Careers — Founding Team
We’re not hiring a CTO.We’re looking for a Co-Founder.
This isn't a job. It's an ownership opportunity.
The opportunity
Co-Founder & CTO — ReliefX Aero
ReliefX Aero is beginning its search for a Co-Founder & Chief Technology Officer. This is a founder-level technical partnership — not an existing engineering management vacancy.
The person who joins will help co-create the technology direction, the engineering organisation, the ReliefX Nimbus OS architecture, the autonomous-drone integration strategy, the future technical team, the long-term technology roadmap — and, ultimately, the company itself.
We are not inviting someone to run a department. We are inviting someone to help build the technical foundation and the company around it.
What we are building
Software infrastructure for autonomous drone logistics
ReliefX Aero is a technology company building software infrastructure for autonomous drone logistics. Our flagship product, ReliefX Nimbus OS, is an enterprise operations platform for autonomous drone logistics.
The platform foundation already in development includes an enterprise application shell with authentication, role-based access control, and organisation, operational and environment scoping — alongside Mission Planning, Mission Workspace, Fleet Management, Active Operations and Telemetry.
Our current platform foundation spans Mission Planning, Fleet Management, Active Operations and Telemetry, with Analytics forming the next planned layer of the platform.
Why now
Why we are looking for a technical co-founder now
ReliefX Aero is early-stage, founder-led and bootstrapped — with a meaningful software foundation already under development.
What the founder carries today
- Company vision and business strategy
- Product and business direction
- Operations, fundraising and partnerships
- Company building
- Product requirements and operational workflows
What the Co-Founder & CTO will own
- Technology strategy, engineering and architecture
- Infrastructure and technical execution
- Autonomous systems and drone integration
- Technical hiring and engineering culture
- Long-term technical direction
Major strategic decisions are made collaboratively between the founding team. This is a partnership of counterparts, not a reporting line.
Who we are looking for
Six characteristics that matter
Builder
Someone who actually builds things rather than only managing people who build them.
Entrepreneur
Someone comfortable with uncertainty, limited resources and incomplete information.
Technologist
Someone capable of thinking deeply about architecture, infrastructure, systems and long-term technical decisions.
Systems thinker
Someone who understands the relationship between mission → aircraft → operations → telemetry → intelligence → simulation → autonomous systems — not simply another web application.
Business-minded
Someone who understands that technology exists to solve meaningful operational and commercial problems.
Founder
Someone who wants ownership, responsibility and long-term participation — not merely a CTO title.
Technical background
Areas we value — not mandatory requirements
Core areas
Backend and platform engineering, cloud architecture, APIs, databases, distributed systems, infrastructure, security, observability, real-time systems, geospatial and data systems, and AI/ML where relevant.
Additional advantages
Drones/UAV, robotics, autonomous systems, PX4, ArduPilot, MAVLink, ROS/ROS2, embedded systems, telemetry, GPS/navigation, computer vision, edge computing and simulation.
The candidate does not need to know everything. We value systems engineering ability, technical depth, builder mentality and the ability to learn over a checklist of technologies.
Experience and credentials
Demonstrated capability matters more than credentials
There is no rigid degree-based filter. Relevant backgrounds may include Computer Science, Software Engineering, Electronics, Robotics, Aerospace, Mechatronics, Electrical Engineering, AI/ML or related technical fields.
Useful evidence includes a GitHub history, products you have personally built, startups, open-source contributions, robotics projects, technical prototypes, architecture work, research, or previous founder experience.
Where we refer to roughly 6–12+ years of experience, that is indicative only — it is not an automatic screening criterion.
Long-term direction
What this could become
Our direction is platform-first, not platform-only. Over the long term, ReliefX Aero could grow into areas such as ReliefX Nimbus OS offered as SaaS, managed drone operations, Drone-as-a-Service, ReliefX-operated fleets, specialised or custom aircraft, deeper autonomy, and integrated aerial logistics infrastructure.
These are long-term strategic possibilities, not current claims. None of them are existing capabilities, commitments, or guaranteed outcomes — they are part of the conversation we want to have with the right technical co-founder.
Founder economics
Meaningful founder-level equity participation
This is a co-founder opportunity with meaningful founder-level equity participation. Compensation and founder economics will be discussed transparently, based on the candidate’s circumstances, commitment, technical capability, startup experience, the scope of the role, the company’s current finances, and future funding and commercial milestones.
ReliefX Aero is not currently incorporated as a Private Limited company. Any eventual equity arrangement will be subject to formal incorporation, definitive founder and shareholder documentation, agreed vesting arrangements, and applicable legal and tax requirements.
Honest expectations
What we are not looking for
This opportunity is unlikely to fit someone who primarily expects a conventional CTO title, a fully staffed engineering organisation, mature technical infrastructure, or a role limited to management and delegation.
It is also unlikely to fit someone who requires every requirement, process and technical decision to already be defined before they can begin building. An early-stage founding environment means creating that clarity together.
The application
Apply to Join the Founding Team
We are interested in your thinking, not a perfect answer.
Please answer these questions yourself. Do not use AI to generate, rewrite or substantially edit your responses. We are intentionally asking for your own judgement, experiences and ideas.
We are not looking for polished answers. Specific experiences, decisions, mistakes, trade-offs and lessons are far more valuable to us than generic or professionally polished responses.
There is no expected “correct” answer to these questions. We want to understand how you think, how you make decisions and how you approach building something when the answer is not obvious.
Process
What happens after applying
A high-level view of the process — not every applicant will progress through every stage.
Step 1
Application
Step 2
Founder review
Step 3
Founder conversation
Step 4
Technical / builder assessment
Step 5
Co-Founder compatibility discussion
Step 6
Mutual diligence
Step 7
Founder-term discussion
Step 8
Definitive agreement
Build ReliefX Aero together
This is a founding relationship — ownership, responsibility, uncertainty, technical leadership, company building, mutual trust and long-term participation. Not simply occupying a CTO position.