CoLoop Targets Ex-Founders for AI Agent Engineering Role

London-based startup CoLoop has launched a distinctive recruitment drive targeting former startup founders for a senior engineering position. The role centers on developing the company's AI-powered customer research platform, with compensation ranging from £90,000 to £180,000 plus 0.10%-0.40% equity. Notably, the position doesn't require US citizenship or visa sponsorship.

Founded in 2020 and part of Y Combinator's S21 batch, CoLoop aims to become the "customer context layer" for businesses by helping teams access customer insights faster. The company's journey includes notable pivots—they built a product to $1M annual recurring revenue before killing it due to insufficient product-market fit. This experience cemented their focus on solving challenges in customer research through AI.

The role demands expertise in prompt engineering, Node.js, Python, React, TypeScript, and PostgreSQL. Crucially, CoLoop seeks engineers who have founded or co-founded AI startups and shipped complex agent systems to production. The tech stack includes tools like Anthropic's Claude Code, OpenAI Codex, and specialized frameworks like Conductor and Greptile.

CoLoop's engineering culture emphasizes radical autonomy: there are no product managers, and engineers own the entire product lifecycle—from ideation and development to launch and iteration. The company tracks individual impact through tools like PostHog, citing examples where single experiments drove significant user growth.

"We want ex-founders because they instinctively own problems, move quickly, care about customers, and measure outcomes," the job description states. The flat structure rewards skill and context over hierarchy, with engineers expected to make decisions without waiting for directives.

Beyond technical skills, CoLoop values candidates who can articulate AI concepts to diverse audiences and actively identify efficiency improvements. The company also highlights its track record of supporting entrepreneurial employees—three former team members have since become YC founders themselves.

The application process requires concise details about candidates' founding experience, links to live projects or repositories, and explanations of how they'd contribute to CoLoop's mission. Interviews involve technical assessments and a paid one-day contract project.

This recruitment approach reflects broader trends of AI startups prioritizing entrepreneurial mindsets for complex system development. For former founders seeking impactful roles without sacrificing autonomy, CoLoop offers a rare blend of ownership and resources.

Interested candidates can explore opportunities through Y Combinator's Work at a Startup platform or visit CoLoop's website for more context.