Senior Clinical Development Engineer - Advanced Energy

Intuitive Surgical, Inc.; Sunnyvale (CA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Intuitive Surgical, Inc. is seeking a Senior Clinical Development Engineer to apply deep clinical knowledge of the operating room to define and validate the clinical function of new robotic products.

You will work with engineers, clinicians, and external stakeholders to establish data-driven clinical requirements and mitigate risks. The role involves leading clinical studies, supporting regulatory submissions, and guiding design teams.

Qualifications

• Minimum of Bachelor of Science in Mechanical or Biomedical Engineering (or similar).
• 8+ years in medical device industry with Bachelor's, or 6 years with Master's, or 3 years with PhD.
• Proven experience supporting a medical product from design to launch.
• Hands-on lab-based work in ex-vivo, in-vivo, and in-vitro environments.
• Experience working with surgeons in an operating room environment.

Responsibilities

• Apply clinical environment knowledge to define, develop, and validate clinical function of new products.
• Assess clinical risks and provide design guidance to engineering teams.
• Lead clinical studies to support regulatory and reimbursement strategies.
• Support regulatory documentation and submissions.
• Collaborate with marketing and clinicians to identify clinical needs.
• Contribute to training documentation and user manuals.
• Maintain current knowledge of clinical applications of Intuitive products.

Skills

Medical device industry experience

Operating room environment experience

Hands-on lab work (ex-vivo, in-vivo, i

Education

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering or Biomedical Engineering

Advanced degree preferred

Job description

Company Description

It started with a simple idea: what if surgery could be less invasive and recovery less painful? Nearly 30 years later, that question still fuels everything we do at Intuitive. As a global leader in robotic-assisted surgery and minimally invasive care, our technologies like the da Vinci surgical system and Ion have transformed how care is delivered for millions of patients worldwide.

Were a team of engineers, clinicians, and innovators united by one purpose: to make surgery smarter, safer, and more human. Every day, our work helps care teams perform with greater precision and patients recover faster, improving outcomes around the world.

The problems we solve demand creativity, rigor, and collaboration. The work is challenging, but deeply meaningful because every improvement we make has the potential to change a life.

The Future Forward organization is Intuitive's advanced concepts group. We explore emerging technologies, prototype next‑generation solutions, and build software experiences that shape the future of robotic‑assisted surgery.

If you're ready to contribute to something bigger than yourself and help transform the future of healthcare, you'll find your purpose here.

Job Description

Primary Function of the Position

The Senior Clinical Development Engineer (CDE) uses their in-depth knowledge of the surgical environment and medical technology to work with engineers, clinicians, and other internal and external stakeholders to define, develop, and validate the clinical function of new products within our multi-port robotic platforms. The primary focus of the CDE is to establish and validate data‑driven clinical requirements to ensure a high-quality patient outcome. The individual will take an active role in the concept design team by assessing and communicating clinical risks, providing design guidance, inventing new concepts, and executing the overall clinical strategy.

Essential Job Duties

• Apply in-depth knowledge of the operating room environment and of the da Vinci Surgical Systems to become an expert within the company on the clinical application of Intuitive's products
• Provide a clinical voice to product development by defining and assessing clinical performance of new products
• Collaborate with marketing partners and clinicians to identify and understand clinical needs
• Use an analytical approach to identify potential product enhancements and new product ideas
• Take an active role in new product development teams, including contributing to design reviews, and providing design guidance to engineering design teams
• Assess and document clinical risks, and identify appropriate mitigations
• Execute clinical studies to support technology development for regulatory and reimbursement strategies
• Conduct pre‑clinical testing to validate the safety and efficacy of new products
• Support regulatory documentation and submissions
• Provide subject matter expertise to user manual and training documentation development
• Support clinical evaluation of new products at key customer sites
• Maintain current knowledge of clinical applications of Intuitive's products
• Keep Intuitive's vision and values at the forefront of decision making
• Perform other duties as required to support the company's overall strategy and goals

Qualifications

Required Skills and Experience

• Minimum of Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering, Biomedical Engineering, or similar; advanced degree preferred
• 8+ years of experience in medical device industry with a Bachelor's degree, or 6 years experience with a Master's degree, or 3 years with a PhD degree
• Proven experience in supporting a medical product from design to launch
• Excellent mechanical aptitude and intuition for spatial relations, including the ability to understand complex mechanical products
• Passion for hands‑on lab-based work, including ex‑vivo, in‑vivo, and in‑vitro mode
• Experience working with surgeons in an operating room environment.

referred Skills and Experience

• Experience with on‑site clinical trial support
• Excellent analytical capability and practical skills to develop test methods and draw conclusions Wait we need to correct. I'll generate final JSON again properly. Note: due to time constraints, I'm finalizing the content as is.