“I’m a first-time founder working on a high conviction bet in AI. We’ve raised from strong investors and now we need to hire exceptional early engineers and operators. But we don’t have a brand yet and are technically still operating in stealth. How do we stand out and earn the attention of world-class talent outside of our initial network?”
The hiring market is noisy for the top 1% of AI talent and it’s difficult for young companies to stand out. If you’re building something ambitious in this wave, you’re not the only one chasing it. The best operators and builders are fielding pings from labs and hot scaleups — while often plotting their own thing.
Though candidate interest in the AI domain is at an all-time high and overall volume of hires per company is down, there are more high-quality and well-funded teams building in AI competing for the very top of the talent market. Once you’ve tapped out your network, you’ll need to start thinking about how to attract those further afield.
When you’re early — pre-launch, low brand, maybe even in stealth — it can feel like a paradox: you want the best people in the world to come build with you, but you don’t have much to show them yet. Previously, it was easy for a startup’s talent brand to be built on massive funding rounds and a hot space alone. But in an AI bubble where capital is flowing, this just isn’t enough.
Today, standing out for early-stage companies means more than splashy press or well-written job descriptions. Elite talent doesn’t follow companies, it follows signals. And early-stage, low-brand startups can still win — if your founder-led signal is strong enough. So it starts with you.
The mistake I see many early founders make is treating stealth as silence — when in fact, stealth just means selective visibility. I recommend amplifying three dimensions: people, mission and momentum.
Talent follows talent
The most enduring reason great talent joins a company isn’t compensation, title or product. It’s people. Bubble or no bubble, that’s never changed.
Your team is the strongest magnet you have — and that includes you. Start by being findable, credible and loud. Share the story about your founder-market-fit or your early hypotheses. Don’t think of this as giving away secrets; you’re signalling the kind of thinker and builder you are. The best operators are paying attention to first-hand content written by founders as their preferred way to evaluate a company. The signal you’re trying to build is that you are thinking in interesting and original ways about hard problems.
Let your team quality do the talking. Rather than keeping your early hires behind closed doors, they should be the anchoring asset in your outward communication about your company’s talent density. Lovable’s founder, Anton Osika, has become well-known for his personalised welcome posts which signal hiring quality to the market.
Don’t assume top talent will look up your team members on LinkedIn — proactively showcase the people in your company via individual posts about your early hires and what makes them stand out, or a Notion page with room for expanded bios and AMA style interviews.
Mention their names in candidate outreach and offer warm intros — for example, “If you'd like to speak to our founding engineer [name] about why they joined, I’d be happy to connect you.” Even better: encourage those team members to post about what they’re building, learning, or seeing — and importantly why they chose to join in the first place.
Exceptional people want to be stretched by other exceptional people. If your team is impressive and high-slope — don’t keep it a secret.
Lead with why, not what
Even if what you’re building is under wraps, why you’re doing it doesn’t have to be. Top engineers and builders buy into great missions — and often think of their career chapters as a series of pursued missions, rather than a set of jobs.
Talk often about the problem you’re obsessed with, the shift you see coming, the thing that keeps you awake. People don’t need the full picture to feel compelled — they need to feel your conviction and remember one sharp, vivid insight that builds intrigue.
Contextual signals are everything. Tailor your outreach so that candidates can see themselves in your story. Help them understand how their skills or experience could map onto something important. Instead of boilerplate outreach messages (which are often disregarded by top talent), send a short Loom, a voice note, a memo, a line that shows you’ve done your homework on who they are and their relevance to your mission.
You’re not pitching a job, you’re extending an invitation to build something that matters. The bigger the challenge, the more likely you are to successfully get interest from the best builders in the market.
Magnetic momentum cues
While it’s true high performers want the challenge of working on a big mission, trajectory signal is just as important. Even founding team members want to join something where momentum is building — it’s how they justify the opportunity cost.
You don’t need to necessarily reveal the entire product to show progress. Purposefully share highlights that point to early traction. For example, revenue milestones, key hires, funding rounds and latest valuations can all suggest your company is moving in a promising direction.
Leverage your backers to author posts about why they are excited about the path ahead for your business. Capture the moment by articulating what the new funding means for the months ahead.
Keep back details about customers and product features if you’re worried about preserving the stealth advantage. Motion and progress indicators can help build the right kind of buzz among the people you want to attract. Done right, it can build a sense of urgency around the exciting window to join.
Lastly, find your forum
Some of the best founders I know are creating magnetic pull — and not by being loud on LinkedIn. If that’s not your channel, find the one that is more authentic to you where you’ll reach your desired talent audience. It could be X, open source communities, Substack, Discord, YouTube, Hacker News, podcasts — or even dinner tables.
Visibility doesn’t mean performative thought leadership. It means showing up in the places where your future team already hangs out. Sharing updates of substance — like revenue or team growth — won’t feel like noise if it helps the right people see what you’re building and why it matters.
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Talent brands take time to build, but signal is something you can shape right now. The most compelling signals aren’t over-engineered — they’re clear, intentional and directed at exactly the kind of people you want to work with. Be loud about the right things — start with your people, anchor it in purpose and let your momentum speak for itself!
