About Category Labs
What is Category Labs?
Category Labs (formerly known as Monad Labs) is a blockchain-infrastructure R&D company building "the next-generation of blockchain infrastructure with Monad, a 100% EVM-compatible layer 1 blockchain boasting 10,000 transactions per second, 1-second block times, single-slot finality, and low-hardware requirements." The team describes itself as "systems engineers and researchers on a mission to design and build at the frontier of decentralized technology," striving to deliver "step-function improvements over existing blockchain solutions." Category Labs is "born from high-frequency trading and low-level systems experts" — a pedigree where, in its words, "performance is measured in nanoseconds." After raising $225M in Series A funding led by Paradigm, with backing from Electric Capital, Greenoaks, Dragonfly, and Coinbase Ventures, the company is growing its team to tackle some of the hardest problems in performant, decentralized systems.
Where will I work?
Category Labs hires globally and remotely. Every current opening is listed as "Global" and fully remote, and the company hires internationally through an Employer of Record where needed. There is an optional in-person hub in New York — reflected in the "Lunch and dinner stipend (in-office NYC)" benefit — but day-to-day work is remote-first, letting engineers and researchers contribute from wherever they do their best work.
What is the Category Labs team like?
This is a deeply technical, research-led group: "engineers and researchers make up 90% of the team." Category Labs prizes practical problem-solving — "Ability to DO things. When it comes to problem-solving, we value practicality and common sense" — alongside "strong design skills" and a "rigorous development mindset." The culture is explicitly described as "a lean team working together to achieve very ambitious goals," "united in our culture of collaboration, low ego, and high-quality output." As an early team member, "you'll help to shape our culture," working "on extremely challenging problems with massive impact" beside an exceptional, low-ego peer group.
Work-Life Balance
Category Labs offers "Unlimited paid time off" to its US employees, giving the team flexibility to rest and recharge on their own schedule. A remote-first, globally distributed model means people can structure work around their lives, and a "Monthly wellness benefit" supports day-to-day wellbeing.
Perks and Benefits
Category Labs lists a "World class benefits package (medical/dental/vision)," "Unlimited paid time off," a "401(k) retirement plan + company match," a "Monthly wellness benefit," and "Paid parental leave." Compensation includes "a competitive salary and equity package," and job postings note offers also include a "Token and Equity Package." US in-office staff additionally get a "Lunch and dinner stipend (in-office NYC)," and the company invests in growth as it scales.