ankar - Senior Product Engineer / Tech Lead

• You’re a product-minded, critical builder. You care deeply about what you build, and you have a track record of turning ideas into software that real users love. • Software engineering experience, including building and shipping production systems end-to-end. • Strong product intuition and experience partnering with design/product on user workflows. • Strong systems thinking: ability to design reliable, maintainable software and debug complex issues across the stack. • Experience in fast-moving startups or high-ownership environments. • What success looks like • You ship meaningful product improvements weekly and build trust through consistent execution. • You proactively identify what the product needs next, not just what’s assigned. • You raise the bar for quality and velocity through strong engineering judgment. • You design systems that scale with users and maintainability over time. • Culture at Ankar: • Culture at Ankar is how we think, build, and operate. We’re building a generational company that redefines how the world’s best R&D teams create and protect ideas. • Contrarian - we think from first principles: We think deeply, question assumptions, and build from first principles. The best ideas come from clarity and rigour. • Creative - we build with taste: We’re building the R&D tools for the AI era and shaping what applied research looks like over the next 20 years. We care about precision, quality, and systems that last. • Competitive - we play to win: We move with urgency and set a very high bar for ourselves and each other. Every win raises the bar. Every challenge sharpens us. • This role is not for you if... • You need a highly structured environment, a predefined playbook, regular working hours, or a schedule that never requires travel. We operate with high autonomy and ownership, expect our team to go above and beyond, be obsessed with our mission and thrive in ambiguity rather than wait for direction. • You prefer long planning cycles and certainty before acting. We move quickly, ship often, and adapt based on customer feedback and new information. • You want to manage the work rather than do the work. We're builders first, and everyone is expected to contribute directly to creating exceptional products. • You take it personally when ideas are challenged, priorities shift, or work gets redirected. We care more about finding the right answer than defending a particular one. • What we put behind our people • Building at the frontier takes exceptional people. We invest accordingly. • Health Insurance : Full private health & dental coverage for you and your dependents. • Pension: Flexible pension scheme with up to 5% employer matching on qualifying earnings. • Food on us: Team lunches twice a week, plus dinner when working late in the office. • Cycle to work: Green Commute initiative scheme (up to £3k) to help you get a new bike tax-free. • Way we work: We combine deep, in-person collaboration (minimum 3 days/week in our Shoreditch office) with flexibility and trust. What matters is ownership, impact, and results, not where you work from. • Visa sponsorship: Yes