---
title: 'Senior AI Engineer at Blank Metal'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/senior-ai-engineer-blank-metal-minneapolis-ekxx13k4bs0h'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-08'
---

# Senior AI Engineer at Blank Metal

- **Company:** Blank Metal
- **Location:** Minneapolis, MN
- **Employment:** full-time
- **Work type:** hybrid
- **Posted:** 2026-08-20
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-08
- **Apply:** https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/blank-metal/fae993cb-b264-40f7-996d-ad531419131c

## Job description

## ABOUT BLANK METAL

Blank Metal is an AI-native engineering company that partners with enterprises to deliver production AI fast. We blend strategic insight with hands-on execution, shipping high-impact systems that turn AI initiatives into measurable business results.

We're builders, not theorists. Our team of seasoned engineers, designers, and strategists work across industries to create AI applications that actually get used and make a difference.

## THE ROLE

You're a technical leader who shapes how Blank Metal approaches AI engineering. With experience designing, building, and shipping AI features that hold up under real‑world use, you combine deep technical expertise with mentorship and vision. You architect complex AI systems, make critical technical decisions, and elevate the entire team's capabilities.

## WHAT YOU'LL DO

- Lead the technical architecture and strategy for AI‑powered projects
- Design scalable, production‑grade systems that handle real‑world complexity
- Make critical decisions about tooling, frameworks, and architectural patterns
- Own the quality and reliability of systems in production
- Mentor and develop other engineers
- Drive technical discussions and shape team standards
- Keep up with emerging tools and techniques
- Build observability and evaluation frameworks
- Partner with product and client teams to translate business needs into technical solutions
- Contribute to longer‑term technical vision and innovation

## WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR

- AI Architecture Expertise: Deep understanding of production AI systems design, scalability, and reliability
- Production AI Leadership: Extensive hands-on experience building, deploying, and operating AI systems
- System Design Mastery: Can architect complex AI integrations that scale, handle edge cases, and provide excellent observability
- AI Tooling Depth: Expert knowledge of LLM APIs, vector databases, prompt engineering, agents, and emerging AI tools
- Full-Stack Fluency: Advanced development skills across frontend, backend, and infrastructure
- AI Observability & Evals: Experience building evaluation frameworks and monitoring for AI systems
- Technical Leadership: You mentor others, set technical standards, and drive architectural decisions
- Strategic Thinking: You connect technical decisions to business outcomes
- Learning Mindset: You stay current with the rapidly evolving AI landscape

## REQUIRED EXPERIENCE

- At least 5 years of professional software engineering experience, with a demonstrated ability to deliver production‑ready AI features that real users depend on
- Proven record of shipping complex, mission‑critical software
- Strong full‑stack and/or backend development skills applied to real projects
- Experience designing and leading technically challenging work from concept through delivery
- Shown ability to guide others, share knowledge, and influence technical direction

## NICE TO HAVE

- Experience building RAG systems at scale
- Deep experience with vector databases and semantic search
- Background in AI observability, evaluation frameworks, or monitoring
- Experience with agent-based architectures and agentic AI systems
- Understanding of inference optimization and model serving
- Previous mentorship or technical leadership roles
- Contribution to AI-focused open source projects

## WHY YOU'LL LOVE IT HERE

- Build AI that ships: every project ends in a live deployment, not a slide deck
- Craft meets velocity: we obsess over quality while delivering at startup speed
- Outcome-driven model: our projects align with client success, not billable hours
- AI-native culture: you'll work with peers who deeply understand modern AI's potential and limits
- Real collaboration: open conversations, shared ownership, and space to bring your voice and creativity

## WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE

In your role, you'll:

- Establish technical standards and best practices for AI engineering across the team
- Lead the design of complex, large-scale AI systems that others will follow
- Mentor engineers and accelerate their growth as AI builders
- Ship high-impact AI projects that showcase innovation and quality
- Become a thought leader on production AI within the organization
- Build a culture of technical excellence and continuous learning
- Help the company scale AI capabilities as it grows

## EQUAL OPPORTUNITY

Blank Metal is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We welcome all backgrounds and perspectives. Diversity makes our work better and our team stronger.

## About Blank Metal

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Blank Metal is an AI-native engineering partner that helps enterprises build production-ready AI products and platforms in 90 days or less, acting as an "anti-consultancy" that prioritizes outcomes over billable hours.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Seed stage)
- **Headquarters**: Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States
- **Founded**: 2025
- **Founders**: Matt Johnson (CEO), Eric Johnson (CTO), Teresa Marchek (Head of Product), Elli Rader (Chief Growth Officer), Missy Bemm (Head of Partnership Operations), Jeff Hinck (Board Member), Justin Kaufenberg (Board Member)

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: AI-Native Engineering Services / Technology Consulting
- **Target customers**: B2B; mid-sized companies ($500M–$1B revenue) needing outsourced AI teams, large multi-billion dollar corporations needing AI strategy and talent, and Rally Ventures portfolio companies needing rapid prototyping.
- **Mission or purpose statement**: To help companies navigate the most profound technological shift in decades by delivering production-ready enterprise AI solutions without the overhead of traditional consulting.

## Products & Services
- **Enterprise GenAI Platform**: Build and deploy AI-native applications, AI agents, and replatform legacy systems — from "cool demo" to "enterprise production."
- **AI Roadmap & ROI Model (PLAN)**: Board-ready AI strategy and ROI model to align executives and secure funding.
- **Production-Ready MVP (BUILD)**: Time-boxed MVP delivered in less than 90 days with KPIs wired in from day one.
- **Training & Governance (OWN)**: Team upskilling, bootcamps, and governance frameworks so clients can scale the win internally.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not disclosed (private company)
- **Key Metric**: Total Funding — $3.0M Seed round (June 24, 2025)
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Rally Ventures, Traction Capital, Pure Play Partners (co-led seed round)
- **Growth Signals**:
  - Monthly website traffic growth: +282.5%
  - LinkedIn follower growth: +7.4% monthly (1,322 followers)
  - Headcount growth: +4.0% monthly; currently 20 employees (23 according to Built In)
  - Active job postings: 12 (monthly growth +140%, quarterly +100%)
  - Client outcomes: 20% revenue lift for a national insurer, 30% productivity uplift for an enterprise workforce platform, board-adopted C-suite 2030 AI roadmap for a healthcare client

## Competitive Advantages
- **"Anti-consultancy" model**: Lean, senior teams with <5% overhead; outcomes-based contracts (not hour factories).
- **AI-native from day one**: Every workflow, process, and internal tool is built for velocity and iteration.
- **Ship speed**: Time-boxed MVPs delivered in weeks, not quarters.
- **Deep partnerships**: Expertise and partnerships with best models, APIs, and ecosystems (OpenAI, Anthropic, etc.).
- **Performance Guaranteed**: Measurable ROI, not strategy decks.

## Strategic Focus
- **Current priorities**: Scaling the team (12 open roles), expanding partner ecosystem (OpenAI and Anthropic Partner Lead roles), and serving diverse client sizes from startups to Fortune 500s.
- **Growth direction**: Building a place where top AI talent can explore broadly, while helping clients build, maintain, and scale AI products and tools.

## Why Work Here
- **Culture**: Small, autonomous squads vs. sprawling org charts; "builders who want to move fast, obsess over craft, and change what’s possible for clients."
- **Remote/Hybrid Policy**: Hybrid workspace with flexible on-site time; offices in Minneapolis, MN (HQ) and a second location in Minnesota.
- **Notable perks**: Opportunity to work with cutting-edge AI tech (OpenAI, Anthropic, PyTorch, Kubernetes, etc.); exposure to diverse clients from startups to Fortune 500s; strong emphasis on craft and impact.
- **Engineering Culture**: AI-powered, impact-obsessed; "we measure success in production." Tech stack includes Python, TypeScript, React, SQL, PyTorch, Kubernetes, Terraform, OpenAI, and more.

## Sources
1. [blankmetal.ai](https://www.blankmetal.ai/)
2. [LinkedIn - Blank Metal](https://www.linkedin.com/company/blank-metal)
3. [Built In - Blank Metal Careers](https://builtin.com/company/blank-metal)
4. [Rally Ventures - Blank Metal](https://www.rallyventures.com/blank-metal/)
5. [Twin Cities Business - New AI Firm Blank Metal Raises $3 Million](https://tcbmag.com/new-ai-firm-blank-metal-raises-3-million/)
6. [FinSMEs - Blank Metal Raises $3M in Funding](https://www.finsmes.com/2025/06/blank-metal-raises-3m-in-funding.html)

## Other roles at Blank Metal

- [Office Coordinator, Part-Time](https://feeny.ai/job/office-coordinator-part-time-blank-metal-minneapolis-vtt1vd322984) — Minneapolis, MN
- [Future opportunities at Blank Metal](https://feeny.ai/job/future-opportunities-at-blank-metal-blank-metal-minneapolis-5np2tpd2z1qm) — Minneapolis, MN
- [Forward Deployed Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/forward-deployed-engineer-blank-metal-minneapolis-qcvn4b12fcdx) — Minneapolis, MN
- [AI Product Leader](https://feeny.ai/job/ai-product-leader-blank-metal-minneapolis-nyy1eaqvqayd) — Minneapolis, MN
- [AI Workflow Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/ai-workflow-engineer-blank-metal-minneapolis-m62c4xv4x1db) — Minneapolis, MN
- [AI Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/ai-engineer-blank-metal-minneapolis-jnyk7kz1gayr) — Minneapolis, MN
- [Senior Full Stack Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-full-stack-engineer-blank-metal-minneapolis-qwbt7t1jvq44) — Minneapolis, MN
- [Senior AI Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-ai-engineer-vendelux-new-york-1516168c6ctn) — New York, NY
- [Senior AI Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-ai-engineer-oddin-europe-q662djzswde7) — Europe
- [Senior AI Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-ai-engineer-glintt-global-madrid-qjbynz65fx92) — Madrid, Spain