October 31, 2025
Job post or roast post?
Pangolin (YC S25) Is Hiring a Full Stack Software Engineer (Open-Source)
YC startup hiring in SF — pay, equity and 'entry-level senior' spark comment brawl
TLDR: Pangolin, a Y Combinator startup, is hiring a full-stack engineer in San Francisco with $125k-$160k and 0.5%-1.5% equity. Comments erupted over SF costs, the 'recent grad with 3+ years' line, relocation demands, and whether open-source plus paid test work is win-win or spec-work lite.
Pangolin (YC S25) just dropped a Full Stack opening in San Francisco — $125k–$160k plus 0.5%–1.5% equity — to build its open‑source, self‑hosted security platform pushing toward zero‑trust networking (what’s that?). The stack screams startup chic (TypeScript, a pinch of Go, NextJS, AWS), and the founders promise a small, quiet team, fast shipping, and a paid open‑source test project. The internet? Immediately divided. One camp calls the salary “SF survival mode,” while optimists argue the equity is real upside if this Y Combinator bet hits (YC).
The hottest flame war centers on the line: “current or recent graduate with more than 3 years experience.” Cue the “entry‑level senior” memes and eye‑rolls. SF‑only with relocation split the room too: some swear proximity is power; others dub it “Return to Office cosplay.” The “quiet work environment” drew jokes (“quiet because no customers?”) and the “large open‑source user base” claim got the classic “show us the GitHub stars” challenge. Privacy fans love the self‑hosted, identity‑aware angle; ops folks warn that “self‑hosted” often means “you’re on call.” Meanwhile, devs cheered the paid OSS interview as refreshingly fair, even as skeptics asked if it’s just polished spec work. Bonus snark: “Tailwind + ShadCN + Drizzle? Startup UI bingo complete.”
Key Points
- •Pangolin is hiring a Full Stack Software Engineer in San Francisco with a $125k–$160k salary and 0.5%–1.5% equity.
- •The platform provides identity-aware remote access via secure reverse tunneling and is moving toward zero‑trust networking.
- •The role covers frontend (NextJS, Tailwind, ShadCN), backend (Express APIs, SQL, Drizzle ORM), and processes (CI/CD, internal tooling).
- •Requirements include extensive TypeScript, some Go, auth standards (OAuth2, OIDC, SSO), and infrastructure experience (Docker, Kubernetes, Linux, AWS).
- •Hiring process: materials review, brief founder interview, short paid OSS contribution, then onboarding; benefits include hybrid work, relocation assistance, and unlimited PTO.