Clera
Founding Engineer
- LocationSan Jose
- Listed20/10/2026
- SalaryUS$400,000/yr
- FieldSoftware engineering
Average of 11 Founding Engineer jobs in the United States we read: US$14,398/mo · updated October 22. A market reference, not this job's salary.
About the job
ABOUT THE ROLE
Join an early-stage AI startup as its first engineer, partnering closely with the founding team to build a foundational model from the ground up. This hands-on individual contributor role spans novel model architecture, training, and reinforcement learning.
WHAT YOU'LL DO
- Contribute directly to the development of a foundational model using a novel architecture rather than fine-tuning existing models.
- Work across the model-building pipeline, including architecture, training, and reinforcement learning.
- Help establish the engineering foundations for an early-stage AI team.
WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR
- A PhD and experience at a frontier AI lab.
- Hands-on experience contributing as an individual engineer rather than primarily in a management role.
- Experience spanning foundational model architecture, training, and reinforcement learning.
COMPENSATION & BENEFITS
Base salary up to $400,000, flexible for the right candidate, plus equity. Visa sponsorship details were not provided.
LOCATION
On-site in San Jose, California.
Job details
- Company
- Clera
- Work model
- Remote
- Contract
- Full time
- Posted
- 20 October 2026
- Advert site
- jobs.ashbyhq.com
Skills asked for
- foundational model
- reinforcement learning
How to apply
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