Actuator Lead and System Architect

Design the actuator that goes into every robot

Most actuator engineers inherit someone else’s architecture. In this role you start from a blank sheet. A well-funded physical AI company is bringing its robot actuators in-house, and they want one hands-on engineer to own the motor, gearbox and transmission design from robot requirements through production. Leadership has made this its top-priority hire. You’ll report directly to the CTO, and your decisions will shape the hardware in every robot they ship.

Why this role stands out

• Real ownership. You are the architect and the decision-maker for the actuator program. You don’t sit in a narrow slice of someone else’s design.
• A ground-floor seat. You’ll be one of the first engineers on a new R&D hardware team. It starts at 3–5 people, grows to about 10, and is planned to reach around 30 mechanical and electrical engineers within two years. You help shape the team and how it works.
• Startup speed with real funding. The company is early-stage and backed by tens of millions in venture funding, so you can build, test and iterate on hardware without waiting on budget.
• The full stack. You’ll work across motors, transmissions, thermal design, sensing and drive limits, alongside a dedicated motor electromagnetic design engineer and an embedded engineer.
• Pay to match. $180K–$280K base plus meaningful early-stage equity. New visa sponsorship and transfers (H-1B, OPT, TN) are supported.

What you’ll do

• Turn robot loads and duty cycles into actuator requirements: peak and continuous torque, speed, stiffness, life, packaging and thermal limits
• Lead trade studies across motor topology, transmission ratio, bearings, cooling, sensing and drive constraints, and settle them with measured data
• Define the mechanical, electrical and firmware interfaces, including voltage and current limits, sensor placement, thermal limits and fault responses
• Run prototype builds and debug on the bench, while owning CAD reviews, analysis reviews and the key technical calls
• Build characterization plans and correlate torque-speed, efficiency, thermal, friction and backdrivability results back to your models
• Take the design through supplier selection, DFM, design reviews and corrective actions to production release

What you bring

• 6+ years as a mechanical or mechatronics engineer, with in-house design experience
• You have delivered at least one integrated actuator, servo or electromechanical drive into a production or deployed product
• Deep mechanical or mechatronic design skills, plus a working understanding of motors, transmissions, thermal behavior, sensors and drive limits
• Hands-on prototyping, validation, supplier collaboration and manufacturing release experience
• Experience with high torque-density or backdrivable actuators and compact liquid-cooled assemblies
• You can work on-site in Fremont, CA. Relocation support is not provided.

Bonus points

• Robot joints, humanoid or legged robotics, industrial drives, EV drive units, or aerospace electromechanical actuators