(Immediate Start) Chief Technology Officer

Job Description

Company Description

ForceFriction AI offers simplified end-to-end AI solutions and capabilities that help organizations onboard AI faster, seamlessly, and effortlessly. Backed by MIT Alumni, our team consists of highly skilled experts with years of experience in developing and deploying cutting-edge AI solutions for a wide range of industries. Our core premise is simplified AI onboarding with unmatched security and seamless AI integration every step of the way. Our strategic service offerings include AI solutions for various sectors such as retail, banking and financial services, aerospace and defense, manufacturing, organizations, and healthcare.

Role Description

We're seeking a CTO EdTech (In-Training) to join our founding team in a unique leadership development opportunity. This role is designed for ambitious technical professionals who want to gain hands-on experience leading technology strategy and development at a premier AI institute while proving their capabilities for a permanent CTO position.

What This Role Offers You

- Real CTO Experience: Lead technical decisions, architecture choices, and educational product development from day one
- AI EdTech Expertise: Deep exposure to educational technology, AI-powered learning systems, and student-centered product development
- Leadership Development: Mentorship and guidance as you develop executive-level technical leadership skills in the high-impact education sector
- Equity Opportunity: Meaningful equity participation with potential for significant CTO-level ownership upon successful completion
- Career Acceleration: Fast-track your path to C-level executive roles in EdTech and education innovation
- Social Impact: Opportunity to transform education and positively impact students and educators globally

Key Responsibilities

Technical Leadership

- Define and execute technical strategy and product roadmap and manage day-to-day operations
- Make critical architecture and technology stack decisions
- Lead technical due diligence for partnerships and integrations
- Establish engineering best practices and development processes

Product Development

- Oversee AI-powered educational platform development and learning algorithms
- Design adaptive learning systems, content recommendation engines, and assessment tools
- Ensure accessibility, data privacy, and compliance with educational standards (FERPA, COPPA, etc.)
- Drive innovation in personalized learning, student engagement, and educational outcomes
- Integrate educational pedagogy with technical solutions

Team Building

- Participate in technical hiring and team building strategies
- Mentor and guide technical team members
- Establish engineering culture and technical standards
- Plan for future technical team scaling

Strategic Planning

- Collaborate with founders on educational product strategy and technical feasibility
- Represent technical perspective in meetings with educational institutions, investors, and partners
- Contribute to fundraising efforts and technical presentations
- Develop long-term technology roadmaps aligned with educational impact goals
- Stay current with EdTech trends, AI in education, and learning science innovations

What We're Looking For

Required Qualifications

- 5+ years of technology experience with 2+ years in leadership roles
- Strong background in AI/ML technologies, frameworks, and deployment
- Experience with cloud platforms, scalable architectures, and modern development practices
- Proven track record of leading technical projects and teams
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field (or equivalent experience)

Important Terms

- No Guaranteed Permanent Position: Permanent CTO appointment is contingent on successful performance only.
- Professional Development: Regardless of outcome, you will gain valuable CTO-level experience and skills

What We Offer

Upon Permanent Appointment

- Significant CTO-level equity stake (5-10% based on performance)
- Competitive salary package once funding secured
- Board observer or advisory rights
- Leadership in hiring and building technical team
- Long-term equity upside and growth opportunities

How to Apply

We're looking for candidates who are excited about the challenge of proving themselves in a real CTO role while gaining invaluable startup experience. Even if we don't move forward together permanently, you'll leave with concrete CTO experience that will accelerate your career.