Founding Hardware Lead

We’re partnering with a well-funded, venture-backed AI company developing intelligent hardware and software for real-world enterprise environments. Following a recent funding round, the company is expanding its engineering organization and investing significantly in its next generation of connected products.

The platform combines purpose built hardware, edge computing, sensing, connectivity, and cloud-based intelligence. Its products are already deployed with enterprise customers, and the company is now preparing to expand into several new hardware categories.

This is an opportunity to join at a pivotal stage, take ownership of an existing product portfolio, develop new products from the ground up, and build the hardware team around you.

This is a full-time, permanent position onsite in Sunnyvale, CA.

About the Role

We’re looking for a hands on, startup minded Founding Hardware Lead to own hardware development across product design, manufacturing, quality, suppliers, and team growth.

This is a true player coach position. During the first several months, you will spend most of your time directly designing, prototyping, testing, and preparing products for manufacturing. As the company grows, you will hire and lead additional hardware engineers while remaining closely involved in the technical work.

You will have significant autonomy over how products are designed, validated, manufactured, and scaled. The ideal person has personally shipped hardware through contract manufacturing partners, understands what happens after a product leaves the prototype stage, and wants to build both products and an engineering organization.

Responsibilities :

• Own connected hardware products from early concept through EVT, DVT, PVT, manufacturing, deployment, and post-launch support
• Develop mechanical and electromechanical architectures that integrate electronics, sensors, compute, power, thermal management, and connectivity
• Create detailed CAD models, engineering drawings, tolerance analyses, FMEAs, simulations, and manufacturing documentation
• Own complete design-transfer packages, including CAD, BOMs, assembly procedures, quality documentation, and inspection requirements
• Build and test prototypes, identify technical risks, and iterate quickly as requirements evolve
• Balance performance, reliability, manufacturability, cost, appearance, and speed to market
• Lead contract manufacturer and supplier relationships across DFM reviews, tooling, sourcing, builds, schedules, cost, and quality
• Work directly with domestic and overseas manufacturing partners throughout production ramp
• Troubleshoot manufacturing and field issues, lead root-cause investigations, and implement corrective actions
• Own certification and compliance efforts for new and existing products
• Establish practical hardware development processes, stage gates, change control, validation plans, and quality systems
• Translate customer and field feedback into actionable product requirements
• Hire, coach, and lead a growing team of hardware engineers
• Partner closely with product, industrial design, electrical engineering, software, operations, and supply chain teams

Must-Have Skills :

1. Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or a closely related engineering discipline
2. Strong mechanical engineering fundamentals and hands-on product design ability
3. Experience shipping at least one electromechanical hardware product at meaningful volume through a contract manufacturer
4. End-to-end ownership across concept development, EVT, DVT, PVT, manufacturing ramp, and post-launch support
5. Experience creating and owning complete design-transfer and manufacturing documentation
6. Strong proficiency with CAD, engineering drawings, GD&T, tolerance analysis, FMEA, DFM, and DFA
7. Experience designing products that integrate electronics, sensors, power, compute, or connectivity
8. Direct ownership of contract manufacturers, suppliers, tooling, production builds, schedules, cost, and quality
9. Experience with product certification and compliance requirements
10. Experience building a hardware team, engineering process, quality system, or product-development function from an early stage
11. Ability to coach and lead engineers while continuing to contribute directly to product development
12. Strong written and verbal communication skills
13. Ability to work onsite five days per week in Sunnyvale

Nice to Have Skills :

1. Experience as an early or founding hardware hire at a startup
2. Experience developing connected devices, edge systems, IoT products, robotics, consumer electronics, or sensor-based hardware
3. Experience working directly with manufacturing partners in Asia
4. Mandarin Chinese proficiency
5. Experience with board bring-up, electrical validation, or other hands-on electrical engineering work
6. Familiarity with imaging sensors, embedded systems, digital signal processing, or computer-vision hardware
7. Experience with FCC, UL, CE, ISO, or regulated-industry quality systems
8. Experience scaling a hardware organization across multiple product lines
9. Degree from a highly regarded engineering program

What Success Looks Like

• You quickly take ownership of the company’s existing hardware and manufacturing relationships
• You establish a practical and scalable development process for future products
• You move new hardware from concept into validation and production without sacrificing quality or speed
• You build a small, high-performing hardware team while remaining actively involved in the work
• You create the foundation to grow into a Head of Hardware position

Compensation and Benefits

• Base salary of $200,000 to $250,000+, depending on experience
• Meaningful equity in a fast growing, venture backed company
• 100% employer paid medical, dental, vision, and base life insurance
• 401(k) with traditional and Roth options
• Flexible paid time off
• Daily team meals and regular company off-sites
• Free onsite EV charging