Founding AI Engineer
Clera · San Francisco · $120,000–$180,000 (stated in the posting)
About the Role
This is a founding engineering role at a seed-stage AI startup building the intelligence layer for the construction industry. The company's platform transforms messy blueprints, permits, and construction documents into actionable insights — accelerating cost estimation and permitting workflows that directly impact housing, hospitals, and schools.
As a Founding AI Engineer, you'll be one of the earliest technical hires, working hands-on with state-of-the-art computer vision, LLMs, and multimodal AI to prototype and ship production systems on real-world, noisy construction documents. The focus is squarely on the intelligence layer — modeling, data pipelines, and inference — not the application UI.
This is a full-time, in-office role based in San Francisco, CA. Candidates must be based in SF or willing to relocate. US work authorization is required; visa sponsorship is not available.
What You'll Do
Apply state-of-the-art computer vision, LLM, and multimodal AI techniques to real-world construction documents (blueprints, schedules, specs).
Rapidly prototype models and iterate based on user feedback and real production data.
Build and deploy end-to-end AI systems that operate reliably on noisy, heterogeneous inputs.
Own the intelligence layer: modeling, data pipelines, and inference infrastructure.
Collaborate closely with product and users to surface and prioritize high-impact problems.
Embrace practical engineering work — data labeling, ETL, deployment — as part of a small, high-trust team.
Communicate progress, tradeoffs, and results clearly and empathetically across the team.
What We're Looking For
Must-haves:
Demonstrated experience applying computer vision and/or multimodal AI in production — on real-world, messy data (documents, images, mixed modalities).
0-to-1 builder mindset: you've launched an AI system into production or built the core of a new product from scratch.
Hands-on experience with LLMs and modern CV/multimodal model tooling and techniques.
Comfort iterating quickly and improving prototypes directly from user feedback.
Strong communication skills — honest, empathetic, and transparent with teammates and stakeholders.
Willingness to handle the full spectrum of startup engineering tasks (no task is too small).
Based in San Francisco or willing to relocate; US work authorization required.
Nice-to-haves:
Experience building something that shipped to real users or paying customers.
Background or domain knowledge in construction, AEC (architecture/engineering/construction), or related industries.
Experience at an early-stage startup or founding team environment.
All experience levels are welcome, including recent graduates with strong production ML portfolios.
Compensation & Benefits
Salary: $120,000 – $180,000 per year, depending on experience
Equity participation as a founding team member
Opportunity to shape the technical direction of an AI product from the ground up
Location
San Francisco, CA — full-time in-office
Relocation-ready candidates strongly encouraged to apply
US work authorization required; visa sponsorship is not available