About the Company/Team

Candid is a new photo-sharing mobile app built around a computer vision workflow that uses embedding-based face matching to detect friends in photos and automatically share moments with them. Our mobile front end is in active development, and we’re looking for a hands-on technical leader to build and own the full backend, connect the system end to end, and help take the MVP to launch. You’ll be joining the founding team and working closely with the CEO/founder and our mobile engineer to bring the first version of the product to life. As CTO, you’ll establish the technical core of the company, setting the foundation for scalability, privacy, and performance while shaping the future of how people receive and share their photos effortlessly.

About the Role

• Finalize and integrate the existing front-end with backend APIs and database • Build and own the full backend architecture (FastAPI, Postgres, Supabase, AWS) • Develop and deploy the computer vision and face embedding pipeline for automatic photo detection and delivery • Design secure data storage and encrypted media handling workflows • Establish scalable infrastructure, job queues, and cloud-based storage for high-volume photo processing • Implement authentication, privacy controls, and GDPR compliant user permissions • Set up CI/CD pipelines, testing, and deployment automation • Work closely with our mobile engineer to ensure smooth end-to-end integration and a seamless user experience • Collaborate closely with the founder on the product roadmap and feature prioritization • Recruit and mentor early engineers as the company scales

• Backend development (Python, FastAPI, or similar frameworks) • Database design and management (Postgres, Supabase, or Firebase) • Building and deploying computer vision systems (PyTorch, TensorFlow, OpenCV, or ONNX) • Vector databases, image embeddings, and similarity search • Scalable cloud infrastructure (AWS, GCP, or similar) • Designing security and privacy-first architecture for biometric or image data • Early-stage startup environments and building systems from the ground up • A genuine passion for photo sharing and improving how people capture, access, and relive their memories Nice To Have • You’ve shipped an end-to-end app or system to production • Experience with mobile integrations and photo handling APIs • Interest in viral consumer apps, ethical AI, and privacy-first design • Prior experience as a founding engineer, tech lead, or CTO • Passion for consumer tech and seamless user experiences • Excitement about leading both hands on development and long-term technical strategy Location & Commitment We’re based in Cambridge/Boston at MIT and are building quickly toward our MVP launch. This is a high-commitment role with significant ownership and collaboration. Ideally, you’re able to join us regularly in person as we move fast and prepare for accelerator applications, but we’re open to hybrid flexibility for the right person who can hit the ground running.