Firefly — Full-Stack Software Engineer

• →4–7 years of experience as a full-stack software engineer, with at least 1 year in a startup/scale-up [Required]

• Experience building a product from zero to one, either solo or with significant individual ownership on a team [Must have]
• Experience at a high-growth, early-stage startup (Seed – Series D) [Required]
• IoT experience / building software for hardware-connected products (e.g., Whoop, Samsara) [Strongly preferred]

• Degree in Computer Science or a related field [Required]

• Proficiency with React, TypeScript, AWS [Must have]
• Strong product and design instincts, ideally with a portfolio/examples [Required]

• At least one clear signal of excellence (e.g., top school, well-known companies) [Required]

• Candidates who have only worked at large tech companies
• Job hopping (i.e., multiple short stints <1 year)

Salary$180K – $230KEquity0.1 – 0.5%On-site policy5 days in-office, Flatiron, NYCVisa sponsorshipAvailable on a case-by-case basisEmployment typeFull-timeLocationNYC (Flatiron)

1. What are you most excited about in your work right now, and where do you want to take your career long term?
2. This role requires building products from the ground up in a fast-paced environment. Can you describe a time you've built something from zero to one?
3. What are you passionate about outside of work, either currently or previously?
4. Tell me about a roadblock you've hit either at work or in your personal life. How did you approach it and what did you learn?
5. What draws you to the prospect of joining a fully onsite (5 days/week in-person) team in NYC?
6. Can the candidate be on-site? If not, is the candidate willing to relocate?
7. What is their salary expectation?
8. How actively are they recruiting?

Updated Mar 16, 2026

Safety / Public Safety Adjacent Axon, Carbyne, Omnilert, Genetec, Outtake, Peregrine

Physical Security / IoT / Hardware-Enabled Samsara, Brilliant, DOOR, Perception Psychology

NY-Based Strong Engineering Culture Roche, Oscar Health, Navan, Squarespace, Peloton Interactive, Compass

Non-ideal — Do not poach Verkada

For reference only — do not source these specific profiles.

Dhruv Karve — [LinkedIn] Software Engineer | Jersey City, United States

• First software hire at Joulea — textbook zero-to-one; built the entire full-stack platform
• React, TypeScript, and AWS experience
• Currently at an early-stage AI startup, showing continued appetite for a fast-paced environment

Hersh Patel — [LinkedIn] Senior Software Engineer | ex-AWS IoT | New York, United States

• Currently at Peregrine
• AWS IoT experience on two separate projects
• NYC based

• Target candidates with a solid history in high-growth startup environments and sustained tenures (18+ months); avoid profiles dominated by big tech or frequent job hops.
• Prioritize those with proven zero-to-one product ownership — evidence of taking products from concept to launch, ideally with some exposure to IoT/hardware-connected systems.
• Select candidates who have thrived in talent-dense, collaborative environments and are comfortable with the 5-day onsite NYC pace.
• Ensure screening captures clear signals on technical ownership and product/design instincts to filter out candidates who only have consulting or operational roles.
• Recent HM rejection tags on submitted candidates: "Miscellaneous" (×3), "Skills mismatch", "Not enough experience" — all at HM review stage.