CTO

CTO (equity based)
TaprConnect Ltd, London. Remote.
About TaprConnect
TaprConnect is an agentic workspace for individuals and small teams. One assistant connects to the tools people already use and does the work for them. The user decides what it may do in each tool: allow it, ask first, or switch it off. Anything that deletes or cannot be undone always asks first. We are bootstrapped and not yet earning revenue.
Where we are
A working codebase already exists: web app, mobile app, API, background workers and database. It is written in TypeScript in one monorepo, using Next.js, Expo, Node.js, PostgreSQL with row level security, Redis and Stripe for billing, with several AI model vendors behind one adapter layer. Automated tests run on every change. We aim to open Early Paid Access between December 2026 and January 2027.
The role
You lead everything technical as a cofounder, working alongside the founder, who leads product, marketing and customers. You join to finish, secure and launch what exists, then grow it with the company. You will review the existing code properly, keep what is good and fix what is not.
The first 90 days
Days 1 to 30. You read the whole codebase under NDA, review it for security and quality, list what must be fixed before launch, and agree the launch plan and priorities with the founder.
Days 31 to 60. You fix the launch blockers, set up reliable deployment, monitoring and backups, and finish the security review of the highest risk areas: sign in, payments, permissions and data access.
Days 61 to 90. You support the Early Paid Access launch, watch for problems, handle incidents, and turn early user feedback into fixes.
What you will be responsible for
Technical direction. You decide the architecture and technology choices together with the founder, and write the important decisions down so the next engineer can see why. You say no to work that adds risk without adding value.
Code quality. You review every change before it merges to the main branch. You keep tests, linting and builds passing, keep changes small, and keep releases repeatable and boring.
Security and privacy. The server enforces everything and the client is never trusted. You own how permissions, sign in, workspace access and billing are checked, how secrets are stored, how personal data is protected under UK GDPR, and what happens when something goes wrong, including who is told and how fast.
Infrastructure and reliability. You own hosting, deployments, monitoring, alerts, backups and recovery. You keep running costs low and tell the founder before they rise.
AI and integrations. You own how the product talks to AI model vendors and to connected tools. That includes keeping answers accurate and safe, keeping untrusted content such as web pages and emails separate from the instructions the model follows, controlling the cost of each task, and handling vendor outages with sensible fallbacks.
Delivery. You turn the roadmap into shipped features, estimate honestly, and tell the founder early when something will slip.
Team. You set the standards for any engineer who joins, onboard them and review their work. You help decide who to bring in next.
Partnership with the founder. You and the founder make product and technical trade offs together. The founder owns product direction, marketing and customers. You own how it is built.
How we work
Changes go in as small pull requests, are tested before they merge, and are reviewed by someone other than the author. Nothing goes straight to the main branch. We do not ship a feature without tests and we do not hide a failing check. We write decisions down. We prefer simple, proven technology to clever technology.
Day to day
Review and merge pull requests, fix bugs and ship features. Read logs and alerts. Keep short notes on technical decisions and on how to run, deploy and recover the system. Check in with the founder on priorities. Tell the founder straight away about security issues, technical risk and cost changes.
What we are looking for
Several years building and running production software, ideally as a senior engineer, tech lead, or an earlier cofounder or CTO.
Strong full stack skills with TypeScript, Node.js, a React framework (we use Next.js) and PostgreSQL.
A clear understanding of web security: authentication, authorisation, input validation, secrets and data protection.
Experience shipping and operating a product that real users depend on.
Comfort working with LLM APIs, and with building using AI coding tools while still reading and checking what they produce.
The ability to explain technical decisions in plain English to a non technical founder, and to tell the truth early, including when it is uncomfortable.
You must be free to take this on, with no employment contract or other agreement that gives anyone else rights to your work or stops you doing it. If you are employed, check your contract before you apply.
It helps if you know Expo or React Native, MCP or connector work, Postgres row level security, Stripe billing, UK GDPR or startups.
What to expect
This is an unpaid, equity based role at an early stage. There is no salary and no guarantee of reward. What you get is a real say in how the product is built, a CTO’s share of the outcome if it works, and a codebase and a launch to shape from the start. If you need income from this now, it is not the right fit.
How it works
Equity. This role is equity based. The terms are agreed in writing once we have both decided to go ahead.
Costs. TaprConnect pays no salary or fees and reimburses no costs until it can fund itself from its own revenue. Every member covers their own equipment, tools, travel and time. The company provides its own shared accounts (code repository, work email, Slack and Notion) and pays for its own infrastructure.
Ownership of the code. Everything you create for TaprConnect belongs to TaprConnect Ltd, including code, designs, documents and ideas. You sign a written assignment of these rights before any work starts. All work lives in the company repository and accounts. You do not bring in code you have no right to use, whether from an employer or anywhere else, and you list the open source licences you use. You keep your general skills and knowledge.
Confidentiality. You sign an NDA before you see the code.
Time and status. This is a cofounder opportunity, not employment. There are no set hours. You choose when, where and how you work, and agree priorities with the founder.
Leaving. Either side can end it with written notice. You hand over your work and your access is removed.
Hiring steps
1. Apply on LinkedIn with your CV and a link to your work.
2. A call of about 30 minutes with the founder to talk about your experience and what you want from this.
3. You sign an NDA, then we walk you through the codebase and talk through how you would approach the launch priorities.
4. If we both want to go ahead, we agree the terms in writing, including the assignment of rights, before any work starts.
How to apply
Apply here on LinkedIn and attach your CV. Include a link to your GitHub, or to a published app or site you built, inside your CV so we can see your work. Also tell us how much time you can realistically give each week and any other commitments. We use your details only to consider your application. We will get back to you.

Skills
JavaScript, TypeScript, React, Node.js, Next.js, Git, React Native

Work arrangement
Yes