About Layer

Layer is on a mission to empower game artists with cutting-edge AI tools for generating images, videos, 3D, and audio assets. Our platform helps artists create high-quality assets more efficiently and flexibly, redefining the creative process in the gaming industry. As a rapidly growing startup, we’re looking for passionate engineers who thrive in fast-paced environments and want to build products with real impact.

The Role

We are looking for a foundational VP of Engineering to join our small but mighty team and lead our technology, platform, and team into the next phase of growth. This is more than a management position; it's a career-defining opportunity for a "player-coach" to build a world-class engineering organization from the ground level.

As our executive-level engineering leader, you will be responsible for our technology vision, strategy, and execution. The ideal candidate is a seasoned leader who is equally comfortable whiteboarding a complex system architecture with the team, setting strategy with the CEO, and defining a hiring plan. You aren't afraid to roll up your sleeves and review code to maintain a high bar for quality. You will have exceptional ownership, autonomy, and a direct, tangible impact on our success.

What You'll Do (Key Responsibilities)

1. Technical Leadership & Strategy:

• Own the long-term technical vision and architectural roadmap, ensuring it aligns with our product goals and business objectives.
• Lead from the front by contributing to system design, architectural spikes, and critical code reviews to solve our most complex technical challenges.
• Ensure the reliability, scalability, security, and performance of our entire platform.

2. Team Building & Mentorship:

• Lead, mentor, and grow our talented engineering team, fostering a culture of high performance, collaboration, and continuous learning.
• Drive the hiring plan for engineering, from sourcing and interviewing to closing world-class talent.
• Develop career paths and growth opportunities for engineers at all levels.

3. Execution & Process:

• Partner closely with Product, Design, and the rest of the leadership team to translate requirements into a clear and achievable technical roadmap.
• Implement and refine lightweight, effective engineering processes (e.g., agile methodologies, CI/CD, testing practices) that increase velocity without creating bureaucracy.
• Manage technical debt and advocate for the right balance between speed and quality.

What We’re Looking For (Our Ideal Candidate)

• Deep, Hands-On Technical Expertise: You have a strong background as a software engineer and architect. You are not far from the code and are still proficient in modern development practices. You are technically credible and can command the respect of senior engineers.
• Startup Leadership Experience: You have a proven track record of leading and scaling engineering teams in a high-growth startup environment. You know what it takes to go from a small team to a larger, high-functioning organization.
• Architectural Pragmatism: You have a strong background in system architecture and design, with the ability to make pragmatic trade-offs between short-term needs and long-term scalability.
• A Knack for People: You have experience hiring, managing, and developing engineering talent. You're passionate about building teams where people can do the best work of their careers.
• A "Get-It-Done" Attitude: You thrive in a dynamic, fast-paced environment. You are biased toward action and understand the need for both speed and focus.
• Exceptional Communication Skills: You can clearly articulate complex technical concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences, from an engineer on your team to our board of directors.
• Strong Sense of Ownership: You are accountable and have a deep desire to build a product and company that lasts.

Why Join Layer?

• Innovative Projects: Shape the future of AI-driven tools for game artists.
• Autonomy: Lead projects from concept to launch.
• Growth: Join a rapidly expanding startup with abundant growth opportunities.
• Collaboration: Work with passionate technologists and creatives.

Apply Now

If you’re excited about redefining creative workflows with generative AI, we’d love to hear from you! Please send your resume and any relevant portfolio links. Let’s shape the future of game art together.

Our Values:

🚀 Execute Pragmatically: We approach work with speed and practicality in mind. We take individual ownership over our work, and we trust each other to deliver, but we avoid working in isolation. We strive to be excellent at what we do and will take time to deepen our knowledge of our craft; the more we learn, the better we can execute!

💓 Be Open: At Layer, openness applies to both the business and the people who work within it. We are continually open to giving and receiving feedback and learning new things from each other. We communicate openly and honestly. We are humble and kind and acknowledge that we are not always right.

🌎 Artists First: We are building a tool for artists, to enable them to be more creative and imaginative. We make sure that everything we are building serves artists first.

What We Offer:

• Equity plan
• Competitive salary and benefits
• Laptop / equipment budget

Commitment to Equal Opportunity:

We believe that everyone should work in an environment free from discrimination and harassment. All applicants will be treated fairly and judged solely on their merits. Our recruitment process is open, honest, and fair.