Who We Are

DiFacto ApS · Aarhus, Denmark · Full-time · On-site at Incuba Katrinebjerg

DiFacto is a Danish B2B SaaS startup that saves construction companies money — automatically. Our platform compares supplier invoices against pre-negotiated price agreements using AI and flags every pricing error that would otherwise go unnoticed. We're talking real money: pilot data from over 15,000 invoices shows that more than 10% contain errors, and companies lose 1–1.5% of their entire procurement volume to mistakes nobody catches.

We soft-launched on April 1st, 2026, and we're in strong momentum: paying customers onboarded, 20+ customers in active pipeline, and we're hard-launching on May 1st, 2026. We're not short on demand — we have deep construction-industry insight and we're plugged into the networks that matter. We're backed by Incuba Katrinebjerg, Beyond Beta (accelerator), Nvidia Inception (AI startup programme), Dansk Industri, and NextStep — and we're actively preparing for seed conversations in Q3 2026.

We are three co-founders based at Incuba Katrinebjerg in Aarhus. Jeppe Østerby (CEO) leads sales and customer relationships with deep knowledge of the construction industry. Marius Relund (CFO/COO) handles data analysis, customer insights, and operations. Ivan Grant Petrus (CTO) built the technical foundation, architecture, and development processes. Together, we've bootstrapped DiFacto from an idea into a product that real companies depend on.

Now we need the person who will own the code — and grow into the CTO seat.

Why This Role Exists

Let's be transparent, because that's how we operate.

Until now, our platform has been built by an external development team. It worked — but development is the core of what we do, and we've reached the point where it has to move in-house. That's not optional; it's the most important thing we can do right now. With the hard launch on May 1st and the seed round preparation running in parallel, we need someone on this from day one.

At the same time, our current CTO (Ivan) is transitioning out of the day-to-day role. He built the architecture, the processes, the documentation, and the development infrastructure. He's not disappearing — he'll remain involved strategically — but the hands-on technical leadership needs to transfer to someone who can own it fully.

This isn't a "Lead Developer with vague upward mobility." This is a founding engineer role with an explicit, documented path to CTO. You'll inherit a real system, with real customers, and you'll shape the technical future of DiFacto from day one. The handover is structured, the documentation exists, and the transition plan is written.

If you prove yourself — and we believe the right person will — the CTO title, the mandate, and the ownership are yours.

How We Build

We're AI-native. Not in the buzzword sense — in the sense that our development process assumes AI-assisted coding as a core primitive, not an occasional helper.

We expect you to have shipped substantial production code using tools like Claude Code, Cursor, Claude, Copilot, or similar — and to have opinions about when AI accelerates you and when it slows you down. The best engineers we want to work with are fluent in both: they know when to let the model drive, when to write by hand, and how to review AI-generated code with the same rigour they'd apply to a junior's pull request.

If you've built meaningful projects — production systems, substantial side projects, shipped features at scale — where AI-assisted development was genuinely central to how you worked, we want to hear about those specifically in your application. "I've tried Cursor a few times" is not what we're looking for. We want someone who has internalised this way of working and has the output to show for it.

What You'll Actually Do

You'll work across our entire stack:

• Frontend: SvelteKit

• Backend: Node.js (Express) and Python

• Database: MongoDB

• AI/OCR Pipeline: Google Vertex AI / Gemini (with LLM abstraction layer for provider flexibility)

• Infrastructure: AWS (Stockholm region), Docker, Redis, Nginx, CrowdSec

• CI/CD: Bitbucket Pipelines

• Payments: Stripe

Your work will span both building and leading:

• Taking ownership of the existing codebase and improving it — architecture, reliability, performance

• Building new features: API integrations (Visma, ERP systems), email automation, cloud file uploads, customer-facing reports

• Working on the AI pipeline — evaluating and benchmarking LLM models, improving invoice parsing accuracy, optimising processing speed

• DevOps and infrastructure: MongoDB redundancy, Redis high availability, monitoring, security hardening

• Making technical decisions with real consequences — you'll sit with the founders and influence product direction

• Mentoring a development intern who is already onboarded and working alongside you

• Using AI-assisted development as a core part of how you ship — not a side feature

We have a documented backlog, a complete backend architecture mapping, and a structured 3-month execution plan. You won't be guessing what to do — but you will be expected to challenge priorities and shape what comes next.

Who We're Looking For

This is a senior role. We're looking for someone who has built and maintained production systems at scale — not just experimented with them.

Technical — required:

• 5+ years of professional software engineering experience, with demonstrable ownership of production systems

• Strong experience with JavaScript/TypeScript and Python

• Solid backend skills: Node.js, REST APIs, database design (MongoDB or similar NoSQL)

• Experience with cloud infrastructure (AWS preferred), Docker, and CI/CD pipelines

• Demonstrated experience shipping production-grade projects using AI-assisted development tools. We'll ask you to walk us through one in detail.

• Experience building or significantly contributing to a larger system — not just features, but architecture-level work

Technical — strong plus:

• AI/ML pipelines, LLMs, and data processing experience

• SvelteKit, Redis, Stripe, or security tooling

• Previous experience as a CTO, technical co-founder, or technical lead at an early-stage startup

Personal:

• You take ownership. You don't wait to be told what to do — you see what needs to happen and you make it happen.

• You communicate directly. We separate personality from the problem and focus on solutions. The best argument wins, not the loudest voice.

• You're comfortable with ambiguity. Priorities shift. Requirements evolve. You handle it.

• You care about the craft. You write code that's meant to last, not just compile.

• You're motivated by building something from scratch rather than maintaining something that already works.

What We Offer

We believe in being upfront. Here's the full picture.

Equity — the main thing. This is real ownership in a company with paying customers, a growing pipeline, and a clear path to revenue growth. Our starting offer is 5% equity, vesting over 1–3 years. For an exceptional candidate who steps into this role with real operational weight from day one — senior experience, proven AI-native engineering, and the capacity to take the CTO title quickly — we're open to discussing up to 10%. Bring your case.

A path to CTO that isn't a vague promise. The current CTO's transition plan is written, the handover is structured, and the role is explicitly designed for someone to grow into full technical leadership. The documentation exists. The architecture mapping exists. You won't be starting from zero.

A mandate that matters. You'll have both strategic and operational responsibility. You'll sit with the founders, influence decisions, and see the direct impact of your work on a live product.

A front-row seat to building a company. Fundraising conversations, customer meetings, strategic planning, product decisions — the full reality of early-stage startup life.

A proper workspace. Dedicated desk at Incuba Katrinebjerg — a modern co-working space with monitors, fitness centre, cafeteria, community events, and a vibrant ecosystem of startups and tech companies.

On salary — the honest part. This role starts without a salary. We're bootstrapped, and we don't yet have the liquidity to offer one. We're actively preparing for our seed round in Q3 2026, and our plan is to introduce salary when we close that round, or within 6–12 months at the latest. We know that's a real ask. It's why we're offering meaningful equity — this is a role for someone who wants to build and own a piece of something, not draw a paycheck for the first year. If that framing doesn't fit where you are in your life right now, we completely understand.

The Practical Details

Start date: As soon as possible, ideally before June 2026 — we're flexible on exact timing, but earlier is better. With the hard launch on May 1st, sooner is genuinely better.

Location: Incuba Katrinebjerg, Aarhus. This is strictly on-site. We're only considering candidates already based in Aarhus or willing to relocate before starting, at their own expense. We won't sponsor relocation, and remote is not an option for this role. Being physically present matters for collaboration, handover, and culture.

Contract: Full-time. A formal equity agreement will be drafted before you start.