Electrical Engineer: Power Distribution & Controls

First Order Effects; Austin (TX); On-site; USD 100,000 - 250,000; Full time

Job summary

First Order Effects is building America's infrastructure prime for the robotic era. We’re seeking an Electrical Engineer focused on power distribution and controls for MESH systems on autonomous vehicles.

You will design command and control PCBA, power distribution, sensing, and protection to reliably move energy from genset and batteries to loads. Ideal candidates have experience with high-voltage DC, battery systems, and EMC design, plus exposure to maritime or defense hardware.

Qualifications

• Experience with high-voltage DC, battery systems, or genset controls.
• Background in functional safety, protection coordination, or EMC design.
• Exposure to maritime or defense hardware.

Responsibilities

• Design the command and control PCBA that orchestrates MESH: generator start/stop, contactor and relay control, interlocks, and I/O.
• Design power distribution from genset and battery through to the loads: busbars, contactors, breakers, fusing, and protection.
• Design current/voltage sensing and metering the firmware reads with required accuracy.
• Own schematic capture, drive PCB layout, DFM, bring-up, and test.
• Collaborate with power electronics, battery, and firmware on interfaces, protection, and safety.

Skills

high-voltage DC experience

battery systems

EMC design

functional safety

maritime/defense exposure

Tools

Altium

KiCad

Job description

FIRST ORDER EFFECTS

Electrical Engineer: Power Distribution & Controls

Infrastructure for the Autonomous Era · First in. First up.

On-site · Austin, TX

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MESH is a system full of energy that has to be moved, measured, and controlled without ever putting a sailor or a load at risk. You design the command and control PCBAs and the power distribution that tie the generator, batteries, inverter, and loads into one coordinated system. This is the electrical backbone of the product, and you own it.

Who We Are

First Order Effects (FOE) is building America's Infrastructure Prime for the robotic era. Autonomous ships, drones, and robots are rewriting how the world moves, fights, and builds - but none of them work without infrastructure to power them, connect them, and launch and recover them. That's what we build.

We've Built Cutting Edge Systems at Legendary Companies

Our team comes from SpaceX, Anduril, Saronic, Lockheed Skunk Works, Forterra, and Fuse Energy. Before founding FOE, we built satellite ground stations that closed a national comms gap in days, deployed multi-megawatt power systems at commercial speed, and shipped autonomous surface vessels into Navy fleet production. We've built infrastructure at lightspeed before - now we're applying that playbook to an entire company.

The Role

• Design the command and control PCBAs that orchestrate MESH: generator start and stop, contactor and relay control, interlocks, and I/O.

• Design power distribution from the genset and battery through to the loads: busbars, contactors, breakers, fusing, and protection.

• Design the current and voltage sensing and metering the firmware reads, at the accuracy the mission needs.

• Own schematic capture, drive PCB layout, DFM, bring-up, and test.

• Partner with power electronics, battery, and firmware on interfaces, protection, and safety.

What You'll Do

• Take analog and digital board design from schematic through bring-up, on hardware that ships.

• Build power distribution and protection that holds up at real current and voltage.

• Go deep on sensing and instrumentation: current shunts, hall sensors, isolated measurement, ADC front ends.

• Work in a modern EDA tool such as Altium or KiCad, and directly with fab and assembly houses.

What We're Looking For

• Experience with high-voltage DC, battery systems, or genset controls.

• A background in functional safety, protection coordination, or EMC design.

• Exposure to maritime or defense hardware.

Compensation

$100,000–$250,000 base + founding-team equity sized for the role + benefits. If you're an outlier, we'll pay like it.

ITAR requirement

To conform to U.S. Government export regulations (ITAR/EAR), applicants must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3). Candidates must be eligible to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance; active clearance not required.

FOE is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with FOE is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner 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.

Sovereignty is built, not declared — come build it with us.