Head of Hardware Manufacturing

ATOMS Careers page; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 182,000 - 214,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Sick Time & Flexible Time Off

401(k)

Team lunch

Job summary

Atoms is building the machines that power the next era of progress. This role leads the hardware production operation, standing up sites, hiring, and shaping a quality gate with direct impact on throughput.

You will drive layout, material flow, and station design across multiple locations, while developing leaders and ensuring robust daily operations in a fast-growing environment.

Qualifications

• Track record taking a hardware production operation from zero or near-zero to meaningful volume, where you personally designed the line.
• Experience in a larger, mature manufacturing organization, so you know what good looks like at scale.

Responsibilities

• End-to-end retrofit and box build operations: process, technicians, tooling, throughput, and release gates.
• Standing up production at two new locations while an existing one continues to run, including layout, material flow, and station design.
• The technician organization: hiring pace, training program, certification and sign-off criteria, trainer capacity, and shift structure as the operation moves toward extended and weekend coverage.
• Building the leadership layer beneath you
• A quality function that gates production independently of build, with first-pass yield, defect capture, and closed-loop feedback to engineering
• Partnership with Supply Chain so no vehicle enters the line without a complete kit, and with hardware and NPI engineering as new designs transfer into production

Skills

Multi-site leadership

Hardware production

Recruiting & training

Lean manufacturing

Hands-on leadership

Data-driven decisions

Tools

Takt analysis

Line balancing

Station design

Job description

Atoms is building the machines that power the next era of progress.

Over the last decade, software has transformed the digital world. But the physical world, where food is made, minerals are mined, goods are moved, and industries are run, remains far less intelligent, far less efficient, and far more constrained. We’re changing that.

Atoms builds Physical AI— real-world robots for the industries that move civilization forward, starting with food, mining, and transport. Our systems are designed to understand, predict, and control the real world with precision, turning complex physical operations into something more reliable, more scalable, and more productive.

This work requires more than robotics. It requires deep integration across hardware, software, AI, operations, manufacturing, and real estate. We don’t just build machines in a lab. We deploy them into real environments, operate them, learn from them, and improve them until they work at scale.

We are roboticists, engineers, operators, and builders. We believe the next great technology companies will not only transform information, but the physical systems that shape everyday life.

If you want to work on hard problems with real-world impact, join us.

What you’ll do

• End-to-end retrofit and box build operations: process, technicians, tooling, throughput, and the release gates that let a vehicle out the door
• Standing up production at two new locations while an existing one continues to run, including layout, material flow, and station design
• The technician organization: hiring pace, training program, certification and sign-off criteria, trainer capacity, and shift structure as the operation moves toward extended and weekend coverage
• Building the leadership layer beneath you
• A quality function that gates production independently of build, with first-pass yield, defect capture, and closed-loop feedback to engineering
• Partnership with Supply Chain so no vehicle enters the line without a complete kit, and with hardware and NPI engineering as new designs transfer into production

What we’re looking for

• Track record taking a hardware production operation from zero or near-zero to meaningful volume, where you personally designed the line rather than inherited it
• Experience in a larger, mature manufacturing organization, so you know what good looks like at scale and can build toward it rather than reinventing it
• Demonstrated multi-site experience: standing up new production locations while existing sites keep producing
• Deep capability in technician hiring and training: you have built ramp programs, certification criteria, and trainer structures, and you understand that trained labor is the real constraint on throughput
• Strong manufacturing engineering foundation: time studies, line balancing, takt and cycle analysis, station and tooling design, work instructions, lean and continuous improvement
• Quality leadership: you have run an independent quality gate and held it under schedule pressure
• Proven people leadership at scale: hired and led managers, engineers, and technician leads
• Comfortable being hands-on on the floor and rigorous in the data
• 10-plus years in manufacturing operations, including leadership of a multi-shift production organization

At Atoms, you’ll work on one of the defining challenges of our time—bringing automation into the physical world to drive real, lasting impact. We exist to uncover valuable unknown truths and turn them into progress, which means constantly pushing beyond what’s known and building what doesn’t yet exist. The work is ambitious and often challenging, but it’s grounded in a shared sense of purpose and a team committed to seeing it through together. Our work only matters if it serves others, and we know that meaningful progress depends on the trust of the people we serve and the strength of our team—so we invest in both, creating an environment where you can do your best work and grow.

What else you need to know

This role is based in our San Francisco office. Atoms is a company driven by invention and continuous change - we are constantly reimagining our industries, building new products, and refining how we operate. We do our best work together. That’s why all of our office-based teams work onsite, five days a week.

The base salary range for this role is $182,000 - $214,000 per year.

Actual compensation will be determined on an individual basis and may vary depending on experience, skills, and qualifications.

Base salary is just one part of your total rewards package. You may also be eligible for equity awards and an annual performance-based bonus.

Benefits Summary (USA Full-Time Exempt Employees):

• Medical, Dental, Vision, Disability, and Life Insurance
• Flexible Spending Account / Health Savings Account Options
• 401(k)
• Equity
• Sick Time, Unlimited Flexible Time Off, and Paid Holidays
• Team lunch in our SoMa office every Tuesday and Thursday

Benefits are subject to change at the company's discretion.
Atoms accepts applications on an ongoing basis.

Ready to join us as we serve those who serve others?

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