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Senior AI-Native Backend Engineer

  • On-site
    • Dubai, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
  • IT / Programming

Job description

About Livio

Livio is a Dubai-based hospitality and real estate group operating 800+ short-term rental properties under DET licensing, plus brokerage, interiors, property care, and a business centre. We are rebranding from Deluxe Holiday Homes to Livio with sub-brands across each vertical.

We operate seven production codebases serving short-term rentals, real estate sales, off-plan investments, owner portals, and internal operations. Stack is modern, focused, ship

The role

We need one strong engineer who can design databases, ship APIs, integrate third-party systems, and review code that AI produces. You will not be a CTO. You will not be a manager. You will be a craftsman with strong backend judgment and AI leverage.

Our stack is set: Next.js + TypeScript + PostgreSQL/Supabase + Vercel. AI writes most of our frontend. You spend 70% of your time on backend depth schema, APIs, integrations, security and 30% reviewing AI-generated UI.

What you will do

  • Design and ship backend systems across Next.js + Supabase + Vercel.

  • Review code produced by Claude Code before merge — especially security, auth, payment, and integration code.

  • Design database schemas, API contracts, RLS policies, integration patterns.

  • Integrate third-party APIs: Guesty, Breezeway, Stripe, ERPNext, Twilio, lead providers.

  • Set up monitoring, error tracking, operational dashboards.

  • Write tests: Playwright E2E for flows, Vitest for unit logic.

  • Spot-check AI-generated frontend work and fix what is wrong.

  • Push back when a technical decision is wrong — with evidence.

What you will NOT do

  • Decide stack or vendors. Already decided.

  • Manage other engineers. None yet, may grow later.

  • Talk to investors or customers. Founder handles that.

  • Run sprint ceremonies or write Jira tickets. We work async.

  • Build entire UIs from scratch. Claude does most UI work.

Required

  • Has shipped at least 2 production systems end-to-end.

  • Daily TypeScript user. Comfortable with generics, discriminated unions, strict mode.

  • Has shipped at least one production app on Next.js App Router.

  • Strong PostgreSQL fundamentals — schema design, indexing, transactions, query optimization.

  • Familiar with Supabase or willing to ramp in week 1 (RLS, auth, storage).

  • Comfortable with third-party API integration including webhooks, signature verification, retry logic.

  • Has done code review on a team. Comfortable rejecting code, asking for changes, explaining why.

  • Operates well solo. Can scope, ship, and debug without a peer review buddy.

  • Reads code carefully — line by line, not skim-and-approve.

  • Public GitHub with recent activity, OR ready to demonstrate work in paid trial week.

  • Strong written English. Async communication is our default.

  • UAE-based, holding GCC residency, or has prior UAE/Gulf work experience.

AI fluency required

This is non-negotiable. We use Claude Code daily across every repo.

  • Active user of Claude, Cursor, or similar AI coding tools. Can show specific examples in the interview.

  • Reviews AI output critically. Catches hallucinated functions, wrong API versions, missing error handling.

  • Can articulate where AI fails — outdated APIs, niche libraries, multi-file changes — not just where it succeeds.

  • Familiar with prompt engineering basics. Knows how context windows, system prompts, and tool use work.

  • Verifies AI suggestions against documentation before merging. Especially for security, auth, payment code.

  • Comfortable that AI writes the majority of production code. If this raises concerns for you, this role is not the right fit.

Bonus

  • Hospitality, real estate, or PropTech experience.

  • Stripe integrations. Multi-tenant SaaS. PMS or CRM systems.

  • Russian or Arabic language.

How we work

  • Async-first. Slack + GitHub PRs. Few meetings.

  • One concern per pull request.

  • Plan-before-execute for any task touching multiple files.

  • Production deploys via Vercel auto-deploy on main merge only.

  • Direct, fast-moving culture. Bullet points over essays.

Compensation and benefits

  • Private health insurance.

  • Annual airfare per UAE labour law.

  • Standard UAE benefits: gratuity, leave, public holidays.

Hiring process

  • CV + GitHub review. 3 days.

  • 30-minute intro call. Three AI fluency questions.

  • Final call to review trial output together.

  • Offer within 7 days of trial completion.

  • Total time from application to offer: 3–4 weeks.

Job requirements

Requirements:

  • 4+ years backend or full-stack experience

  • Shipped at least 2 production systems end-to-end

  • Strong TypeScript (strict mode, production usage)

  • Strong PostgreSQL (schema design, indexing, performance)

  • Experience with Next.js (App Router)

  • Experience with Supabase or similar backend-as-a-service

  • API integration experience (webhooks, Stripe or similar, retries, auth)

  • Has reviewed production code and rejected/approved PRs

  • Comfortable working independently (async, no hand-holding)

  • Strong experience using AI coding tools (Claude/Cursor) in real projects

  • Able to verify AI-generated code against documentation

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