Manager, Electrical Engineering

Mind Robotics; Palo Alto (CA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

Mind Robotics in Palo Alto is seeking an Electrical Engineering Lead to own the end-to-end electrical architecture for our advanced robotic systems. This is a hands-on, deeply technical leadership role that drives schematic design, PCB layout, and low-level fault isolation from the bench rather than managing from a distance.

You will mentor the EE team and balance power electronics, motor drives, high-speed sensing stacks, and EtherCAT-based distributed actuation while partnering with

Qualifications

• 8+ years of full-cycle board development for robotic, automotive, or electromechanical systems.
• Hands-on hardware design, layout, and debugging experience.
• Experience with EtherCAT distributed actuation and sensing.
• Deep expertise in power electronics or sensor front-ends.
• Strong EMI/EMC, grounding, and high-current protection knowledge.

Responsibilities

• Lead, mentor, and scale the EE team (power electronics, sensing, and electrical design).
• Own the robot’s end-to-end electrical architecture and overall electrical budget.
• Set EE design standards, review schematics/layouts, and arbitrate trade-offs.
• Partner with mechanical, firmware, and perception teams to translate requirements into hardware specs.
• Lead system-level electrical bring-up, fault isolation, and root-cause debugging.
• Establish scalable workflows for design reviews, ECOs, and roadmapping.
• Drive DFM/DFA and coordinate with PCB fabricators and CM partners.

Skills

Electrical engineering leadership

Schematic design

PCB layout

Fault isolation

Power electronics

Motor drives

Sensor front-ends

High-speed interfaces (SPI, I2C, UART)

Mentoring engineers

Education

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering

Tools

EtherCAT

EMI/EMC testing

PCB fabrication coordination

Job description

About Mind

Mind Robotics is building Physical AI for real-world industrial deployment, starting with the factory floor. We believe the hardest problems in AI are solved when researchers and engineers are hands‑on with the physical world every day - and we're looking for people who are passionate about robotics, value ownership, and are excited to tackle difficult problems. Join us if you want to move beyond digital intelligence and put intelligence into motion.

About the Role

We are looking for our Electrical Engineering Leadto own the end-to-end electrical architecture for our advanced robotic systems. This is a hands‑on, deeply technical leadership role for an engineer who leads from the bench, personally driving schematic design, PCB layout, and low‑level fault isolation, rather than managing from a distance.

As a technical authority and mentor, you will elevate the team’s standard for engineering excellence while making critical trade‑offs across power electronics, motor drives, high‑speed sensing stacks, and EtherCAT-based distributed actuation.

Responsibilities

• Lead, mentor, and scale the EE team (power electronics, sensing, and electrical design) while raising the technical bar through hiring and onboarding.

• Own the robot’s end‑to‑end electrical architecture (power, actuation, sensing, compute integration, and harnessing) and overall electrical budget.

• Set EE design standards, review schematics/layouts, and arbitrate trade‑offs across signal integrity, EMI/EMC, thermals, and cost.

• Partner with mechanical, firmware, and perception teams to translate product requirements into hardware specs and integrate high‑speed sensor stacks.

• Lead system‑level electrical bring‑up, fault isolation, and root‑cause debugging across board boundaries from the lab bench.

• Establish lightweight, scalable workflows for design reviews, schematic/layout sign‑offs, ECO discipline, and roadmapping.

• Drive DFM/DFA, collaborate with PCB fabricators and contract manufacturers, and secure second‑source components for production ramp.

Qualifications

• Technical degree in EE (or equivalent) with 8+ years of full‑cycle board development (schematic to production) for complex robotic, automotive, or electromechanical systems.

• A first‑principles engineer who actively designs, lays out, and debugs hardware rather than managing purely from a distance.

• Deep, hands‑on experience with EtherCAT (topology, distributed‑clock sync, PDO mapping) for distributed actuation and sensing.

• Mastery of at least one core domain—power electronics/motor drives or sensor/mixed‑signal front‑ends—with broad fluency across both.

• Strong grasp of high‑current power architectures, rail partitioning, budgeting, and circuit protection (OVP/UVP/OCP/OTP).

• Solid command of EMI/EMC, grounding, and ESD mitigation in noisy, motor‑dense environments.

• Fluency with high‑speed serial interfaces and protocols (SPI, I2C, UART, PMBus), plus enough firmware literacy to debug hardware boundaries.

• Proven experience mentoring engineers, managing risk, and driving multi‑board hardware projects through volume manufacturing.