Senior Software engineer (Python, AI-first startup)

Will you bridge tech and product to build the next-generation AI-first hospitality platform?

We are at a pivotal stage of growth. As our new Senior Software Engineer, you will take ownership of end-to-end features, drive continuous AI-first development, and collaborate closely with our lean team. No waiting around for ready-made tickets—you will have real technical impact and high agency from day one.

Bedrijfsprofiel

A scale-up in Amsterdam building software for independent restaurants and food brands. The platform makes them visible in Google, Maps and AI assistants, lets them sell directly to their guests without paying commission to third parties, and helps them bring those guests back.

Seed funded, with a Series A planned towards the end of this year. This is their building year, and the engineering team is being strengthened with two senior people.

Functie omschrijving

1. AI-First Development & Engineering Execution

AI is at the heart of our engineering workflow. You will drive 90%+ of your daily development using AI agents (e.g., Claude) to structure, write, and maintain clean, scalable software. Manual coding is the exception—you know how to prompt, direct, and architect solutions effectively using cutting-edge tooling.

2. End-to-End Feature Ownership

You take half-formed, ambiguous product ideas and collaborate cross-functionally to turn them into production-ready features. You are comfortable asking the right questions, defining edge cases, and pushing features across the finish line without needing constant step-by-step guidance.

3. Core Platform & E-Commerce Infrastructure

You will work on crucial components across our ecosystem:

• E-commerce storefronts, order processing, and system synchronizations.

• Operational SaaS tools and restaurant management tablets.

• Customer loyalty programs and marketing platform integrations.

4. Technical Quality & Architecture

You ensure that what we deploy into the world is maintainable, stable, and well-architected. You understand software design patterns, system architectures, and best practices to ensure real users have a seamless, bug-free experience.

Job Requirements

You are a mature, proactive software engineer who thrives in high-autonomy startup environments. You bring:

• Experience: Ideally 8+ years of software engineering experience.

• Long-term Impact: A history of staying at companies long enough (2–3+ years per role) to see the long-term consequences of your technical choices.

• Language & Tech Agnostic: Strong fundamental understanding of software architecture, patterns, and clean code. Experience with Python / Django is a plus, but not a hard requirement as long as you have high general competence and are willing to adapt.

• Proactive & High Agency: Strong communication skills and a preference for action over waiting to be told what to do.

• 100% Commitment: You are looking for a role where you can focus 100% of your energy (no side-hustles, side-gigs, or personal startups).

• Nice-to-Have: A natural affinity for food, culinary experiences, or restaurants (e.g., foodies or former hospitality background).

Terms & Benefits

• Competitive Compensation: €90,000 – €120,000 / €130,000 gross annual salary, depending on experience.

• Equity / ESOP Program: Stock option plan with a standard 1-year cliff and 4-year vesting schedule, offering a sliding scale between base cash and equity upside.

• High Ownership & Agency: Flat hierarchy with zero bureaucracy—if you see a problem, you have the backing to solve it.

• Modern AI Tech Stack: Heavy integration with cutting-edge AI agents and tools to build faster and smarter.

• Hybrid Work Flexibility: A minimum of 3 days/week on-site (Anchor days: Tuesday and Friday, plus Wednesday or Thursday). Flexible arrangements supported for dedicated travel or personal time.

Interested? Contact me directly at d.gontha@haystackpeople.nl