Fellow Engineer

About Downstream

Downstream is a marketplace platform transforming the waste and construction industries from the ground up. We're on a mission to bring simplicity, transparency, and sustainability to two of the most essential — but often overlooked — sectors of our economy.

We make it easy for contractors, builders, and businesses to find and book critical services like dumpster rentals, hauling, site services, and equipment — all in a few clicks. No endless calls, no confusing pricing, no waiting around. Our platform connects customers with vetted, reliable providers so they can get what they need, when they need it.

We're not just about convenience — we're about impact. By streamlining logistics and digitizing the supply chain, we're helping reduce waste, cut emissions, and build a cleaner, more sustainable future. Let's build better, together.

About the role

We're looking for a Fellow Engineer to provide exceptional technical leadership and help define the future of Downstream's technology. This is our highest individual-contributor level, focused on breakthrough innovation, long-range technical vision, and the most consequential technical opportunities facing the company. You'll shape how AI-native marketplace systems evolve, represent Downstream's technical perspective externally, and mentor our Staff and Principal engineers.

What you'll do

• Set a five-to-ten-year technical vision for Downstream's marketplace platform and AI-native capabilities
• Drive breakthrough innovation in the architecture and application of Django-based marketplace systems, APIs, data models, and intelligent automation
• Identify and lead exploration of transformative agentic AI approaches, including advanced multi-agent systems capable of reasoning, planning, coordinating tools, and executing complex workflows
• Shape the long-term role of AI frameworks and orchestration approaches, including LangChain, LangGraph, OpenAI, Hugging Face, and custom or emerging technologies
• Establish novel technical approaches for intelligent logistics, dynamic pricing, supplier matching, and other complex marketplace problems
• Influence the company's most consequential technical bets, balancing innovation with practical paths to production, reliability, security, and measurable business value
• Advise executive leadership on emerging technologies, technical opportunities, platform evolution, and strategic risks
• Mentor Staff and Principal engineers and elevate technical excellence across the engineering organization
• Represent Downstream externally through technical thought leadership, industry engagement, and contributions to the broader engineering community

Role specifics

• Ownership: defines long-range technical vision and drives breakthrough work with company-wide impact
• Architecture: influences the evolution of the platform and the technical capabilities that differentiate Downstream
• AI responsibility: advances the frontier of agentic and AI-native marketplace systems while establishing a credible path from innovation to production value
• Leadership: serves as an exceptional individual technical contributor, strategic advisor, and mentor to the most senior engineers

Who you are

• You're an exceptional technical leader with a record of breakthrough engineering impact and influence beyond a single team or organization
• You bring deep architectural expertise and the ability to shape the evolution of complex software platforms
• You've pioneered or led advanced AI/LLM systems, agentic architectures, or other transformative technical capabilities
• You can identify where emerging AI techniques create durable advantages for customers and the business, and distinguish those opportunities from hype
• You influence technical direction at the executive and industry level while remaining grounded in engineering realities
• You have a demonstrated record of mentoring senior technical leaders and raising the standards of an engineering organization
• You can represent Downstream's technical vision externally; construction tech, logistics, rentals, or marketplace expertise is valuable

Compensation

$200,000–$260,000 per year (Series A compensation band).

Benefits

Downstream is an equal opportunity employer. We consider all applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or any other protected status under applicable law.

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• 401(k) with a company match
• Company equity — be an owner in what we're building
• Paid time off, paid holidays, and floating holidays
• Parental and bereavement leave