Arcarae: The Engineer.
Arcarae's mission is to help humanity remember the power within; enabling individuals to remember, discover, understand, and embody who they truly are, unlocking their ability to freely express their unique lived experience without fear or compromise.
Our current product is an immersive AI platform that visualizes your inner landscape as a living universe, guiding users through profound self-exploration and authentic self-discovery. Our research develops computational models of cognition and internal world models, from MIRROR's implementation of inner monologue in LLMs to pioneering architectures for higher-order cognition and intuition; the overlooked dimensions of intelligence. Founded by Nicole Summer Hsing, she is seeking one engineer with a shader programming expertise, obsessed with building beautiful technology that performs flawlessly at scale.
you have a sharp eye, and sharper mind.
you have a talent of spotting bottlenecks and root problems.
a relentless drive to solve, execute, and optimize.
the engineer i am looking for is one who is systematic, modular, and clear-headed. a keen eye for organized, efficient code, with the ability to translate, optimize, and scale infrastructure with ease. they see immediately inefficiencies, know how to triage problems, and resolve complexity without distortion or overwhelm.
this engineering role is niche in the sense that you need to have knowledge in GLSL, shader programming, and graphics optimization. experience with video game graphics development (i.e. Unity, Unreal Engine), Metal, and Impeller is preferable. in tandem, ideally you also have a background in infrastructure and full-stack applications, or are open to learning more about and helping implement them later on.
an ability to get down into the nitty-gritty of low-level graphics languages like GLSL, yet zoom out and see overarching the computational systems that span full-stack. your attention to detail is as exceptional as your ability to see systems at a bird's eye view.
in the beginning, a lot of the engineer effort i need assistance with has to do with shader and cross-platform graphics performance optimizations. it is likely that you will work very closely with me on these things, so we can execute on these to ensure the product is as visually beautiful as performant.
this is the engineer i am looking for to join Arcarae.
- nicole summer hsing <3
A note about this role: This is not a typical engineering role, and requires specific niche domain knowledge. However, do not let this sway you from applying and trying to do the application; rather, if this is something that excites you, let it encourage you to learn and go full steam ahead! I truly believe that any individual is capable of doing anything they put their mind to, and would love to have you apply. In fact, it is arguably even more impressive if you are able to learn this domain knowledge in less than a month and complete the application. So go forth, and I believe in you <3
- Diagnosing and resolving graphics performance issues, optimizing GLSL shaders, implementing level-of-detail systems, and managing CPU/GPU memory on mobile devices efficiently
- Implementing (and learning) intelligent render optimizations: frustum culling, draw call batching, texture atlasing, and adaptive quality scaling based on device capabilities
- Refactoring, optimizing, and creating modular, reusable shader components that maintain visual fidelity while drastically reducing computational overhead
- Assisting, discussing, and implementing alongside Nicole Hsing full-stack optimizations and continuing to build out infrastructure to support scaling later on
- You have experience with graphics programming, shader optimization, and the mathematics underlying visual effects (linear algebra, trigonometry, computational geometry)
- Experience with GLSL/WebGL/OpenGL or similar shader languages, and understanding of GPU architecture and parallel computing principles
- Ability to profile, benchmark, and systematically optimize cross-platform applications; you don't guess at performance problems, you measure them
- You have background knowledge in some or all of the following areas: experience with graphics frameworks like Unity or custom rendering engines, knowledge of AI/ML integration in cross-platform applications, computational or simulated physics / physical motion, scaling infrastructure
- Comfortable diving into any part of the stack when needed, or learning more about areas outside of your expertise; from shader code to backend services to CI/CD pipelines
- A bonus is having experience working with and programming in Flutter, and a decent understanding of Flutter's graphical engine and pipeline
- The opportunity to build production systems that blend advanced mathematics, graphics programming, and real-time performance
- Experience across the full technical stack; from GLSL shaders to cross-platform implementation to backend infrastructure
- Access to all necessary development tools and subscriptions (i.e. Claude Code Max), testing devices, and infrastructure needed to diagnose performance issues and implement
- Complete ownership of Arcarae's technical full-stack CI/CD and graphics rendering pipeline; you'll work alongside Nicole Hsing to determine how we build, optimize, and scale our systems
- Direct collaboration with Nicole Hsing on optimizing the complex mathematical functions underlying Arcarae's visualizations, plus 24/7 access for debugging and technical discussions
Arcarae is niche in the sense that the entire current product's interface is comprised of GLSL shaders, and are a key component of the app's experience. Ensuring that these graphics are performant, optimized, and able to display across devices regardless of underlying hardware is crucial.
This is a unique opportunity where high-fidelity graphics that are often reserved for video games intersect with cutting edge consumer technology; to bring immersive graphical experience to a whole new frontier, with broader impact on the daily lives of individuals not only within a digital realm, but the real world one. To pioneer, create, and bring about a whole new paradigm of human-computer interaction in the form of immersive visualizations, breathing interfaces, and graphical art.
You need to have domain expertise in most of the following: GLSL shader programming, iOS/Android rendering pipelines, GPU optimization techniques, computational geometry, particle systems, procedural generation, mobile performance profiling, WebGL/OpenGL, frame buffer operations, texture compression, draw call optimization, mathematical visualization, real-time rendering, parallel computing principles. If you don't, and want this role, it's time to learn.
Ideally you also have background knowledge in backend infrastructure and building full-stack applications so you have a complete bird's eye picture of the current product's architecture.
Compensation is entirely based upon the individual and will not be disclosed until during the hiring process. For the full-time role, expect a competitive six figure salary, equity, and an in-person workspace.
This can begin as a remote or hybrid role, but the full-time position is an in-person only role in San Francisco, California. We will be in office five days a week.
If you are chosen for the full-time offer, we will sponsor your visa if necessary.
How the Hiring Process Works
At Arcarae, we do not hire full-time immediately.
We engage in a three stage hiring process to ensure that the prospective employee is the best fit, starting from an initial contract/intern/collaboration role, then scaling the individual into a full-time employee.
For the Engineer role specifically, the specific hiring process is as follows:
Stage 1: Contract work for front-end graphics optimizations
If selected based upon application, you will be contracted to assist with shader programming optimizations and graphics rendering for Arcarae's current product. This will focus on optimizations relating to the above areas. This period will last from end of October 2025 to December 2025.
Stage 2: Work-study for further development responsibilities
If Stage 1 goes well, you will engage in a work study for further developmental responsibilities relating to scaling and infrastructure. If you reach this stage, it is extremely likely you will be offered a full-time role. This period will last from around January 2026 to May 2026.
If Stage 2 goes well, you will be offered a full time role at Arcarae as the Engineer. This is when we will discuss all employment details, next steps, and the future in full.
Note: In exceptional circumstances, it is possible to be hired full-time at Stage 1 and it is not out of question.
Applications close on October 30th, 2025.
Tell us a bit more about yourself
Upload your resume and cover letter
Provide a ShaderToy link (or equivalent) to your favorite shader you have created that demonstrates your fullest capabilities. If you don't have one, make one!
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Please outline your approach for profiling CPU/GPU performance on compute constrained devices. Walk through the steps you take, what you look for, common concerns you check for, ect.
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(Please use examples and anecdotes from your lived experience to support why you take these steps. If you have just picked up shader programming, go do a few projects and then fill this out.)
Please outline your approach for identifying GPU and raster performance bottlenecks on GPU constrained devices. Walk through the steps you take, your triaging approach, common issues, ect.
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(Please use examples and anecdotes from your lived experience to support why you take these steps. If you have just picked up shader programming, go do a few projects and then fill this out.)
Optimize this shader such that it is performant on an iPhone 16 (or hardware spec. equivalent) at 30FPS with the lowest possible GPU time while maintaining a visually pleasing appearance. Document your optimization approach, trade-offs made, and provide profiling metrics. Provide a Github link below with the optimized code, necessary Flutter / React Native / Swift code, a README detailing how to run it, a screenshot of the shader, and profiling metrics.
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Optimize this shader such that it is performant on an Motorola Moto G 5G 2024 (or hardware spec. equivalent) at 30FPS with the lowest possible GPU time while maintaining a visually pleasing appearance. Document your optimization approach, trade-offs made, and provide profiling metrics. Provide a Github link below with the optimized code, necessary Flutter / React Native / Kotlin code, a README detailing how to run it, a screenshot of the shader, and profiling metrics.
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What brought you into computer graphics and shader programming? What is your background knowledge in particle motion, physics simulations, and graphical real-world motion simulation?
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(If you have just picked up shader programming, that's okay! Just be honest and learn as much as possible before answering.)
Describe your background and origin on how and why you became an engineer. What do you love about the craft specifically?
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Explain a time you owned end-to-end a software application / project and what you learned. Also provide the amount of time implementation took, and other useful metrics if applicable (i.e. ARR, DAU, ect.)
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Please describe why you want the role as the Engineer specifically at Arcarae.
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Imagine you are god. What would you create?
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Describe yourself in three words.
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Now, describe your day-to-day lived experience in three words.
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Finally, describe the physical environment you interact with everyday in three words.
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How did you hear about this job?
How did you hear about this job?
I have read the above in full and understand the unique hiring process. I am ready to begin the process upon initial contact.
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I have read the above in full and understand the unique hiring process. I am ready to begin the process upon initial contact.
