Software Test Engineering Lead

We're looking for a Senior Software Test Engineer to join us as our first Test and QA hire and help build the foundation of a robust, automated testing strategy across our cloud-native backend and developer IDE. Our platform combines a microservices-based system on AWS with a highly interactive IDE built on Visual Studio Code, empowering engineers with intelligent tools for chip design automation.

As the first QA engineer, you'll work closely with engineering, product, and DevOps teams to ensure the quality, performance, and resilience of our systems. You'll be responsible for defining our test strategies, developing automation frameworks, and scaling our testing infrastructure as we grow.

Core Responsibilities:

• Own end-to-end testing for our cloud backend services and IDE frontend
• Develop and maintain automated test scripts using tools such as Selenium, Playwright, Puppeteer, or Cypress
• Write test plans and test cases that ensure full coverage of product features
• Implement load and performance testing for backend services
• Analyze test coverage and drive improvements across the engineering lifecycle
• Collaborate with developers to design testable features and resolve issues quickly
• Partner with DevOps to integrate test automation into pre-deployment workflows
• Hire and mentor future test engineers and help build out a scalable SQA function

Required Skills & Experience:

• 5+ years of experience in software testing, including automation for both backend and frontend systems
• Hands-on experience with modern automation frameworks such as Playwright, Selenium, Puppeteer, TestRail, etc
• Strong coding skills in Python and TypeScript
• Experience with API testing, test coverage analysis, and performance/load testing tools
• Track record of owning and delivering QA infrastructure in a fast-paced environment
• Experience collaborating across engineering, product, and DevOps functions
• Excellent communication, documentation, and organizational skills

Nice to Have:

• Startup experience or experience building test infrastructure from scratch
• Familiarity with cloud environments, especially AWS
• Experience testing IDEs, developer tools, or complex interactive UIs

What We Offer:

• Opportunity to shape the QA strategy for a company from the ground up
• A high-impact role in a deep-tech AI + semiconductor SaaS startup
• A collaborative, ownership-driven culture where your voice matters
• Competitive compensation and equity