FOUNDING ENGINEER · 0→1 · REMOTE WORLDWIDE
The first engineer your startup needs
Twice a founding engineer. 0→21 engineers in 13 months. 5 production systems from first commit to scale. Architecture decisions that compound for years.
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By Amit Chakraborty — Kolkata, India · Remote worldwide
What you get
- 0→1 architecture ownership — Database schema, CI/CD, auth, error monitoring, and the 44 other things you need before engineer #2 can ship on day one.
- Hiring & team building — Interview loops, IC ladders, and the recruiting process that took Synapsis from 0→21 engineers with 3 promoted to senior.
- Full-stack delivery — React Native mobile, Next.js web, NestJS APIs, PostgreSQL, Redis, CI/CD — the complete stack, owned end-to-end.
- AI-native from day one — LLM integration, RAG pipelines, on-device ML — not bolted on as an afterthought. Architecture that accommodates AI evolution.
- Revenue-day shipping — Payment rails (Stripe, Razorpay, crypto), subscription models, and the compliance layer your FinTech or HealthTech needs.
Proof
- Synapsis Medical Technologies · 0→21 engineers in 13 months — First hire. Built the entire HealthTech AI platform from scratch — iOS, Android, web, AI pipeline, desktop. Scaled the team to 21 engineers with 4h release cycles.
- NonceBlox (Vulcan Eleven) · 50K DAU · dual crypto + fiat — Built the mobile architecture that handled 50,000 daily active users on real-money fantasy sports. 6 payment providers, C++ JSI native modules, zero critical failures.
- Solo build — Amit Chakraborty · 7 solo products in 12 months — Architecture, design, infra, and deployment — all owned solo. Aura Arena, KSHEM, Neev, HarmonyBloom, and more.
How it works
- Architecture week — Domain modeling, schema design, CI/CD setup, auth, error monitoring. By day 5 the repo deploys on every push.
- Core system build — 2–4 weeks of focused delivery on the core product. Daily async updates, twice-weekly calls.
- Hiring & handover — Interview loop design, first 3–5 hires, pair programming for knowledge transfer. Code review culture established.
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between a founding engineer and a CTO?
A founding engineer writes code and builds systems. A CTO manages strategy and stakeholders. At the early stage they overlap — but my strength is architecture and execution, not board decks.
How long does the founding engineer engagement last?
Typically 3–6 months to establish the architecture, hire the first team, and hand over. Some engagements evolve into fractional principal roles.
Can you work with non-technical founders?
That's the most common case. I translate business requirements into technical architecture and hiring plans. You don't need to speak code — you need to speak outcomes.