Senior Mechanical Design Engineer

Rhoda AI; Palo Alto (CA); On-site; USD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Rhoda AI is seeking a Senior Mechanical Design Engineer to lead the development of Class-A surfaces for our robotics systems. In this role, you will manage the entire product lifecycle, ensuring aesthetic and mechanical integration, and will handle high-performance structural designs.

The ideal candidate has a Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering and over 5 years of experience in engineering, with a strong background in thin-walled component design. Experience with CATIA and GD&T is highly preferred.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of engineering experience, including at least one full-cycle product launch.
• Proficiency in GD&T and the ability to define datum strategies.
• Exceptional organizational skills and ability to solve technical bottlenecks under tight timelines.

Responsibilities

• Manage the product lifecycle from initial concept to end-of-life.
• Coordinate cladding prototype builds and validate components against requirements.
• Produce 3D CAD models and 2D engineering drawings with GD&T.

Skills

Thin-walled component design

High-performance composites

3D CAD modeling (CATIA)

Dimensional stack-up analysis

Education

Bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering

Tools

CATIA

FEA analysis tools

Job description

At Rhoda AI, we’re building the next generation of generalist intelligent robots. We own the full robotics stack from high-performance hardware and robot systems to the infrastructure and state-of-the-art foundation world models that control our robots. Our robots are designed to be generalists capable of operating in complex, real-world environments and handling long-tail edge cases, made possible by our cutting edge research and end-to-end system design. We've raised over $400M and are investing aggressively in model research, infrastructure, hardware development, and manufacturing scale-up to make generalist robotics a reality.

Senior Mechanical Design Engineer – Robot Cladding & A-Class Surfaces

What to Expect

As a Senior Engineer, you will own the full product lifecycle of our robot’s Class-A surfaces that define its appearance and protect its core.

Robots are high performance multiaxial kinematic systems where heavy‑duty structural integrity meets sub millimeter precision.

In this role, you are the CEO of your components. You will navigate a diverse landscape of materials (e.g., textiles, polymers, and composites), interfacing with cross‑functional teams to ensure our products are functional, reliable, robust, and well‑crafted.

We operate as T‑shaped engineers. While you must be a generalist capable of solving any hardware challenge, your superpower for this role must be thin‑walled component design and industrialization from concept to mass production.

What You’ll Do

• End‑to‑End Ownership: Manage the product lifecycle from initial concept and design studio interaction to end‑of‑life, ensuring feasibility, sustainability, and craftsmanship.

• A‑Class Surface Integration: Integrate the cladding subsystem of your ownership, balancing aesthetic, mechanical, cost, and time constraints.

• Systems & Tolerance Management: Define design criteria and lead engineering studies for subsystem compatibility. Perform dimensional stack‑up analysis for critical‑to‑function and aesthetic interfaces.

• Detailed Engineering & DfM: Design complex B‑side features (ribbing, bosses, clip towers, hooks) that support performance without compromising A‑side aesthetics. Develop robust attachment strategies, including joining features (e.g., snaps, hooks, welds).

• Validation & Prototyping: Coordinate cladding prototype builds, evaluate assembly feasibility during slow builds, and validate components against requirements.

• Technical Documentation: Produce high‑fidelity 3D CAD models (CATIA preferred) and 2D engineering drawings with comprehensive GD&T and datum strategies.

• Simulation & Failure Avoidance: Interpret FEA analysis (e.g., structural, Moldflow) to iterate designs. Think at a systems level and apply a failure mode avoidance mentality to ensure long‑term reliability.

• Supplier & Cross‑Functional Interaction: Partner with Supply Chain and Tier 1/2 suppliers for RFQs and technical feasibility reviews; troubleshoot integration issues during build phases.

What You’ll Bring

• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics, or a related field.

• Experience: 5+ years of engineering experience, including at least one full-cycle product launch.

• Core Fundamentals: Proficiency in design integration to balance material selection, geometry, and structural trade‑offs informed by product use cases and functional/engineering requirements.

• Technical "Superpower": Deep Knowledge in thin‑walled component design and/or high‑performance composites (fiber‑resin systems).

• Engineering Tools: Ability to define datum strategies and tolerances from concept through to Class‑A maturation with a deep understanding of GD&T as a driver. Proficiency in CATIA (or equivalent) with the ability to communicate ideas through sections and CAD studies to progress development to production.

• The "Owner" Mindset: Exceptional organizational skills and the ability to use first principles thinking to solve technical bottlenecks under tight timelines.

Bonus Points (The "Plus" List)

• Soft Goods Experience: Experience integrating textiles, artificial leather, elastomers, or cellular structures into designs.

• Advanced Manufacturing: Deep knowledge of injection molding, RIM, vacuum forming, or thermoforming.

• Finishing & Lighting: Familiarity with polymer surface finishes (painting, plating, etc.) or integration of vehicle interior lighting.

• Dual-Hat Experience: Background in both Design Engineering and Manufacturing/Assembly Engineering.