# Founding SDET

- **Company:** [Plotline](/companies/plotline)
- **Location:** Bengaluru Office
- **Type:** full_time
- **Posted:** Aug 18, 2026
- **Views:** 4


## Summary

Plotline, an AI startup backed by Elevation Capital that powers user experiences for Dream11, Upstox, and Zepto, is hiring a Founding SDET in Bengaluru. This role owns end-to-end quality strategy, building automation frameworks from scratch and integrating them into CI/CD. Tech stack includes Python, JavaScript, Java, Selenium, Playwright, Cypress, GitHub Actions, Jenkins, and CircleCI. Requires 4-6 years of test engineering experience, with founding/early team QA experience a major plus.

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## Job Description

&lt;h1&gt;Founding SDET&lt;/h1&gt;&lt;p&gt;Join our rapidly growing AI startup as a Founding SDET (Software Development Engineer in Test) and own the end-to-end quality strategy for our product. This role is for an exceptional engineer who combines strategic test planning with hands-on automation, enabling us to deliver reliable, scalable AI-powered experiences to our rapidly expanding customer base. As a founding team member, you’ll work closely with our founders and product teams to define, build, and scale Plotline’s QA processes from the ground up.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p&gt;Plotline is backed by Elevation Capital and powers user experiences for customers like Dream11, Upstox, Zepto, and more.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;h2&gt;Why This Role Matters&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;Build the QA vision and systems for a high-growth, product-led AI company&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;Work directly with founders to influence core product architecture and release processes&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;Ensure every user touchpoint is robust, reliable, and delightful at scale&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;div&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p&gt;We’re seeking a rare mix of deep technical expertise, hands-on test engineering, and entrepreneurial drive to set our quality bar high from day one.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;h2&gt;About This Role&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Key challenges you’ll solve:&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Quality Velocity:&lt;/strong&gt; Delivering high test coverage with fast iteration and minimal bottlenecks&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Infrastructure from Scratch:&lt;/strong&gt; Designing scalable and maintainable automation frameworks for end-to-end and integration testing&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;div&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p&gt;This is an opportunity to shape our entire approach to shipping bulletproof products and develop expertise in testing complex AI-driven systems at a scaling startup.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;div&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;h2&gt;Outcomes Expected&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Q1 Objectives:&lt;/strong&gt; Set up robust automation frameworks and integrate them into the CI/CD pipeline&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Year 1 Objectives:&lt;/strong&gt; Build processes and tooling that enable fast, safe, and reliable product delivery, with quality metrics showing measurable improvements&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;div&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;h2&gt;Responsibilities&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;h3&gt;Test Engineering &amp;amp; Automation&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Test Strategy:&lt;/strong&gt; Develop and implement comprehensive QA strategies across functional, integration, and system testing&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Automation Ownership:&lt;/strong&gt; Architect, build, and maintain automated testing frameworks for web, APIs, and backend systems&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;CI/CD Integration:&lt;/strong&gt; Ensure that quality gates and automated checks are integral to the deployment pipeline&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Tooling:&lt;/strong&gt; Evaluate, introduce, and maintain testing tools tailored to our product and scale&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;div&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;h3&gt;Product Quality &amp;amp; Release Engineering&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Bug Prevention:&lt;/strong&gt; Engage early in product design and architecture reviews to reduce defects before code is written&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Test Case Development:&lt;/strong&gt; Write and maintain detailed, reusable, and effective test cases&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Performance &amp;amp; Security:&lt;/strong&gt; Design tests for scalability, performance, and security, especially for AI/ML features&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Release Readiness:&lt;/strong&gt; Define release criteria, support releases, and ensure smooth rollouts&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;div&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;h3&gt;Collaboration &amp;amp; Culture&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Developer Productivity:&lt;/strong&gt; Partner with engineers to make testing easy, fast, and effective&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Documentation:&lt;/strong&gt; Drive creation of testing documentation and best practices&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;div&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;h2&gt;Requirements&lt;/h2&gt;&lt;h3&gt;Professional Experience&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;4–6 years of experience in test engineering (SDET, QA Automation, or equivalent roles)&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;Proven track record building automation frameworks and driving QA for B2B SaaS or AI/ML products&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;Experience as a founding or early team QA/SDET is a major plus&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;div&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;h3&gt;Technical Proficiency&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Languages &amp;amp; Frameworks:&lt;/strong&gt; Deep proficiency in at least one programming language (Python, JavaScript, Java, or similar)&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Automation Tools:&lt;/strong&gt; Hands-on experience with modern test automation tools (Selenium, Playwright, Cypress, or similar)&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;CI/CD:&lt;/strong&gt; Familiarity with CI/CD tooling (GitHub Actions, Jenkins, CircleCI, etc.)&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;API Testing:&lt;/strong&gt; Strong command of REST API and load/performance testing&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;div&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;h3&gt;Core Competencies&lt;/h3&gt;&lt;p&gt;Quality Leadership&lt;/p&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Pragmatic Ownership:&lt;/strong&gt; Balances test coverage with speed and business needs&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Process Builder:&lt;/strong&gt; Establishes scalable test and release processes that will grow with the team&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/li&gt;&lt;/ul&gt;&lt;div&gt; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;p&gt;Technical Execution&lt;/p&gt;&lt;ul&gt;&lt;li&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Framework Design:&lt;/strong&gt; Engineers holistic,...

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## About Plotline


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