Technical Lead (Python / LiDAR) in Hilversum, Nederland

Clear Timber Analytics combine drone imagery, LiDAR data, and machine learning to help forest owners manage and protect forests worldwide.

Founded in 2020, we’re evolving from a forestry-driven startup into a scalable software company. We turn billions of real-world 3D measurements into detailed digital inventories of individual trees, with our technology already used on projects for organisations including Deutsche Bahn, Staatsbosbeheer and Rijkswaterstaat.

About the role:

We're now looking for a hands-on, strategic Tech Lead to take ownership of how our engineering team builds and delivers - while continuing to build alongside them.

You’ll join three highly autonomous engineers working across point-cloud analytics, machine learning and production software. Formal people management remains with the founder, so your focus is technology, delivery and technical leadership .

This is a leadership role where you keep coding . You’ll work directly on our Python-based LiDAR analytics platform while bringing structure, direction and focus to the wider engineering team.

What you’ll do day-to-day:

• Build: Develop and improve the Python workflows that turn large-scale LiDAR point clouds into Clear Timber products.
• Lead: Own technical and architectural decisions and raise the bar on engineering practices.
• Drive delivery: Own sprint planning, prioritisation and the backlog, keeping the team focused on the right problems.
• Shape strategy: Work directly with our founder to turn half-year and annual goals into technical roadmaps and two-week sprints.
• Improve how we ship: Strengthen CI/CD, testing and releases while helping our infrastructure scale with growing datasets.
• Bridge research and production: Turn promising prototypes and algorithms into maintainable production software.

What we’re looking for:

• Hands‑on experience with LiDAR, point clouds or 3D spatial data .
• Experience owning technical projects and making architectural decisions.
• Experience with CI/CD, testing and cloud infrastructure (particularly Azure).
• Exposure to sprint planning, prioritisation, Scrum or product ownership is ideal.
• Broader experience across geospatial/GIS, remote sensing, machine learning, 3D computer vision or SLAM is a plus.

What we’ll offer you:

• A competitive salary , based on your experience.
• 25 days' holiday , plus the option to work abroad for up to three weeks.
• NS Business Card and OV-bike subscription.
• Hybrid working from our Hilversum office - surrounded by forests, fittingly!
• Direct input into product and technology strategy from day one.
• Coaching and support as you grow as a technical leader.
• A collaborative startup environment where you can help build something meaningful from the ground up .
• A longer-term opportunity to grow towards broader technology leadership, potentially CTO-level responsibility .