Product Engineer

Job description

ABOUT CUSPAI CuspAI is the frontier AI company on a mission to solve the breakthrough materials needed to power human progress. While nature took billions of years to perfect molecules, we are harnessing AI to unlock trillion-dollar materials breakthroughs in months, not millennia. Our founding team is the most cited in the world, comprised of world-class researchers in AI, chemistry and engineering. We are working on some of the hardest and most important challenges including energy, clean water, the future of compute, and carbon capture, and this is just the start of what our 'search engine' for next-generation materials will unlock. We invite you to be part of a diverse, innovative team at the intersection of AI and materials science, working to create impactful partnerships that drive innovation, scalability, and industry collaboration. This work matters. Your work matters. We’re on the cusp of the on-demand materials era. Join us. THE ROLE Due to rapid growth, we are seeking a full-stack Product / Full Stack Engineer* to lead the inception and development of our internal application suite, serving as the foundational architect for the tools our world-class researchers use every day. *Note that you would be joining as a ‘Member of Technical Staff’, but the indicative job title above hopefully helps to explain the nature of this role. The role will be part of our Platform & Engineering organisation. YOUR IMPACT In this role you will be building the internal product ecosystem that streamlines and curates our proprietary discovery workflows, which is critical for accelerating our mission to solve global challenges through next-generation materials. Your main focus initially will be partnering with our VP of Product to define and build the first generation of internal applications from scratch, ensuring they are not just functional but curated as high-quality products. Over time, you will likely get involved in scaling these systems to support increasingly complex interdisciplinary data flows and potentially external-facing interfaces as our "search engine" for materials evolves. WHAT YOU WILL DO Product Inception & Internal Tooling - Lead the development of a suite of internal applications, treating them as first-class products with a focus on usability and long-term scalability. - Collaborate closely with the VP of Product to translate high-level research needs into technical roadmaps and intuitive software solutions. - Own the end-to-end lifecycle of internal tools, from initial architecture and backend design to frontend deployment. Backend Architecture & Data Integration - Design and build robust backend services primarily using Python to interface with our core AI and research engines. - Partner with the Data Engineering team to ensure seamless ingestion and visualization of complex datasets within internal applications. - Develop processes to integrate disparate workflows into a unified, high-performance internal platform. Frontend Development & UI/UX - Develop clean, functional, and responsive UIs that allow our researchers to interact with complex data effectively. - Maintain a high bar for the "curated" feel of our internal applications, ensuring they are intuitive and reduce the cognitive load for our technical teams. Interdisciplinary Collaboration - Work closely with AI Researchers and Data Engineers to understand the nuances of their daily tasks and build tools that empower them. - Collaborate with the broader engineering team to ensure internal tools align with our overall infrastructure and security standards. MUST HAVE SKILLS AND QUALIFICATIONS: - You have at least 4+ years of professional experience in full-stack software engineering, with a proven track record of building and maintaining production-grade applications. - You possess strong backend expertise, specifically with Python and modern web frameworks (e.g. FastAPI, Django, or Flask). - You are proficient with Node.js and modern frontend frameworks (e.g. React, Vue, or TypeScript) and have a keen eye for UI/UX best practices. - You are a "builder" at heart who enjoys the greenfield stage of a project and is comfortable making architectural decisions from scratch. - You have a product-focused mindset, meaning you don't just "write tickets" but actively think about how to make the user's life easier. - You are excited by the prospect of enabling world-changing scientific discovery, even if you don't have a background in the sciences yourself. BONUS POINTS (BUT NOT CRITICAL): - Experience working in an early-stage startup environment where you've had to wear multiple hats. - Previous experience building internal tools, dashboards, or "Admin" interfaces for data-heavy companies. - Knowledge of modern DevOps practices and cloud infrastructure (e.g. GCP, Docker, Kubernetes). - An academic background or personal interest in Materials Science, Chemistry, or Sustainability. ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS This role could be based in our Cambridge, London, Amsterdam or Berlin offices, with the expectation of being in the office three days per week. Additionally, there may be regular travel required to other locations for collaboration and project work. WHAT WE OFFER - A competitive salary: We value and reward impact and growth - Equity in CuspAI: You have a stake in the success of the company - Time off to stay fresh: 28 days holiday (DE, NL, UK) or 21 days holiday (JP, SG, US), in addition to local public holidays - ‘Gold Standard’ parental leave: 26 weeks (primary caregiver) and 12 weeks (secondary caregiver) at full pay - we look after you and your family while we work on the most important materials discovery problems together - Professional development budget: We invest in your career development so you can stay up to date with the latest industry knowledge or add to your skills to increase impact and growth - Solve meaningful problems: See how your work has a direct impact on advancing materials science and solving sustainability and climate-related problems through the creation and application of bleeding-edge SOTA technology and revolutionary techniques - True interdisciplinary teamwork: Be part of a deeply collaborative environment bridging AI research, computational chemistry, and experimental science - work with world-class researchers and engineers who enjoy sharing knowledge and supporting each other Join us in shaping the future of materials with AI. Together, we can create groundbreaking solutions for a more sustainable world. CuspAI is an equal opportunities employer committed to building a diverse and inclusive workplace. We do not discriminate on the basis of sex, race, religion or belief, ethnic or national origin, disability, age, citizenship, marital, domestic or civil partnership status, sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy or related condition (including breastfeeding), veteran status, or any other basis protected by applicable law. We actively encourage applications from all backgrounds and value the unique perspectives and contributions that diversity brings to our team. Please let us know if you require any specific adjustments during or after the interview process. We will do everything we can within reason to accommodate.