About Bustem
Bustem builds AI-powered brand protection for e-commerce companies. We find and shut down copycats, counterfeiters, impersonators, and unauthorized sellers stealing real revenue. In under 12 months, we’ve scaled to $5M+ ARR, partnered with 150+ brands, and stayed profitable and fully bootstrapped with no outside capital.

No hype. No burn. Just real revenue, real customers, and real problems to solve.

We have product-market fit. Now we’re building the machine.

About the Role
We’re hiring a Founding Engineer to build the systems that power Bustem.

You’re here to build systems that:

• Detect infringers faster than anyone else

• Automate enforcement at scale

• Turn a messy, manual industry into software

You’ll own problems end-to-end: architecture → build → deploy → iterate — with high autonomy and zero hand-holding.

Main Job Responsibilities

Real-Time Infringer Detection

• Build and scale AI-powered scraping + detection systems

• Monitor marketplaces, social platforms, and the open web

• Detect new infringers as they appear in real time

• Handle messy, constantly changing external environments

Autonomous Enforcement & Reporting

• Build agents and workflows that report infringers at scale

• Automate enforcement across hundreds of brands

• Increase speed, accuracy, and throughput of takedowns

Systems & Infrastructure

• Design and build scalable backend systems and internal APIs

• Work with Next.js, Postgres, Typescript and modern infrastructure

• Use LLMs and automation to move faster and reduce manual work

• Collaborate directly with founders, product, and ops

• Make fast, pragmatic decisions, rather not overengineered ones

• Continuously improve performance, reliability, and output

About You

• 3–7 years of engineering experience (startup experience strongly preferred)

• Strong with Next.js + Postgres

• You build systems, not just features

• You move fast without waiting for permission

• You can take vague problems and turn them into shipped products

• High ownership. You care about outcomes, not tasks

• Strong product sense and judgment

• Comfortable using AI/LLMs as part of your workflow

Nice to Have

• Scraping, data pipelines, distributed systems

• High-scale or real-time systems

• E-commerce, marketplaces, or platform integrations

Location

• On-Site, New York, NY

Compensation:

• $130,000 - $200,000 Base Salary + 0.25 - 1% Equity

• Daily Lunch & Dinner Stipend

• Bi-Weekly Team Dinners & Events

• This range may span several levels that could apply to the role. Final salary depends on factors like level, relevant experience, skills, and expertise. The range covers base salary only, not benefits.