Founding Engineer - AI-First Development

ForkOn | Cologne (Hybrid) | Full Remote possible

We're ForkOn --- Europe's leading technology-driven fleet management platform for intralogistics. Our cloud platform and IoT hardware optimize forklift fleets for enterprise customers. Real sensors, real vehicles, real operational impact. And we're about to fundamentally change how we build.

We're looking for a Founding Engineer who will own the transformation from traditional development to AI-first --- not as an experiment, but as the new default. This isn't about joining a team. It's about reshaping how it works.

What you'll own

You'll work directly with the founder. No layers, no committees. That means:

• You define how we build --- the processes, tools, and workflows. If what exists doesn't work, replace it. We measure outcomes, not rituals.
• You ship production code with an AI-first methodology --- orchestrating AI agents, designing human-AI development workflows, and setting the standard for the team.
• You evolve our product across the full stack --- from our Vue3/TypeScript frontend to our PHP/Laravel backend to our Kafka-based IoT data pipeline processing real-time forklift sensor data.
• You raise the bar for the engineering team through code reviews, mentorship, and leading by example --- not by pulling rank, but by earning trust.
• You collaborate with the strategy team on how AI transforms not just our codebase but our product itself --- solving real intralogistics problems with intelligence, not just features.

What you bring

• Strong software development and architecture experience with solid PHP/Laravel skills.
• A proven AI-first development approach --- you use tools like Cursor, Claude Code, or similar not as add-ons but as your primary way of building. You think in terms of orchestrating AI agents, not just writing code.
• The ability to think like a product owner: you don't just implement tickets, you shape what gets built and why.
• Leadership through competence --- you've mentored developers, driven code quality, or shaped technical direction, even without a formal title.
• A self-directed, high-ownership mindset. You thrive with autonomy and deliver under accountability.
• Fluent English. German is a strong plus.

Nice to have

• Vue3, TypeScript, Node.js, Kafka, AWS experience. GraphQL (ideally with Lighthouse).
• React Native basics.
• Background in IoT, telematics, or logistics tech.
• Familiarity with microservice architectures.

What's in it for you

• A rare opportunity to define how an entire engineering team builds software --- from blank slate to production pipeline.
• Direct collaboration with the founder. Short decisions. Real influence.
• Competitive compensation (€80k--100k depending on experience) with equity participation (VSOP) --- the upside is real.
• A product that solves tangible, physical-world problems --- not another dashboard nobody asked for.
• Hybrid in Cologne or fully remote. Permanent contract (unbefristet).

Interested?

Send your CV, earliest start date, and salary expectations to bewerbung@forkon.de --- or just message us directly. We'd rather have a conversation than read a cover letter.