs land consistent and polished by default. * **Shape conversational agent interfaces** for constrained platforms (Slack Block Kit, Microsoft Teams Adaptive Cards), bringing the same visual and interaction quality as the core product. * **Codify accessibility standards** — implement WCAG contrast rules and guardrails directly into brand guidelines and the codebase. * **Maintain and improve frontend tooling and quality**: Biome configuration, Playwright E2E test coverage, and frontend performance optimization. * **Translate design intent into code**: reusable component abstractions, motion (e.g., Framer Motion, Radix transitions), and tactile micro\-interactions. * **Partner cross\-functionally** with founders and engineers to keep the frontend a thin, polished layer over the API. * **Integrate AI coding tools** (e.g., Claude Code, Cursor) and custom lint/agent rules into the frontend workflow.
### **What We're Looking For**
**Must\-haves (dealbreakers):**
* 5\+ years building product interfaces, with a portfolio of shipped features demonstrating high polish. * Primary ownership of a production design system or component library (public repo, portfolio, or detailed walkthrough required). * Deep expertise in React, strict TypeScript, Tailwind CSS, and component primitives (shadcn/ui, Radix UI). * Authorized to work in the US — **visa sponsorship is not available.**
**Required skills \& experience:**
* Strong systems thinking: ability to translate visual decisions into tokens, component abstractions, and lint rules. * Experience enforcing WCAG accessibility standards and integrating them into a living codebase. * Hands\-on experience with AI coding tools in production workflows (e.g., Claude Code, Cursor). * Comfort acting as the sole frontend UX standard\-setter across a company — you raise the bar, you own it.
**Nice to have:**
* Experience building non\-standard AI interfaces: streaming responses, generative canvases, human\-in\-the\-loop views. * Experience designing and shipping conversational interfaces or chatbots for B2B end\-users. * Familiarity with Slack Block Kit, Microsoft Teams Adaptive Cards, or CLI design patterns for constrained UI spaces. * Experience with animation and UI state transition tooling (Framer Motion, Radix) to enhance perceived speed and polish.
### **Compensation \& Benefits**
* **Salary:** $180,000 – $220,000 USD annually * Founding team equity commensurate with early\-stage, high\-ownership role * Direct impact on product direction and technical culture from day one
### **Location**
This role is **on\-site in San Francisco, CA**. The team works together in person; remote\-only candidates are not a fit for this position.
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