Founders Associate
adaption · San Francisco
The Role
As Founders Associate at Adaption, you are the right hand, force multiplier, and ultimate leverage point for the founding team. Your primary directive is simple: make the founders’ day radically lighter so they can focus on high-leverage decisions and accelerating our 0 to 1 trajectory.
You are a true swiss army knife: equally comfortable with jumping on operations, coordinating team strategy or traveling alongside the founders to handle logistics and live execution. You thrive in intense, fast-moving environments where ambiguity is constant, context-switching is mandatory, and being available on short notice is second nature. From high-level strategic initiatives to critical operations, no job is too big or too small if it moves the company forward.
Responsibilities
Founder Leverage: Serve as the central point of leverage for the founders. Clear operational friction before it even reaches their desks. Be a trusted intermediary for key asks, anticipating operational needs and proactively coordinating next steps
High and Low Execution: Tackle tasks across the full spectrum of operations— from helping with procurement to coordinating team logistics.
Day-to-Day Operations & Scale: Build internal rituals, communication channels, and operations infrastructure to keep a fast-growing, distributed team aligned and running efficiently.
Agile Context-Switching: Rapidly pivot between high-level strategic problem-solving and immediate tactical tasks based on founder priorities and urgent operational needs.
Travel & On-the-Ground Support: Travel directly with the founders for investor meetings, conferences, key hires, and strategic offsites. Manage door-to-door travel logistics, schedule adjustments, and live operational needs on short notice.
0 to 1 Special Projects: Own high-priority, cross-functional initiatives end-to-end from first principles. Take undefined, ambiguous problems that don't fit into standard job descriptions and build working systems from scratch.
Qualifications & Mindset
1–6+ years of experience in operations, founder's office, or special projects—ideally within a fast-paced, early-stage startup environment. Former founders welcome
Hyper-adaptable & available on short notice: Comfortable with irregular hours, fast turnarounds, and last-minute travel demands during critical build phases
Exceptional multi-tasking abilities: Proven track record of managing competing priorities, context-switching seamlessly, and keeping key initiatives moving without dropping details
Low ego, high agency: A "no task is too small" attitude coupled with the drive to take full ownership of high-stakes projects
Strong organizational & logistical instincts: Impeccable attention to detail, proactive anticipation of founder needs, and bulletproof administrative follow-through
Above all, we're looking for great teammates who make work feel lighter and aren't afraid to go out on a limb with bold ideas. You don't need to be perfect, but you do need to be adaptable. We encourage you to apply, even if you don't check every box.
About us
Most AI is frozen in place - it doesn't adapt to the world. We think that's backwards. Our mandate is to build efficient intelligence that evolves in real-time. Our vision is AI systems that are flexible, personalized, and accessible to everyone. We believe efficiency is what makes this possible - it's how we expand access and ensure innovation benefits the many, not the few. We believe in talent density: bringing together the best and most driven individuals to push the boundaries of continual adaptation. We're looking for builders and creative thinkers ready to shape the next era of intelligence.
Benefits
Flexible work: In-person collaboration in the Bay Area, a distributed global-first team, and team offsites.
Adaption Passport: Annual travel stipend to explore a country you've never visited. We're building intelligence that evolves alongside you, so we encourage you to keep expanding your horizons.
Lunch Stipend: Weekly meal allowance for take-out or grocery delivery.
Well-Being: Comprehensive medical benefits and generous paid time off.