Senior Mechanical Design Engineer

Department: Science & Engineering

Location: San Francisco

Compensation: $120K – $250K • equity + benefits

Employment Type: FullTime

What to Expect

● You will own the end-to-end mechanical design of new robotic humanoid hand/end-effector designs for Deft’s next generation wheeled humanoid robot, cooperating with and reporting directly to the CEO.

What you'll do

● Design, prototype, and iterate on multi-DOF hand mechanisms including finger linkages, joint assemblies, and palm structures, optimizing for compactness, weight, payload, and cost.

● Select and integrate actuators (miniature BLDC motors, servos, or tendon-driven systems) and transmission elements (geartrains, pulleys, cable routing) to achieve reliable grasping and basic manipulation.

● Perform structural FEA, tolerance stack-ups, and GD&T for all hand components, and release detailed drawings for machining, 3D printing, and injection molding.

● Drive rapid design-build-test cycles — you'll be in the lab as much as at your desk, assembling prototypes, running tests, and feeding results back into the next revision.

● Collaborate closely with electrical engineering on sensor placement, cable management, and thermal constraints, and with the software team on joint kinematics and control interfaces.

● Manage suppliers to execute projects according to the design specifications and tight timelines.

Required Qualifications

● Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics or equivalent degree.

● 3+ years of experience designing complex electromechanical assemblies, with at least some work on robotic actuators, mechanisms, or precision mechanisms.

● Track record of taking a complex electromechanical product from concept to production

● High proficiency in designing parts and assemblies using 3D modeling software (CATIA, NX, SolidWorks, Onshape) .

High proficiency in GD&T engineering drawings and conducting tolerance stack-up analysis.

● DFMEA.

● Hands-on prototyping experience.

● Experience with designing for fabrication methods of low volume manufacturing and high volume manufacturing.

● Basic understanding of electrical and thermal design fundamentals.

● Familiarity with PCBAs and electronics packaging .

● Familiarity with the interdependencies between electronics, mechanics and embedded software .

● Excellent communication skills and ability to work in unstructured and high-pressure environments.

● Understanding of how to balance development speed versus product quality.

● Problem solving skills via first principles thinking.

● Growth mindset: curious and hungry to grow.

Preferred Qualifications

● Proficiency in heat transfer and experience in transient thermal analysis .

● Python/Matlab knowledge, both in data structure management, UI development, symbolic equations, and iterative solvers.

Benefits

● Medical, dental & vision plans ($0 payroll deduction)

● Daily meals stipend

Expected Compensation

● $120,000 - $250,000 annually + equity + benefits

● The pay offered for this position may vary based on several individual factors, including job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. The total compensation package may also include additional components/benefits depending on the specific role. This information will be shared if an employment offer is extended.