How to Apply to Nine Lives (Our Very Non-Traditional Hiring Process)

Nine Lives isn’t a normal studio. We don’t believe in gatekeeping based on degree requirements, memorized algorithms, or trick interview questions. Technology is moving too fast for old-school hiring practices. We want people who can learn quickly, think creatively, build intentionally, and work with passion—not people who memorized a binary tree traversal once in college.

What We Look For (Hint: It’s Not Leetcode)

We don’t believe in technical tests that measure how well you can perform under artificial pressure. We care about something else entirely: your thinking process, your curiosity, your creativity, and your willingness to grow. Skills can be taught. Curiosity cannot.

• People who learn fast
• People who care about the craft
• People who are obsessed with building cool things
• People who lift the room, not bring it down
• People who don’t wait to be told what to do

We can teach you SvelteKit. We can’t teach you curiosity.

We Believe in Creativity + Grit Over Credentials

At Nine Lives, great builders come from everywhere. Maybe you learned coding from YouTube. Maybe you switched careers. Maybe you’ve only built small personal projects but poured your soul into them. Maybe you have no degree, or you’re self-taught, or you’re still figuring things out. All of that is welcome here.

We don’t care what’s on your résumé, because we don’t even accept résumés. In fact, if you try to send one, our system immediately vaporizes it. Gone. Incinerated. Rejected on sight.

Why? Because résumés tell us nothing about who you are, how you think, or what you can create.

Our Application Process (Fun, Simple, Real)

We don’t do corporate hiring pipelines. No 8-step interviews, no whiteboarding, no “Describe a time when…” prompts. Here’s how applying at Nine Lives really works:

1. Send us something you built (any scale, any format).
2. Write a short message about *why* you like building things.
3. If we vibe with it, we hop on a chill call - zero pressure.
4. We build something small together (for fun, not a test).
5. If we enjoy the process together, welcome aboard.

That’s it. No trick questions. No whiteboard humiliation rituals. Just real humans building real things.

A Few Examples of Great Applications

We love unconventional applicants. Here are things that impress us WAY more than a résumé:

• A messy GitHub repo full of experiments
• A small Svelte component you designed from scratch
• A fun meme bot you hacked together at 2am
• A design system sample you coded yourself
• A portfolio with personality (not perfection)

You don’t need something polished. You need something authentically yours.

Who Thrives at Nine Lives

Nine Lives moves fast, experiments constantly, and builds across dozens of industries—from SaaS to meme coins to AI agents to lead-gen funnels. People who thrive here are hands-on builders, not spectators.

• Builders > talkers
• Curiosity > credentials
• Process > ego
• Creators > spectators
• Momentum > perfection

If you love learning new things, building prototypes, shipping fast, and making handcrafted experiences—you’ll fit right in.

Who Should *Not* Apply

Nine Lives is not for everyone. We say this proudly. You will struggle here if you:

• Need rigid hierarchy or titles
• Want to only do one thing forever
• Hate learning new tools
• Get defensive during feedback
• Only work well under strict corporate structure

We are small, agile, creative, and collaborative - not bureaucratic.

How to Apply (But Seriously… No Résumés)

To apply, send us ONE thing you built and a short note about why you love building. No résumés. If you attach one, our server will spiritually side-eye you.

Send it to our contact page or DM us on X. We read every message personally.

Key Takeaways

• We don’t accept résumés—ever
• We hire curiosity, creativity, and grit
• Your projects speak louder than your credentials
• The application process is simple and human
• If you love building things, you’ll fit right in

If you’re a designer, developer, or creative builder who wants to help craft premium, handcrafted digital experiences—reach out. Nine Lives is always looking for people with soul in their work.