Handbook
The Mode Handbook.
How we think, build, and operate. This is a living document.
It evolves as we do.
Mission
Mode exists to help humanity reach its potential.
Vision
We're building a world where human potential is no longer constrained by access. Where anyone, regardless of where they started, can learn anything, build anything, and compete with anyone.
Principles
- 01
Ship, then iterate
We'd rather ship something imperfect today than something perfect next month. Every release teaches us more than any amount of planning. Alpha means we'll break things, and that's fine, because we fix them fast.
- 02
No gatekeeping
Every engineer deploys to production. Every team member can talk to customers. Decisions are made by the person closest to the problem, not the person with the most seniority.
- 03
Default to open
We publish our handbook, share our thoughts, and practice radical transparency. Transparency builds trust with users and keeps us honest with ourselves.
- 04
Earn trust through honesty
We're upfront about what works and what doesn't. If something is rough, we say so. If we don't know the answer, we say that too. Users deserve honesty, not spin.
- 05
Small team, high standards
We hire deliberately and keep the team small. Every person here has outsized impact. We'd rather have 5 great people than 20 good ones.
Values
- 01
Everyone builds
Everyone builds, regardless of role. You understand the problems deeper than anyone living in your role day to day and have the ability to solve them faster without waiting on anyone else.
- 02
Default to kindness
Lead with empathy and respect in every interaction. Hard truths still get said, but they're delivered with genuine care for teammates, customers, and the people who depend on them.
- 03
Continuous improvement
Progress is never finished. Small daily refinements compound. 1% better every day is 37x better in a year. Stay curious, stay restless.
- 04
Speed is a superpower
Move fast, but not recklessly. Speed comes from clarity, focus, and removing unnecessary complexity. Act and improve rather than waiting for perfection.
- 05
Extreme bias for action
Don't wait for permission when you can create progress. See a problem, fix it. Inaction creates drag. Action builds momentum.
- 06
Trust and autonomy
We hire the best and trust them to own their outcomes. You are the driver, not a passenger. High standards come with high trust. Manage your time, make good calls, deliver results.
- 07
Eternal optimism
Challenges are opportunities. Setbacks are lessons. Startups win by daring to do things that seem crazy. You can't change the world without first believing you can.
- 08
Be a force multiplier
Your presence should make the entire team more effective. Share knowledge, improve processes, lift others up. Long-term impact over individual output.
- 09
Think different
Question assumptions and explore unconventional ideas. Never let dogma trap your thinking. Diverse perspectives lead to better answers.
- 10
Do more weird
Experiment freely. Take creative risks. The best ideas come from the strangest places, so let go of fear and bring your full self to the work.
- 11
Radical transparency
Share wins and failures openly and often. Write things down, share context widely, and default to public over private. The more we share, the faster we learn and the more trust we build.
- 12
Long-term thinking
The best work compounds. Optimize for where Mode is going in years, not weeks. Make the hard calls, pivot fast when the evidence demands it. Innovator's dilemma is a choice, and we refuse it. Play the infinite game.
- 13
Disagree and commit
Argue hard before the decision. Bring data, challenge anyone, hold nothing back. Once the call is made, commit fully, even when it wasn't yours. Relitigating drains the momentum that execution needs.
How we build
Development
Ship to main. Feature branches are short-lived, hours not weeks. CI runs on every push. If tests pass, it deploys. We use Mode Agent to build Mode Agent.
Communication
Async by default. Most communication happens in writing. Meetings are rare and always have an agenda. Decisions are documented. If it wasn't written down, it didn't happen.
Product
We build for anyone who needs AI across their entire business. We optimize for speed and correctness.
Benefits
Remote-first
Work from anywhere in any timezone.
Competitive salary + equity
Benchmarked against top startups.
Unlimited PTO
We trust you to manage your time.
Personal budget
Get the tools you need to do your best work.
Learning budget
Conferences, courses, books. We invest in growth.
Day-one impact
Small team means your work ships fast and matters immediately.
Giving back
We want to make it easy for everyone at Mode to support things that matter to them.
Donation matching
Mode matches employee donations to any qualifying nonprofit, dollar for dollar, up to $500 per person per year. Pick causes that matter to you. We handle the match.
Open source time
Contributing to open source software is real work. You can use work hours to contribute to open source projects. No approval needed, no separate tracking. If it benefits the ecosystem, it counts.
Volunteer days
Everyone gets two paid days per year to volunteer. Use them for anything that serves your community. Mentoring students, volunteering at a shelter, helping a local organization with a technical project. Your call.
If this resonates, check out our open roles or reach out directly.