[tahseen_kakar]

Hey, [name]! I think it's great that you're thinking about the role of the founding engineer.

I think it's important to understand that a "founding engineer" is someone who has been with a company since its inception—someone who has been instrumental in building and developing the product/service/company from the ground up. That doesn't mean they can't also be a co-founder, but I'd say that's not necessarily true. Founding engineers are usually the people who don't put their equity and their money is not at risk during the early stages that decide the fate of the company. But when they do own the risk, they are taken as founding member.

It sounds like you're wondering whether or not the term "founding engineer" is trying to conflate the role of founder with much less of the benefit. Yes, there are definitely benefits to being a founder—and things that come along with being one—but I don't think those benefits apply to all founders. It really depends on what kind of business you're building and how much risk you're willing to take on as an entrepreneur.