VP of Engineering

A Note from Shane, our CEO

The greatest mistake I ever made in my career was trying to convince people to join a startup. I’m not here to convince you.

In my early days, I oversold. I tried to make the journey look easier than it was. I tried to convince people that going smaller could feel as stable as Microsoft. I tried to make ownership sound exciting without fully preparing people for the weight of it. The kind of ownership that changes how you show up every single day.

On one hand, it’s the most empowering thing you will ever feel. On the other hand, it’s hard. Really hard.

As I sit here almost five years in, thinking about the next twenty, I’m more excited than I have ever been about what we’re building and why. And the only thing that matters to me now is finding people who deeply and genuinely believe in this mission too.

I don’t want you to work here because you want to work with me.
I don’t want you to work here because you want to try a startup.
I don’t want you to work here because small sounds refreshing after years at a big company.

You should only want to work here if you truly believe in our mission.
Securing the world’s freedom to communicate.

That is the work.

We need a new foundation.
We need new rules.
We need open source and decentralized systems to bring trust back to the single most important thing in the digital world. Communication.

If that belief isn’t already in your bones, nothing I write here should convince you. And that’s okay.

But if it is, and if you’re the best in the world at what you do, and if you are obsessed with becoming more effective, more leveraged, and more impactful, then maybe it’s worth applying. Because there is one word that drives everything we do here. Leverage. Leverage is our operating system. It shapes every cultural norm, every system, every tool, every decision.

Our goal is simple. Help every person here become one of the most highly leveraged individuals on earth. Better tools. Better systems. Better teammates. Clearer priorities. Less noise. More output.

We measure ourselves with one ratio. Total messages sent on XMTP divided by total employees.

It forces us to build things that scale beyond headcount.

It forces focus.

It forces great systems.

It forces us to hire only when hiring increases the total leverage of the organization.

That is why we hire slowly and rarely.
That is why getting a job here is hard.
And it is intentional.

Here is something I did not understand early in my career. Something I wish someone had told me. For the few people who do get to work here, it is a chance to own and lead and grow in your career like never before.

We don’t hide how the company works.

We don’t shield people from hard decisions.

We want everyone here to learn everything there is to know about running and building a company.

Because the best thing about going small isn’t the speed. It isn’t the lack of red tape.

It is the learning. Seeing how it really works from the inside out.

Whatever you want to do after XMTP.

Start something. Lead something. Build something.

You will be better because of your time here.

You will leave with a level of judgment, ownership, and leverage you can’t get anywhere else.

If this resonates, take a look at the roles below.

If it doesn’t, that’s fine too. Please send this to someone you know who would thrive here.

— Shane

XMTP Labs is building the future of messaging—secure, decentralized, and private.

Our open protocol (XMTP) powers the next generation of communication, while

Convos brings that vision to life as a privacy first chat app.

We’re hiring a Vice President of Engineering to build and lead our engineering

organization from the ground up. This is a foundational leadership role responsible

for driving organizational structure, technical strategy, and team performance

across both the XMTP protocol and Convos app.

We're looking for a seasoned technical leader who can think strategically about

how to structure teams for speed and quality, make smart architectural decisions,

and hold a high bar for execution and accountability. You should have deep

experience navigating technical trade-offs, leading protocol or infrastructure

teams, and inspiring engineers through clarity, mentorship, and decisiveness.

You’ll report directly to the CEO and be a key partner in shaping product direction,

culture, and roadmap execution.

Strategic Planning and Vision

• Define and evolve our engineering strategy in alignment with company goals

• Shape and execute on technical product roadmap

• Champion technical excellence while making pragmatic decisions for velocity and scale

Organizational Leadership

• Design and grow the engineering org from early stage through intentional growth

• Hire and manage top-tier engineering talent across protocol and app

• Develop a culture of ownership, quality, and high performance

Execution and Delivery

• Ensure consistent, high-velocity delivery of complex projects

• Oversee technical roadmap execution with a focus on resilience, speed and quality

• Build and enforce strong QA and testing practices

Technical Leadership

• Provide architectural direction, particularly on protocol and backend infrastructure

• Guide trade-off discussions, balancing short-term needs with long-term maintainability

• Be the voice of engineering in product and company strategy conversations

Communication and Collaboration

• Act as the primary liaison between engineering and executive leadership

• Communicate priorities, progress, and blockers with clarity and transparency

• Foster cross-functional collaboration across Product, Design, Protocol, and Ops

• Minimum of 10+ years of engineering experience, including 5+ years leading and scaling high-performing teams

• Experience building and growing an engineering org from early stage to 50+ people

• Deep understanding of technical trade-offs, protocol design, and system architecture

• Strong preference for leaders with experience in developer infrastructure, developer tools, or protocols (e.g., Cloudflare, Datadog, GitHub, Vercel, Buf, etc.)

• Comfortable overseeing both protocol-level complexity and consumer app execution

• Proven track record of shipping production-grade software in complex environments

• Skilled at creating clarity from ambiguity and driving execution across teams

• High EQ leadership style with a focus on mentorship, accountability, and alignment

• Experience with secure messaging, cryptography, or open-source protocol development

• Contributions to open-source developer platforms or infrastructure

• Background as a founder or early technical leader in a fast-growing startup

• Familiarity with React Native, Swift, Go, Rust, or Kotlin

You’ll be responsible for architecting how our entire engineering function operates - from how we hire and onboard, to how we plan and execute.

You’ll work on technologies that touch millions of users and help define what privacy and interoperability look like in the next era of communication. Your leadership will shape the standards others adopt and the team culture that drives us forward.

• You’ve led protocol, infrastructure, or developer tool teams through growth and change

• You care deeply about high-quality engineering practices and user trust

• You understand how to structure teams for speed and scale

• You can operate in ambiguity and make confident, high-leverage decisions

• You’re passionate about privacy, open systems, and durable architecture

• Base Salary: $280–300K USD

• Equity: Competitive ownership in a high-conviction, early-stage company

• Benefits:

  • Fully paid Medical, Dental, and Vision

  • Parental Leave

  • Monthly wellness + lifestyle stipend

  • IT equipment + WFH setup

  • Personal assistant support

  • Unlimited time off

  • Remote-first team, with semi-annual IRL gatherings

• React Native, Swift, Kotlin

• Typescript, Go, Rust

• XMTP Protocol

• Onchain identity + wallet-based auth

• Secure messaging, E2E encryption