Staff Mechanical Engineer

Sanctuary Cognitive Systems Corporation; Vancouver; On-site; CAD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Sanctuary Cognitive Systems Corporation, a leader in AI-based control systems for humanoid robots, is seeking a Staff Mechanical Engineer. The role involves leveraging expertise in mechanical design and optimization to enhance robotic systems, with responsibilities including innovation in design, collaboration with leaders, and mentoring junior engineers. Candidates should have a strong background in mechanical engineering and significant experience in electromechanical systems.

Benefits

Market-leading compensation package

Health coverage

Paid time off

Worksite flexibility

Qualifications

• 8+ years of experience in designing electromechanical systems.
• Experience leading designs from concept to production.
• Strong understanding of manufacturing processes.

Responsibilities

• Deliver innovative designs that meet performance targets.
• Collaborate with technical leaders to address design requirements.
• Mentor junior engineers and foster collaboration.

Skills

Mechanical design

Mechatronics design

3D CAD tools

Prototyping

Manufacturing processes

Design optimization

Materials science

Simulation tools

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering

Job description

Your New Role and Team

Sanctuary, a world leader in building AI-based control systems for humanoid robots, is looking to hire a Staff Mechanical Engineer. In this role you will leverage your expertise in design, architecture, and implementation to enhance our current robotic systems and shape future iterations of our robots.

As a Staff Mechanical Engineer, you bring exceptional mechanical and mechatronics design skills, with proven hands-on experience in designing and optimizing complex mechanisms to meet multiple objectives. You have a strong track record of contributing to the development of systems that scale from prototypes to mid-to-high volume production.

Success Criteria

• Deliver innovative, high-impact designs that meet ambitious performance targets, setting the standard for excellence within the organization.
• Apply advanced expertise in mechanical and mechatronics design, optimization, and manufacturing, solving complex problems at the intersection of creativity and engineering precision.
• Develop groundbreaking robotic hands that match or exceed human performance across dexterity, strength, and reliability, and integrate them seamlessly into a world-class general-purpose robot.
• Collaborate at the highest levels, partnering with technical and organizational leaders to address complex design requirements, advance research initiatives, coordinate manufacturing at scale, support end users, and maintain robust technical documentation.
• Drive innovation in cutting-edge technologies, including high power-density actuation, compact and precise mechanisms, and advanced sensing systems, ensuring the team remains at the forefront of robotics engineering.
• Demonstrate technical leadership, mentoring junior engineers, co-ops, and peers while fostering cross-disciplinary collaboration to achieve team and organizational goals.

Your Experience

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Engineering Physics, Robotics, or a closely related technical field; or equivalent extensive professional experience in designing and developing complex electromechanical systems.
• 8+ years of professional experience with 3D CAD tools, with a focus on designing complex, high-performance electromechanical systems.
• Proven track record of leading designs from concept through production in a fast-paced, iterative development environment.
• Comprehensive experience working through the entire product lifecycle, including design, prototyping, validation, manufacturing, and deployment of high-performance electromechanical assemblies.
• Demonstrated ability to optimize designs for performance, cost, manufacturability, and reliability while balancing competing priorities.
• Strong understanding of materials science, manufacturing processes, and their application in mid- to high-volume production.
• Experience collaborating across multidisciplinary teams, with the ability to mentor and guide junior engineers and influence technical strategy.

Skills

• Expertise in the specification, design, and analysis of mechanical components such as gears, actuators, bearings, and other precision mechanisms.
• Demonstrated experience in designing automated manufacturing machines and assembly tools, with a focus on scalability and precision.
• Hands-on proficiency in prototyping, robotics, mechatronics, and fabrication techniques, including machining and 3D printing.
• Advanced knowledge of manufacturing processes, including creating detailed drawings, applying GD&T, and coordinating with manufacturers.
• Proven experience implementing DFM and DFA principles to streamline production and reduce costs.
• Strong R&D experience, including innovation in solving complex engineering challenges.
• Expertise in designing and optimizing complex, moving mechanical assemblies, ensuring performance, reliability, and manufacturability.
• Experience with engineering for reliability, including durability, lifecycle analysis, and failure prevention.
• Proficiency in simulation and analysis tools, such as CFD, FEA, thermal simulation, and design optimization techniques.

Traits

• Above all else, a consistently positive attitude and a willingness to do whatever it takes to create robust solutions to mission objectives.
• Successful candidates will be a proponent of personal responsibility for themselves and their teammates.
• Empathetic listener with conflict resolution capabilities.
• Consistent bias for action, communication, and interpersonal savvy.
• Self-motivated and able to solve problems independently.
• Mission driven and passionate about bringing human-like intelligence to machines.

Working at Sanctuary AI

Sanctuary AI is an equal opportunity employer; employment with Sanctuary AI is governed based on skills, competence, and qualifications and will not be influenced in any way by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability, or any other legally protected status. In 2023, Sanctuary AI moved into a state-of-the-art office facility and has been recognized by LinkedIn as a Top Startup company.

Compensation and Benefits

Sanctuary offers a market-leading compensation package that includes competitive salaries, equity stakes, and a full suite of benefits for permanent employees, encompassing health coverage, paid time off, cutting-edge work facilities, and worksite flexibility by role. Our commitment to fairness ensures that our total compensation consistently surpasses market standards.

About Sanctuary AI

Founded in 2018, Sanctuary builds humanoid robots and a novel control system for them that integrates symbolic logic and reasoning with data-driven robot foundation models. We use our robots to collect vision, audio, touch, and proprioception data from the perspective of the robot while they perform real-world work tasks. We use that data to train multimodal robot foundation models. Because our systems are vertically integrated, we can design, deploy, and refine at scale. Our mission is to create the world's first human-like intelligence in general-purpose robots.

Recruiting and Employment Agency Notice:

Recruitment and hiring is conducted internally by Sanctuary AI. We are not seeking or soliciting any new agency partnerships or agreements at this time.Any employment agency or professional recruiter (“Agency”) that provides an unsolicited resume(s) or otherwise presents a prospective job candidate through the Sanctuary AI career site or directly to any Sanctuary AI employee, irrevocably grants to Sanctuary AI the unrestricted right to engage, hire, or contract with that candidate at Sanctuary AI's sole discretion without any compensation to the Agency. We appreciate your interest in working together, and should the need arise our Talent Acquisition team will contact any external firms directly.