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Agent guide: [/agents.md](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/agents.md). --- # Staff Software Engineer - **Company:** Sauce LLC - **Location:** United States - **Experience:** Experienced - **Contract:** Permanent contract - **Skills:** Artificial Intelligence, Databases, Python (Programming Language), Open Source Technology, Software Engineering, Systems Integration, TypeScript, Large Language Models, Backend, Front End Software Development, Software Coding - **Published:** September 4, 2026 - **Apply:** https://startup.jobs/staff-software-engineer-sauce-8829867 ## About the Role * Strong full-stack ability: you can own a feature from database to UI without waiting on anyone (TypeScript / Python and a modern web stack). * At least 8 years of professional software engineering experience, with 3+ years building and shipping production full-stack applications. * A builder first: a public trail - open-source repos, side projects, demos, or products with real users - that shows what you ship when no one's telling you what to do. * AI-first by default: you reach for models to solve problems, keep up with the ecosystem without being told to, and know what works in production vs. what's just a nice demo. * Product-minded: you care about the user and the outcome, not just the diff - you can decide what to build, not only how. * Fast: you compress weeks into days, shipping and iterating instead of polishing in private. * Comfortable with ambiguity and a small, fast-moving team. Nice to have * A meaningful open-source project people actually use (stars, forks, downloads, dependents). * AI apps you launched solo that gained real traction. * Experience with agent/eval frameworks, vector stores, and production LLM tooling. * A history of being early - building in a space before it was obvious. * Contributions to leading AI or developer-tool projects. * Experience in marketplaces, logistics/delivery, or restaurant/local-commerce tech. ## Description We're looking for a rare kind of engineer: someone who thinks AI-first, ships end-to-end, and moves at a pace that makes a small team feel like a large one. You won't be handed tickets - you'll be handed problems, often loosely defined, and trusted to decide what to build, build it, and get it in front of real restaurants and their customers fast. This is a high-ownership, founding-level role on our growing NYC team. You'll shape how AI shows up across the Sauce platform - from delivery optimization to the tools our restaurants and operators use every day. If you're the kind of person who saw a new model launch and shipped a working product that weekend, we want to talk. What You'll Do: * Take ambiguous product ideas from zero to shipped - design, build, deploy, and iterate, largely on your own. * Build AI-native features (agents, RAG, tool-use, structured outputs, evals) as core product, not bolted-on demos. * Own the full stack: frontend, backend, data, model integration, and the glue in between. * Stand up the feedback loops - evals, telemetry, fast iteration - that make AI products reliable in production. * Make pragmatic build-vs-buy calls and keep the team on the frontier of what models can do. * Partner closely with product and operations to turn real restaurant problems into shipped solutions. * Raise the bar on velocity and product taste for everyone around you., * Hands-on experience building with LLM APIs and SDKs (OpenAI, Anthropic, or open models) - writing code against the models, not wiring up no-code/automation tools. ## Related Videos - [Developing the Backend with Stefan Lingler, CTO at Shpock](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/100360-developing-the-backend-with-stefan-lingler-cto-at-shpock) - [Kubernetes and Microservices with Multi-Model Databases](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/382-kubernetes-and-microservices-with-multi-model-databases) - [Do TypeScript without TypeScript](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/327-do-typescript-without-typescript) - [Craftsmanship in the Age of Agents](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/100106-craftsmanship-in-the-age-of-agents) - [Nest.js - TypeScript in the backend can also be clean](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1033-nest-js-typescript-in-the-backend-can-also-be-clean) - [Meet Your New BFF: Backend to Frontend without the Duct Tape](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/682-meet-your-new-bff-backend-to-frontend-without-the-duct-tape) ## Related Articles - [Navigating the AI Shift](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/629-navigating-the-ai-shift) - [Dev Digest 120 - Apple and peers](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/455-dev-digest-120-apple-and-peers) - [Dev Digest 137 - AI'm not sure about this](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/485-dev-digest-137-ai-m-not-sure-about-this) - [Highest Paying Tech Companies for Developers](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/220-highest-paying-tech-companies-for-developers) - [What is Software Engineering in the Age of AI?](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/640-what-is-software-engineering-in-the-age-of-ai) - [Dev Digest 131 - AI'm not sure about OSS](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/magazine/472-dev-digest-131-ai-m-not-sure-about-oss)