Hardware Development Manager

VAELLA; Helsinki; On-site; EUR 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

VAELLA, based in Helsinki, seeks a hands-on hardware program manager to take vision AI hardware from prototype to production. You’ll work in a fast-growing environment building reliable systems for demanding public spaces.

You will own end-to-end hardware projects, coordinate suppliers and subcontractors, manage timelines and budgets, and keep all partners aligned through clear communication.

Qualifications

• Experience taking hardware from prototype to production.
• Experience with contract manufacturers and subcontractors.
• Strong project management and communication skills.
• Willingness to be hands-on in lab and in supplier meetings.

Responsibilities

• Build and test prototypes yourself in our lab.
• Ramp up prototype series with partners and subcontractors.
• Manage hardware projects end to end: timelines, suppliers, budgets and quality.
• Keep partners, subcontractors and our own team aligned through clear communication.

Skills

Start-up experience

Hardware prototyping

Project management

Supplier management

Clear communication

Job description

About VAELLA

An operational brain that turns fragmented data into real-time decisions for the world's busiest spaces.

Why this role is important
The future of cities depends on infrastructure that understands the people inside it. VAELLA is building that future, starting with a real-time, privacy-preserving understanding of how people move through metro stations, airports, ferry terminals, offices and shopping centres. Our product isn’t just software. It’s a physical system of vision sensors and edge computers that has to work every day in some of the most demanding public environments in the world.

Our technology is already running in some of Europe’s most crowded infrastructures. Our ambition is to take it to thousands of sites around the world, and that’s only possible with hardware that is reliable, easy to install and built to scale. This role owns that journey, from what we build in our lab to what we ship globally.

VAELLA launched in June 2026 as KONE’s first spin-out company. We have a global reach behind us and the speed of a start-up in front of us. You’ll be building the physical foundation of a company with global ambitions.

Our culture
We’re a fast-growing, international team with big ambitions, and we get things done. Everyone here acts like an owner: we move quickly, solve problems hands-on and take responsibility for the full result, not just our own piece of it.

We share information openly, trust each other to organize our own time and hold each other to a high standard. Decisions get made fast, and you’ll see the impact of your work in real buildings, not just on a roadmap.

If you’re entrepreneurial, love building real things and want to grow with a company that’s aiming for global scale, we’d love to meet you.

Your role

You’ll own how our Vision AI hardware goes from prototype to product. It's a hands-on role with lots of building, testing and coordination.

You will

• Build and test prototypes yourself in our lab

• Ramp up prototype series together with partners and subcontractors

• Manage hardware projects end to end: timelines, suppliers, budgets and quality

• Keep partners, subcontractors and our own team aligned through clear communication

You will be a great fit if

• You have start-up experience, for example, in an "ex-CTO" role where you built things yourself

• You've taken hardware from first prototype to a small production series

• You've worked with contract manufacturers and subcontractors, and you know how to keep them on track

• You're as comfortable at the lab bench as in a supplier meeting

• You have strong project management and communication skills

This might not be the best fit if

• You want to build only and don’t enjoy coordinating with partners and suppliers

• You’re looking for a remote position. We’re building for the physical world, and we move fastest when we’re together, whether that’s at the whiteboard, in the lab or on site with a customer

• You need a large team and established processes around you. We’re a young company building our own as we go

Good to know

This role is based in Helsinki. You need a valid right to work in Finland or the EU, as we’re unable to offer visa sponsorship or relocation support.

Hiring process

1. Technical interview with our CTO

2. Meeting with our whole team

3. References

4. Offer

The start date of this role is flexible, and we’re screening applicants ongoingly. The role will be closed as soon as we find the right person. We’ll get back to every applicant by the end of the first week of December 2026.