Pax: Breaking Into a 200-Year-Old Industry with AI 🔧

Pax is disrupting the centuries-old import-export industry by bringing modern technology to solve age-old problems in international trade.

The Problem 💸

Each year, 80% of eligible import tax refunds—equivalent to $11B—go unclaimed. This represents a significant loss for retailers and manufacturers, especially those under $50M in revenue.

Our Solution 🤖

We're leveraging AI to automate and optimize the duty drawback process:

• First AI-powered broker in the industry
• Algorithms that generate 15% more refunds than the industry leader
• 99% reduction in processing time by eliminating manual work

Join Our Mission 🌟

Founded by technical experts from MIT, Brex and top tech companies, we're seeking passionate innovators to help transform international trade finance.

Be part of the team that's bringing AI to a 200-year-old industry and making a real impact on businesses worldwide.

Chief of Staff

Full-time | San Francisco (in-person preferred)

Be the right hand to a YC-backed CEO fixing the backbone of global trade.

About Pax AI

Pax is building modern infrastructure for global trade compliance—starting with duty drawback, a little-known U.S. Customs program that lets companies get a refund on tariffs they’ve already paid. If a company imports goods and later exports or destroys them, they’re eligible to get up to 99% of those duties back. But the process is so outdated and complex that an estimated $10-15 billion goes unclaimed every year.

We’re fixing that. Our platform combines LLM-powered automation with licensed U.S. customs expertise to recover these refunds for clients—without the spreadsheets, consultants, or months of back-and-forth.

We’re backed by $4.5M in seed funding from top-tier investors and already serve real clients across industries—including multiple Fortune 500 companies.

Our team includes alumni from Google, MIT, Amazon, and Flexport, and we’re all-in on Pax: full-time, full-focus, and here for the long haul.

This is a rare chance to join a startup solving a massive, under-the-radar problem—one with regulatory tailwinds, global importance, and serious economic impact. If you’ve ever wanted to build something enduring, in a space that actually needs fixing—we’d love to talk.

About the Role

We’re hiring a Chief of Staff to work directly with our CEO and help drive forward the highest-leverage parts of the business. This role is part strategy, part execution, part operations—and all about owning the critical “whatever it takes” projects that move the company forward.

You’ll be embedded in everything from fundraising prep to internal ops to GTM strategy, and you’ll have the chance to grow alongside the company into a leadership role—or eventually launch your own.

About You

You might be a great fit if you:

• Are extremely organized, resourceful, and a fast learner
• Are comfortable with ambiguity and motivated by impact over titles
• Write clearly, communicate crisply, and handle sensitive work with discretion
• Have strong analytical instincts—you can build a basic model and ask sharp questions
• Want to be involved in everything and aren’t precious about what’s “your job”
• Bonus: you’ve worked directly with a founder or exec team before

Above all, we’re looking for motivated, sharp people who are excited to build.

If this role excites you—even if you don’t check every single box—we’d love to hear from you. We’d rather work with a fast learner who cares deeply about the work than someone with years of experience but little curiosity.

Why Pax

• You’ll work closely with the CEO on some of the most meaningful work at the company
• If you’re interested in one day founding your own company—this is a great opportunity to get firsthand exposure into what it takes
• We’re solving a surprisingly huge problem in a space with very little modern competition
• In-person office in San Francisco — we believe in building together

If you’re the kind of person who runs toward chaos, keeps lists for fun, and thrives on context-switching—you’ll love this role.

Our Technology Stack

• Frontend: Next.js
• Backend: Python
• AI: LLMs (GPT, Claude, etc)

Technical Challenges We're Tackling

1. Intelligent Document Processing: Developing AI models to accurately extract and interpret complex customs documentation.

2. Regulatory Compliance at Scale: Building systems that adapt to ever-changing international trade regulations across multiple jurisdictions.

3. Secure Data Handling and Ledger Keeping: Implementing robust security measures to protect and track sensitive financial and trade data.

4. AI-Powered Decision Making: Utilizing LLMs to automate intricate decision-making processes in duty drawback claims.

5. Seamless Integration: Developing APIs to integrate smoothly with various ERP systems and customs databases.

Join us in solving these exciting challenges and transforming a centuries-old industry with modern technology!