Backend Engineer (Contract) — AI Email Assistant for Gmail

Type: 4 Week Contract
Opportunity: Potential for Full-Time Employment with Equity Participation
Location: Remote
Start Date: Immediate

About the Product

We are an early-stage, AI-first startup building a focused, industry-specific AI Email Assistant for Gmail. With our front-end complete and a fully functional end-to-end prototype already built in n8n, we are now ready to evolve it into a production-grade SaaS platform.

As part of this next phase, you will lead backend development to support:

1. User Sign-up and Authentication via Google.
2. Secure Gmail Access where users grant Gmail read and draft permissions through Google OAuth, with persistent background access via refresh tokens (access_type=offline).
3. AI-Powered Inbox Automation, leveraging our deployed fine-tuned open-source LLM to label and draft replies in real time.

We have chosen a lightweight, scalable architecture to validate product-market fit efficiently:

• Auth & Database: Supabase Auth + Postgres (Row-Level Security)
• Inbox Access: Google OAuth (offline Gmail scopes)
• Queue & Workers: Node.js / BullMQ via Supabase Edge Functions (or Railway)
• AI: Fine-tuned Qwen 2.5-32B on OpenPipe (fully managed in-house)
• Frontend: Next.js (already developed in-house)

Your Responsibilities

OAuth 2.0 & Gmail API Integration

• Implement secure Google OAuth 2.0 authentication with refresh token management.
• Set up Gmail "watch" webhooks and history ID-based synchronization.
• Manage label application and draft creation through Gmail API v3.

Workflow Orchestration

• Refactor existing n8n logic into TypeScript-based queue workers using BullMQ or Redis.
• Ensure robust error handling, retry mechanisms, and operational observability.

Supabase Integration

• Leverage Row-Level Security (RLS) for secure, multi-tenant data handling.
• Develop Edge Functions and webhooks for Gmail notifications and future Stripe billing events.

AI Integration

• Integrate with our OpenPipe-hosted LLM, managing API interactions, batching, and rate limits. Prompt engineering and fine-tuning is not part of your role, but your expertise and feedback are highly valued.

DevOps & CI/CD

• Dockerize services and set up CI/CD pipelines with GitHub Actions.
• Implement basic observability through monitoring tools such as Sentry and log management systems.

AI-First Development Requirements

• Required: You must be proficient in using Generative AI development tools such as Cursor, Windsurf, or equivalent AI-powered IDEs to accelerate delivery and maximize productivity.
• We are an AI-first company and expect daily, thoughtful application of GenAI tooling in your development workflow.

Required Experience

• 3+ years of hands-on experience building production-grade Node.js / TypeScript backends.
• Proven experience with Supabase Auth, Firebase Auth, or similar authentication services.
• Experience with Gmail API or Google Workspace Add-on development.
• Deep understanding of OAuth 2.0 flows, including PKCE and refresh token management.
• Experience with job-queue architectures (BullMQ, SQS, Cloud Tasks).
• Familiarity with Postgres schema design and Row-Level Security (RLS).
• Experience deploying Redis and managing worker queues.
• Strong DevOps skills, including Docker and CI/CD tooling.
• Experience with Stripe webhooks and subscription billing workflows.
• Exposure to OpenAI-compatible LLM APIs (OpenPipe).
• Familiarity with WorkOS or Auth0 for future enterprise SSO integrations.

What We Offer

• End-to-End Ownership — You will lead the architecture and implementation of our production backend from day one.
• Impact-Driven Development — You will ship value to real users quickly and receive direct feedback from the market.
• Lean, Scalable Stack — Our Supabase + Vercel + OpenPipe architecture allows you to move fast without heavy DevOps overhead.
• Future Growth Opportunity — Strong potential for transition to a full-time role with meaningful equity as we grow.

We move fast and are looking for focused, AI-first engineers who thrive on shipping meaningful products—qualified candidates will progress quickly through a short technical discussion and a paid assessment.

Company DescriptionMy People Know is a leading creator management company, representing top 5% creators globally and partnering with the world's most recognized brands. With over 600 successful influencer campaigns delivered in the past four years, we bring deep expertise in the creator economy. We build purpose-driven tools and AI-powered solutions that help creators work smarter, grow faster, and unlock more value at scale. Join us and help shape the future of creator technology.Company DescriptionMy People Know is a leading creator management company, representing top 5% creators globally and partnering with the world's most recognized brands. With over 600 successful influencer campaigns delivered in the past four years, we bring deep expertise in the creator economy. We build purpose-driven tools and AI-powered solutions that help creators work smarter, grow faster, and unlock more value at scale. Join us and help shape the future of creator technology.