Product Engineer – Mid-Level

About the role

At Starley, we develop and operate "Cotomo," one of Japan's largest voice-based AI conversation applications. Under the concept "Whether you want to talk or remain silent," we are continuously exploring innovative ways to enhance human-AI interaction. This position requires not only backend expertise but also a strong commitment to overall product improvement including UX/UI enhancements and feature planning.

TechStack

Python, Rust, TypeScript, WebSocket, WebRTC, ElasticSearch, PostgreSQL, GCP, Azure, AWS, Unity, Weights & Biases, NVIDIA Triton, vllm, pytorch, transformers, deepspeed, Dataform, BigQuery, Sentry, Slack, Github

Responsibilities

• Design and implement efficient, highly available infrastructure to support high traffic
• Build backend systems that integrate various AI models, including speech recognition, natural language processing, and speech synthesis
• Develop streaming systems to deliver high-quality, real-time voice communication
• Construct and optimize scalable frameworks for large-scale data processing
• Collaborate with product managers and designers to participate in product improvement and feature planning

Who we're looking for:

• An individual with a strong curiosity towards new technologies and a desire to grow through hands-on development
• A problem-solver who prioritizes user experience and can devise practical solutions
• A collaborative team player who values open communication

Requirements

• At least 3 years of experience in designing, implementing, and maintaining backend systems
• Proficiency with relational databases (e.g., PostgreSQL, MySQL) and NoSQL databases
• Basic understanding of real-time communication technologies (e.g., WebRTC, WebSocket)
• Experience working with cloud platforms (e.g., AWS, GCP, Azure)
• Experience in building or improving CI/CD pipelines (personal project experience is acceptable)
• Practical experience in integrating new tools and technologies (e.g., RAG, Cursor, Devin) or equivalent hands-on experience
• Fluency in Japanese for daily communication

Preferred Experience

While not specifically required, tell us if you have any of the following.

• Experience working in an early-stage startup environment
• Technical communication skills in English
• Exposure to machine learning model operations
• Experience with home server setup and management
• Basic familiarity with deep learning models (e.g., LLMs) and fine-tuning techniques
• Familiarity with speech recognition or natural language processing is a plus

Location/Work Style:

• Based in Tokyo, Japan (primarily working from our Akasaka office with some remote flexibility)
• VISA sponsorship available for international candidates

Compensation

Starting from 7,500,000 JPY per year, with performance-based stock options