Technical Lead for AI and Data Company

Company Description

Masdr is part of Pi 3.14 Technologies. Pi 3.14 is a KSA-based AI & Data company building subscription-based vertical software products for the Saudi and GCC markets. Our current portfolio includes Masdr.io — an AI-powered Tax and Zakat copilot for KSA businesses — and a forthcoming e-commerce profit analytics platform purpose-built for Salla and Zid merchants. These two products are the starting point of a broader product portfolio: as the company scales, we will expand into additional verticals where AI and data can create asymmetric value in the Saudi and GCC markets. We operate at the intersection of regulatory intelligence, AI infrastructure, and market-specific data products.

Role Description

The Technical Lead will serve as Pi 3.14's most senior technical authority. This is a hands-on leadership role: you will own the full technical execution of our first two products, manage a distributed team of freelancers and vendors, and act as the direct bridge between the founder's product vision and delivered software. As Pi 3.14 grows beyond its initial product lines, this role is expected to grow with it — taking on greater scope, team leadership, and architectural responsibility across new verticals. You will not be a passive manager — you are expected to architect, review, and, where necessary build.

Core Responsibilities

1. Technical Strategy & Architecture

–    Design and own the end-to-end technical architecture for both products — including RAG pipeline design, API integrations, data models, and infrastructure.

–    Establish engineering standards: code review protocols, branching strategy, deployment pipelines, and security practices.

–    Make build-vs-buy decisions and select third-party tools, APIs, and AI services appropriate for the KSA regulatory environment.

2. Product 1 — Masdr.io (Tax & Zakat AI Copilot)

–    Audit the existing codebase and RAG pipeline, produce a written gap analysis within the first 30 days.

–    Complete the remaining product build: improve document ingestion, chunking, retrieval accuracy, and response quality.

–    Implement a system for continuous regulatory updates — ensuring the model reflects ZATCA and Zakat Authority changes automatically.

–    Stabilize the frontend (currently deployed at masdr.io) and prepare the product for paying users.

3. Product 2 — E-Commerce Profit Analytics (Salla / Zid)

–    Lead the architecture and development of a BeProfit-equivalent platform natively integrated with Salla and Zid APIs.

–    Design the data pipeline: order ingestion, COGS tracking, ad spend normalization (Meta, Snapchat, TikTok, Google), shipping fees, and platform commissions.

–    Build an accurate real-time P&L dashboard with product-level and order-level profitability breakdowns.

–    Scope and deliver the MVP within agreed timelines, then define the roadmap for V2 features.

4. Vendor & Freelancer Management

–    Own end-to-end hiring of freelancers and dev vendors — sourcing, technical assessment, onboarding, and performance management.

–    Write technical briefs and specs that are precise enough for external teams to execute without founder involvement.

–    Review and accept/reject all technical deliverables. No code ships without your sign-off.

–    Keep costs within agreed budgets; report actuals vs. forecast monthly.

5. Founder Interface & Reporting

–    Translate product decisions from the founder into implementation-ready technical specifications.

–    Maintain a live product roadmap and sprint board accessible to the founder at all times.

–    Deliver a concise weekly progress update (written, <1 page) covering progress, blockers, and decisions needed.

–    Flag risks early — no surprises. If a deadline is at risk, communicate it 2 weeks in advance with a mitigation plan.

Requirements

Non-Negotiable

–    5+ years of software engineering experience, with at least 2 years in a technical leadership or architect role.

–    Proven experience building and shipping SaaS products — not just enterprise projects or internal tools.

–    Hands-on experience with LLM/RAG systems (LangChain, LlamaIndex, or equivalent) and vector databases.

–    Strong Python and/or Node.js backend skills; ability to personally write production-grade code when needed.

–    Experience integrating third-party APIs (REST/OAuth) — e.g., payment platforms, ad networks, or e-commerce APIs.

–    Experience managing and technically evaluating freelancers or external dev vendors.

–    Excellent written communication in English; ability to produce clear specs and documentation.

Strongly Preferred

–    Familiarity with Salla and/or Zid platforms, or with Middle East e-commerce infrastructure.

–    Experience building analytics dashboards with real-time data pipelines (e.g., Metabase, custom React dashboards, dbt, Clickhouse).

–    Understanding of KSA regulatory context: ZATCA, VAT, Zakat Authority requirements.

–    Arabic language proficiency (not required, but an advantage).

–    Prior startup experience — comfortable with ambiguity, fast pivots, and wearing multiple hats.

Working Norms & Expectations

–    This is a high-ownership role. You are expected to operate with minimal supervision and maximum accountability.

–    This role is fully remote. You are expected to be reachable during core KSA business hours (Sunday–Thursday) and to attend scheduled syncs via video call without exception.

–    All work is milestone-based. Deliverables are assessed on quality and outcome, not hours logged.

–    English is the primary working language for documentation and technical artifacts. Arabic for merchant-facing content.

–    All intellectual property developed in this role belongs exclusively to Pi 3.14.

–    Strict confidentiality applies to all product roadmaps, technical architecture, customer data, and business strategy.

–    This role will follow a 60-day probation period, where both parties can end the contract.