Chief Battery Engineer/Team Lead

Foundation Robotics Lab; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 300,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Market standard benefits (health, vision, dental, 401k)

Dynamic startup culture

Job summary

A cutting-edge robotics firm in San Francisco is seeking a Battery Team Lead to develop optimized battery solutions crucial for advanced robotics programs. This role involves driving technical leadership in packaging, thermal management, and charging systems. The ideal candidate will have deep expertise in battery pack design and a founder mindset to innovate efficiently. Offering a competitive annual salary range of $180,000 to $300,000, this position emphasizes hands-on leadership and rapid prototyping in a startup-like environment.

Qualifications

• Hands-on technical leader with experience in battery systems, robotics, EVs, or aerospace.
• Deep expertise in pack design, thermal solutions, charging optimization, and BMS.
• Proficiency in simulations and testing, especially in CAD and COMSOL.

Responsibilities

• Drive expertise in packaging, thermal management, and charging systems for robotics.
• Lead the battery team to optimize in-house capabilities and reduce vendor dependencies.
• Develop tailored solutions for energy density and cycle life efficiency.

Skills

Technical leadership in battery systems for robotics

Pack design and thermal solutions

Charging optimization

Use of COMSOL for simulations

Collaboration on cross-functional integrations

Tools

COMSOL

CAD

Job description

Our mission is to create advanced robots that can operate in complex environments, reducing human risk in conflict zones and enhancing efficiency in labor-intensive industries.

We are on the lookout for extraordinary engineers and scientists to join our team. Your previous experience in robotics isn't a prerequisite — it's your talent and determination that truly count.

We expect that many of our team members will bring diverse perspectives from various industries and fields. We are looking for individuals with a proven record of exceptional ability and a history of creating things that work.

All positions are based in San Francisco.

Our Culture

We like to be frank and honest about who we are, so that people can decide for themselves if this is a culture they resonate with. Please read more about our culture here https://foundation.bot/culture.

Who should join

• You like working in person with a team in San Francisco.
• You deeply believe that this is the most important mission for humanity and needs to happen yesterday.
• You are highly technical - regardless of the role you are in. We are building technology; you need to understand technology well.
• You care about aesthetics and design inside out. If it's not the best product ever, it bothers you, and you need to “fix” it.
• You don't need someone to motivate you; you get things done.

Why We Are Hiring for This Role

• At Foundation, we're developing robotics programs, where batteries are crucial for powering high-performance tasks such as enabling extended runtimes in dynamic environments.
• To supply optimized batteries across all programs, we need a Battery Team Lead who can drive expertise in packaging, thermal management, and charging systems.
• This role will focus on leveraging off-the-shelf cells while innovating in areas like BMS integration, sensitivity analyses for trade-offs, and compatibility with actuators or compute systems.
• By building this in-house capability, we'll reduce vendor dependencies, accelerate prototyping for program-specific needs, and achieve cost efficiencies while delivering state-of-the-art energy density and cycle life.
• Operating as a startup within a startup, this position will enable rapid iterations, resource optimization, and tailored solutions for challenges like liquid cooling feasibility or risk assessments in swappable vs. integrated architectures.

What Kind of Person Are We Looking For

• A hands-on technical leader in battery systems for robotics, EVs, or aerospace, focused on packaging, thermals, and charging rather than cell manufacturing, with a founder mindset to maximize efficiency by squeezing timelines and stretching budgets.
• Deep expertise in pack design, thermal solutions, charging optimization, and BMS for safety/reliability across programs.
• Proficiency in tools like COMSOL for simulations, CAD for assemblies, and hands-on testing, with experience collaborating on cross-functional integrations.
• Ideal background from companies where you've supplied batteries to multiple projects and demonstrated resourcefulness in lean environments.
• A player-coach who dives into details like FEA for thermal trade-offs or sensitivity analyses, while strategically roadmapping for multi-program scalability.
• Bonus knowledge in robotics contexts, such as compatibility with actuator interconnects or designs like thigh linkages.
• Enthusiasm for agile, startup-style operations with a proactive approach to innovation and cost control, leading the battery team to breakthroughs across all Foundation programs.

Benefits

• We provide market standard benefits (health, vision, dental, 401k, etc.). Join us for the culture and the mission, not for the benefits.
• The annual compensation is expected to be between $180,000 - $300,000. Exact compensation may vary based on skills, experience, and location.