Aerodynamics PhD - Engineering Expert

Obsidian; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 220,000; Full time

Job summary

Obsidian is seeking a senior aerodynamics expert to build a benchmark of challenging questions in the field. You will author original engineering problems grounded in real industry scenarios and provide complete expert-level solutions.

You will validate difficulty by running them against frontier language models until at least one failure occurs. Required is a PhD in Aerospace Engineering or Mechanical Engineering with a thermofluids/aerodynamics focus, plus 5+ years of hands-on experience in

Qualifications

• PhD in Aerospace Engineering or Mechanical Engineering with a thermofluids/aerodynamics specialization.
• 5+ years of hands-on professional experience in external aerodynamics, CFD, wind tunnel testing, propulsion, or vehicle aerodynamics.

Responsibilities

• Author original, free-response engineering problems grounded in real industry scenarios.
• Write complete expert-level solutions for each problem and validate difficulty against frontier language models.

Skills

Problem solving

Research

Technical communication

Education

PhD in Aerospace Engineering

Tools

CFD

Wind tunnel testing

Aeroelastic FEM

Job description

We're looking for a senior aerodynamics expert to help build a benchmark of the hardest reasoning questions in the field — questions specifically designed to be difficult enough that today's most capable AI models still get them wrong. You'll author original, free-response engineering problems grounded in real industry scenarios, write a complete expert-level solution for each, and validate difficulty by running it against three frontier language models until at least one fails.

Requirements: PhD in Aerospace Engineering, or Mechanical Engineering with a thermofluids/aerodynamics specialization, plus 5+ years of hands‑on professional/industry experience in external aerodynamics, CFD, wind tunnel testing, propulsion, or vehicle aerodynamics. Backgrounds in rocket/satellite propulsion, structural/aeroelastic FEM, or wind-loads-on-buildings do not map to the taxonomy needed for this role. Candidates from well‑known/blue‑chip employers preferred.