Product Engineer – Private Equity Platform

OVERVIEW:

The D. E. Shaw group seeks a highly motivated and entrepreneurial technical product engineer to join its newly formed private equity venture, Cove. The product engineer will work at the intersection of product strategy and technical execution, building and scaling Cove's internal technology platform and integrating mission critical technology applications for its portfolio companies, with a focus on AI-driven tools. This role combines product thinking with hands-on technical expertise, requiring the ability to both define and build solutions. The position offers the opportunity to collaborate with a creative, innovative team at the intersection of technology and investment management, and as an early team member, help shape the group’s technology direction.

WHAT YOU'LL DO DAY-TO-DAY:

You'll be involved in all aspects of building and scaling technology products for the fund's investment activities, including:

• Work closely with the investment and operations teams to uncover high-impact opportunities, brainstorm product ideas, and turn their feedback into a clear product direction.
• Own product design and shape how each tool is structured, from defining how data is organized and connected to mapping the key business flows that determine how the tool works, ensuring conceptual and technical clarity in each iteration.
• Experiment, design, and develop products that use LLMs and GAI to streamline how investment teams work, ensuring AI integrates smoothly into daily operations and understanding how model behavior affects the user experience.
• Guide technical delivery from initial prototype to stable production release, occasionally contributing code directly, especially early in the product lifecycle or during proofs of concept when business and product input are most critical.
  
  

WHO WE’RE LOOKING FOR:

• A bachelor’s degree or higher, an impressive record of academic and professional achievement, and two to five years of experience are required.
• At least two years of experience developing technology products in direct collaboration with engineering teams, including at least one year focused on workflow products that streamline business operations and processes.
• Experience successfully taking a product from conception to completion, ideally in a startup environment; prior experience developing products for vertical-specific or industry-focused applications is a plus.
• A strong technical foundation in full-stack product development—spanning APIs, databases, and user interfaces—with the ability to read and execute code, and proficiency in overseeing technical aspects from architecture decisions to implementation details.
• At least one year of experience developing and integrating LLM-powered systems into production applications, with knowledge of agentic frameworks and their practical implementation; demonstrated ability to translate AI capabilities (including autonomous agents, tool use, and multi-step reasoning) into practical product features that solve real-world problems.
• Well-developed communication skills, a collaborative and entrepreneurial mindset, and the ability to successfully manage multiple projects at once.
• The expected annual base salary for this position is $185,000 to $250,000. Our compensation and benefits package includes variable compensation in the form of a year-end bonus, guaranteed in the first year of hire, and benefits including medical and prescription drug coverage, 401(k) contribution matching, wellness reimbursement, family building benefits, and a charitable gift match program.