New York, NY, USA

Karan S.

Founded Knock.com - pre-IPO, 2B valuation, raised ~$650m

I’m a technology executive and co-founder of Knock.com. Over the last few decades, I've built numerous startups from the ground up and scaled to 400+ people. I've held positions ranging from a solo engineer, tech lead, and chief architect to executive/CTO level. I studied computer science at Clemson University and Stanford University.

I love crafting the right mix of - people, culture, and modular, extensible technology to drive execution with visibility and confidence. I’ve scaled engineering and data science/AI teams to over 50+ members.

I’m still hands-on; my superpower is seeing through the forest, and problem-solving. My deep technical understanding and experience can be leveraged to guide your startup uniquely. I’m interested in co-founder or CTO/chief architect roles (fractional or advisory-type welcome).

I will provide guidance and technical advice on:

1. Solving for product-market-fit (PMF) and developing a distribution strategy that encompasses product-led growth, vertical integrations, network effects, thought leadership, content/community, etc.

2. Talent acquisition, engineering org design, including near-shoring recruiting strategies.

3. Technical vision and architecture.

4. Translate vision into actionable engineering strategies and product development roadmap.

5. Drive strategic balance between investment in foundational infrastructure and product velocity.

6. Share valuable insights from my leadership experience.

7. Navigate the path from MVP to beyond (series B)

Hire Karan

Founder PropTech Twitter Chief Technology Officer Recruiting Full Stack Development Advisor Machine Learning

Fractional Frontend Engineer rates

Experience

Dec 2015 — Sep 2023

Knock

Co-founder/Chief Labs Officer/Chief Architect

Knock is a pre-IPO, 2B valuation, raised ~$650m startup. Knock is on a mission to empower people to move freely by revolutionizing how we buy and sell our homes. With our flagship Knock Home Swap™, homeowners get the certainty of buying the new home they want first and the convenience of selling the old one afterward. Knock's top-tier investors include RRE, Foundry Group, First American Financial, Corazon Capital, Greycroft, Correlation Ventures, Great Oaks Capital, Redpoint and FJ Labs.

I drove the technical vision and architecture of Knock, as well as advocated for innovation and developer experience.
I led strategic investments in platform technology to unlock product capabilities, that will continue to pay dividends for years to come.

Dec 2012 — Aug 2014

SportsYapper

Founding Lead Engineer

SportsYapper was a multi-device (web, tablet, mobile, and Google Glass) social app for sports enthusiasts with an interactive space for real-time engagement as they react to all the highs and lows during games. The app grew on a global scale and became the #1 sports app in the U.K., as well as winning a UM Curiosity Works Award in 2015.

I led and built the real-time data-delivery platform and infrastructure.
I was responsible for engineering the web platform, leveraging cutting-edge real-time messaging protocols to facilitate instantaneous user interaction and communication.

Dec 2010 — Nov 2012

Chirpme

Co-founder & CTO

Chirpme was acquired by IAC/Twoo. Chirpme was an activity-based social dating app and part of the 500 Startups incubator program (its second batch of accelerator companies). The platform achieved exponential growth, reaching over 35m users, 17m monthly active users (MAU), and 3m daily active users (DAU).

I drove the technical vision and architecture of Chirpme.

Karan S.

Founded Knock.com - pre-IPO, 2B valuation, raised ~$650m