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How to Actually Get Hired
Who reads applications, which channel gets a reply, and what they screen for.
Don't make these mistakes
The fastest way to lose Elena's attention is to pitch yourself as someone who "loves wearables" or finds the category exciting. She's heard that. She spent years at Apple shipping hardware in one of the most demanding engineering environments in the world; she respects specificity and demonstrated competence above everything else. If you're reaching out for an engineering role, have a point of view on a specific technical challenge, voice capture, firmware constraints at this form factor, on-device ML audio processing, and show you've thought about it at the level she operates. If you're reaching out for a brand or growth role, show you understand who the Taya customer actually is and what it would take to build a brand that reaches her. Don't compare Taya favourably to Humane or Rabbit without explaining precisely why the differentiation matters, vague competitive awareness signals you haven't done the work. Elena is reachable on LinkedIn and responds to messages that demonstrate genuine engagement with the product and the problem she's solving.
What gets their attention
The press release stated the funding will support "product development and expansion of the company's AI-powered voice capture platform." That's a carefully worded sentence. Product development means engineering and design hires. Platform expansion means the AI layer, better voice fingerprinting, richer memory retrieval, Android support, eventually an API. Hardware refinement is ongoing ("experimenting with different mechanisms to make it easier for users to take notes"). None of this gets done with less than 5 people and a few contractors. a16z speedrun alumni companies are pattern-matched hard: they push portfolio companies toward product velocity, market positioning, and fundraising readiness. MaC Venture Capital has deep consumer brand DNA (they've backed cultural consumer products that reach underserved audiences). Female Founders Fund focuses specifically on consumer and tech companies with female leadership and underserved markets, their portfolio companies typically hire for brand, community, and go-to-market aggressively post-seed.
Why applying the normal way doesn't work
Taya uses an ATS, but referrals still come first. Cold applications aren't ignored — they're just behind referrals, sourced candidates, and recruiter picks.
Who to contact at Taya
What to show them
The Taya app is the intelligence layer. Right now it handles voice capture, transcription, and a basic AI chat interface. The roadmap is clearly deeper: richer memory retrieval, contextual surfacing (show me my grocery list when I'm near the store), and improved voice fingerprinting. This is the most urgent software hire. Core skills: Swift / SwiftUI, iOS development, on-device ML (Core ML, Vision framework), audio processing APIs, local data storage / encryption, API integration (OpenAI/Anthropic/Whisper), consumer app UX instincts. For proof of work, pre-order a Taya or use the existing app in beta. Identify one AI feature that doesn't exist yet but logically follows from the product, for example, proactive memory surfacing based on location or time of day. Write a short spec (2 pages max): what the feature does, how you'd build it on iOS, what the privacy considerations are, and what you'd ship in v1 vs v2. Lead your email with this.
A cold email that works at Taya
What Taya screens for
Their focus: The press release stated the funding will support "product development and expansion of the company's AI-powered voice capture platform." That's a carefully worded sentence. Product development means engineering and design hires. Platform expansion means the AI layer, better voice fingerprinting, richer memory retrieval, Android support, eventually an API. Hardware refinement is ongoing ("experimenting with different mechanisms to make it easier for users to take notes"). None of this gets done with less than 5 people and a few contractors. a16z speedrun alumni companies are pattern-matched hard: they push portfolio companies toward product velocity, market positioning, and fundraising readiness. MaC Venture Capital has deep consumer brand DNA (they've backed cultural consumer products that reach underserved audiences). Female Founders Fund focuses specifically on consumer and tech companies with female leadership and underserved markets, their portfolio companies typically hire for brand, community, and go-to-market aggressively post-seed.
Don't send a generic CV to Taya. Mirror the job posting's language to get past automated screening.
Mistakes that kill applications
At people, a copy-paste CV is immediately obvious. It's an instant no.
Nobody cares what you want. Start with The AI wearable category is emerging fast but has a problem: everything looks like a gadget and how you'd help.
Don't apply and wait. The median AI application gets no response ever. One follow-up at day five roughly doubles reply rates.
Frequently asked questions
How do I apply to Taya?
Through the roles on our Taya jobs page, or directly to the hiring manager if you can reach them. At null people, direct outreach outperforms the form.
Does Taya respond to cold emails?
We're still collecting cold email data for Taya.
Who is the hiring manager at Taya?
At this size, hiring is usually run by the hiring manager.
How competitive is it to get hired at Taya?
-person AI companies see ~100-250 applicants per role in two weeks. The 72-hour window is your advantage.
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