Brainbase Labs Inc.

Building the Global AI Workforce

Brainbase Labs is an applied AI research lab focused on enabling artificial intelligence in the global workforce. Founded in 2023 by Gokhan Egri, the company builds high-fidelity agent environments and tooling to create the first Artificial General Employee (AGE). Their core product, Kafka, is an AI worker equipped with its own virtual computer, browser, file system, and integrations like email and Slack, allowing it to work alongside human teams. Brainbase operates on the thesis that AI workers should be charged per-minute like a utility, rather than relying on the traditional SaaS model.

A Culture of Human-Like Agents

At Brainbase Labs, the engineering culture is deeply rooted in the belief that economically viable AI workers must operate in environments designed for humans. The team is small, highly dense with talent, and operates with a contrarian mindset—building horizontal, generalist agents rather than vertical point solutions. Employees work in an intense, fast-paced environment where they are expected to take extreme ownership and execute relentlessly on aggressive roadmaps. The company envisions a future hybrid workforce where a core team of exceptional humans works alongside orders of magnitude more AI workers.

What You'll Actually Do

Working at Brainbase means being at the frontier of applied AI research and product development. Engineers are expected to be exceptionally competent across the full stack, including frontend (React, Next.js), backend (Node.js, Python), AI (OpenAI API, Langchain), and infrastructure (AWS). You will be directly involved in building and refining Kafka and Hermes (their conversational agent variant), tackling core challenges in long-term planning, collective memory, and computer use for agents. The work involves rapid iteration, collaborating closely with founders, and ensuring AI agents achieve state-of-the-art performance on benchmarks like GAIA.

Compensation & Benefits

Brainbase offers highly competitive compensation designed to attract top-tier talent from extreme talent density environments. For foundational technical roles, base salaries range from $150K to $300K, accompanied by significant equity stakes ranging from 0.80% to 2.50%. The company provides standard benefits including health, dental, and vision insurance, as well as unlimited PTO. Given their early stage and rapid growth trajectory, the equity component represents a substantial upside potential for early joiners.

The Interview Process

The interview process at Brainbase is unique, as the initial screening is conducted entirely by their AI agent, Kafka. After you apply via email, Kafka evaluates your background, answers your questions, and schedules a 15-minute call. Following this AI-led interview, Kafka makes a recommendation to the team. If successful, you will move on to human-led rounds, which typically involve deep technical evaluations across their core stack, discussions on product sense, and alignment with their contrarian thesis on AI labor.

Why Join / Why Not

Why Join: If you want to be at the absolute cutting edge of AI agent development and believe in the vision of Artificial General Employees, Brainbase offers a rare opportunity. The team is small, well-funded by top investors like Y Combinator, and already generating significant revenue with enterprise customers. You will have immense ownership, work on hard technical problems, and receive strong compensation.

Why Not: The environment is incredibly demanding. With an aggressive roadmap and a mandate for extreme talent density, the expectations for output and ownership are exceptionally high. The work is entirely on-site in San Francisco, and the contrarian approach to horizontal AI agents carries inherent market risks compared to safer vertical SaaS plays. This is not a role for those seeking a relaxed work-life balance or a highly structured corporate environment.