Design Technologist

About Abaka AI

Abaka AI is built on one mission: to be the world's most trusted data partner for AI companies. More than 1,000 industry leaders across Generative AI, Embodied AI, and Automotive AI rely on us to power their data pipelines. With headquarters in Silicon Valley and teams in Paris, Singapore, and Tokyo, we support global partners with fast, reliable, and scalable data solutions.

Our offerings include a diverse catalog of off-the-shelf datasets (image, video, multimodal, reasoning, 3D, and beyond) as well as comprehensive data collection and annotation services. Whether teams need raw data, curated datasets, or full-cycle data engineering, Abaka AI provides the foundation for building high-performance AI systems.

About the Role

We're hiring a Design Technologist to own how our products look, feel, and work, from first sketch to working front-end code. This is a foundational role on a new product and software engineering team, and you'll be one of its first hires. You sit between design and engineering: you reason from the user's problem, design the solution, and build it, so a project doesn't have to wait on an engineer to get started.

You'll prototype in code, build and maintain our design system as real components, and ship interfaces for web and mobile products used by data contributors, annotators, and enterprise customers. You'll work directly with engineers and the team lead, with real ownership and a short path from idea to shipped product. This is not a role where you receive a spec and produce screens. We want someone who asks why and proposes the right solution, even when it isn't the one we asked for.

If you thrive in high-ownership environments and want to shape the product foundation of a fast-moving AI company, this role offers immediate and lasting impact.

Responsibilities

• Own end-to-end product design and prototyping for web and mobile: discovery, user flows, wireframes, high-fidelity UI, and working prototypes.

• Build functional prototypes and production-quality front-end code (HTML/CSS, TypeScript, React) so ideas can be tested and shipped without waiting on engineering at the start of a project.

• Build our design system from scratch as both design and code: foundations (color, type, spacing, iconography, tokens) and a shared component library used across products.

• Frame problems before solving them: talk to users, study how they work, and challenge requirements when there's a better answer.

• Design and build workflow-heavy, data-dense interfaces such as annotation tools, review queues, dashboards, and internal platforms.

• Use AI coding and design tools to speed up exploration, prototyping, and implementation, and share what works with the team.

• Partner closely with engineers to ship: align on architecture, review implementation for quality, and contribute directly to the front-end codebase when it helps.

• Use research, usability testing, and product data to validate decisions and keep improving what's live.

• Help shape how the team works: design reviews, critique, documentation, and the processes a growing product team needs.

Minimum Qualifications

• 1 to 4 years of experience as a design technologist, design engineer, product designer who codes, or front-end engineer with strong design skills, with shipped work you can walk us through.

• A portfolio or code samples showing both design craft and working implementation (live prototypes, shipped UI, or an open-source or personal project).

• Proficiency in HTML, CSS, and JavaScript/TypeScript, with hands-on experience in React or a similar component framework.

• Fluency in Figma and rapid prototyping, with the ability to move between design tools and a code editor.

• Strong UX fundamentals: information architecture, interaction design, user flows, and usability.

• Strong visual craft: layout, typography, hierarchy, and attention to detail.

• Clear evidence of systems thinking: reusable components, patterns, or a design system you built or contributed to.

• Ability to explain and defend design decisions to engineers and stakeholders in clear written and spoken English.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience as an early or founding member of a design or product team at a startup.

• Experience with design tokens, theming, Storybook or similar component tooling, and accessibility standards (WCAG).

• Experience with animation and motion on the web (CSS, Framer Motion, GSAP) or with native iOS/Android patterns and cross-platform frameworks (React Native).

• Experience designing data-dense or workflow-heavy tools: dashboards, internal tools, marketplaces, or B2B platforms.

• Experience working with AI coding tools (e.g., Cursor, Claude Code) in a design and build workflow.

• Background in AI products, data platforms, or work involving remote expert contributors.

Compensation & Benefits

The base salary range for this position is $110,000 - $170,000 USD annually.

Compensation may vary outside of this range depending on a number of factors, including a candidate's qualifications, skills, competencies and experience. Base pay is one part of the Total Package that is provided to compensate and recognize employees for their work at Abaka AI. This role is eligible for equity, as well as a comprehensive benefits package (health, dental, vision, PTO, flexible work schedule).