Mechanical Design Engineer
Gritt Robotics is developing physical AI to automate outdoor construction, starting with the construction of renewable energy infrastructure. The founding team comprises experts in robotics and AI from Carnegie Mellon, Stanford and MIT. Gritt is backed by top VCs who have previously funded Uber, Notion, and Fervo.
About the role
We’re looking for an experienced Mechanical Design Engineer to join our team. At our core, we are transforming how the world builds its future infrastructure, by bringing physical AI to the construction world. As an early member, you will play a pivotal role in collaborating with our engineers to architect the physical intelligent machines that make this mission possible. You will contribute to the development of the rugged, high-performance platforms that allow our AI to operate safely and efficiently on high-stakes construction sites.
You'll need to thrive in a fast-paced, dynamic startup environment where you'll wear multiple hats—from rapid R&D in our shop to leading the transition toward a rapid scale up.
We operate as a close-knit team where mechanical reliability is the foundation of our success. Ideally, you have a proven track record of working with collaborators to take complex electromechanical systems from early prototypes to field-hardened products. We are looking for experienced team members who can help establish our hardware standards today and grow with the company as we scale.
We offer competitive salaries, equity and health/vision/dental coverage, and the opportunity to work with an exceptional AI & Hardware team on a mission with a direct, tangible impact on the global energy transition.
What you’ll get to work on
Collaborative Architecture: Work closely with the team to design the mobile platforms and structural mounts that house our AI-driven compute and sensor suites.
Full-Spectrum R&D: Move fast in our in-house shop. You’ll be hands-on with everything from 3D printing and assembly to basic welding and cable harness routing to bring your designs to life.
Designing for the Elements: Engineer for the "real world." You’ll help ensure our vehicles, actuators, and electronics are bulletproof against everything from the scorching southwest solar farm to the frozen winds of the northeast. Dust, mud, and uneven terrain are expected.
Safety as a Product Feature: Integrate functional safety at the hardware level, helping build robots that are inherently safe to operate alongside human crews in complex environments.
The Field Feedback Loop: Join our robots on-site (approx. 4–6 times a year) to see how your designs hold up in the dirt. You’ll use those insights to turn "it works on my desk" into "it works on the job site."
Bridging R&D and Production: Play a key role in refining our hardware for mid-to-large scale production, implementing DFM practices that don't sacrifice the agility of our R&D cycles.
What we look for
Self-Starter and Owner: Proven ability to take ownership of tasks and projects with minimal supervision, driving them from concept to completion in a fast-paced startup environment.
Mastery of the "Physical": Deep expertise in large-scale fabrication, assembly, and structural design. You have a high degree of intuition for how large machines move and how to prevent failure in the field.
A Team-First Builder: You know how to collaborate effectively to move from a rough prototype to a professional, manufactured machine.
Multidisciplinary Fabrication: You aren’t a "CAD-only" engineer. You may be proficient with: 3D printers, power tools, machining, welding, and basic electrical work. You enjoy the iterative process of building and testing your own designs.
Pragmatic Systems Thinking: You understand the ripple effects of your designs on the field and software teams—from ensuring clean cable management and access for field repairs to managing the thermal load of our compute stacks.
Resilience in the Field: You are eager to travel and get your boots dirty. You see field failures not as setbacks, but as the most valuable data points the team has to improve the product.
Rigorous Intuition: You use FEA and simulation to validate your designs, but you have enough hands-on experience to know when a design needs more than just a software check
Legally authorized to work in the United States