Product Design Engineer

Job description

About Citizen Citizen is building the world's largest real-time safety network. Every day, millions of people rely on Citizen to understand what's happening around them and make better decisions in moments that matter. We're building products that help people navigate uncertainty, respond to emergencies, and stay connected to the world around them in real time. We're looking for a Product Design Engineer to help define what comes next. This role sits at the intersection of product design, engineering, and entrepreneurship. You'll work on some of Citizen's most important experiences—from alerts and live video to entirely new AI-powered safety products—helping transform ideas into products people trust and depend on. We're looking for someone who can identify opportunities, design experiences, build working products, and influence the direction of what gets built next. Someone who sees ambiguity as an opportunity rather than a problem. Someone who would rather build a prototype than create a presentation. Founding designers, startup builders, solo creators, design engineers, and product-minded technologists are especially encouraged to apply. WHAT YOU'LL DO - Identify opportunities that create meaningful value for Citizen users - Design and prototype new product experiences from concept to execution - Work on core Citizen experiences including alerts, live video, maps, AI-powered features, and real-time safety workflows - Explore multiple product directions quickly through experimentation and rapid prototyping - Partner closely with Product, Engineering, Data, Operations, and Leadership - Design systems, interactions, workflows, and behaviors—not just interfaces - Use AI to accelerate exploration, iteration, research, and product development - Help shape the future of personal safety technology WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR You might be: - A product designer who learned to build - A design engineer with exceptional product instincts - A founding designer from an early-stage startup - A founder who loves building products - A creative technologist who doesn't fit neatly into traditional roles What matters most is your ability to turn ideas into products people use and value. STRONG SIGNALS - Experience building products from 0→1 - Exceptional product judgment and user empathy - Strong visual and interaction design skills - Ability to build functional prototypes that feel like real products - Comfort working across product strategy, design, and implementation - Curiosity about AI and emerging tools - A bias toward action and experimentation - Clear thinking and strong written communication WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE Within your first few months, you'll help answer questions like: - How should AI help people stay safer in the real world? - How can we make critical information more useful and actionable? - What entirely new products should Citizen build next? - How can we prototype and validate ideas in days instead of months? You'll be expected to contribute not just solutions, but direction. WHAT WE VALUE We care less about titles and credentials and more about evidence. Show us products you've launched. Show us systems you've created. Show us experiments you've run. Show us businesses, side projects, or tools you've built. Show us examples where you identified the opportunity—not just executed someone else's roadmap. We're especially interested in people who have repeatedly stepped into ambiguity and created clarity through building. HOW TO APPLY Along with your portfolio, answer these four questions: 1. What's something you've built that nobody asked you to build? 2. Why did you believe it was worth building? 3. What did you learn after people started using it? 4. How has AI changed the way you design or build products? We care deeply about visual craft, product thinking, and execution. Show us work that demonstrates how you think, how you design, and how you bring ideas to life. We're interested in the decisions behind the work as much as the final outcome. Salary Range This role offers a base salary of $155,000–$215,000 per year, plus equity. Compensation & Benefits We offer competitive salary, equity, and a full benefits package, including: - At least one fully employer-sponsored medical plan option - Dental and vision coverage, with a small employee contribution - Unlimited PTO - Up to 14 weeks paid parental leave (for all parents) - Monthly tech stipend - Free mental health support - Hybrid work environment + catered lunches (NYC HQ) Diversity, Equity & Inclusion at Citizen Citizen is an equal opportunity employer. We’re building a team that reflects the diversity of the communities we serve — across race, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, and background. We know that diverse teams make better decisions and build more effective products. If you don’t meet every listed qualification, we still encourage you to apply. Skills, potential, and lived experience matter.