Senior Mechanical Engineer (Robotics)

Location: San Francisco, CA; onsite with in-person presence required 4 days per week. Travel to contract-manufacturer sites is part of the role.

Salary: $318,000–$423,000 base pay annually, plus equity and performance-related bonus eligibility.

Company

OpenAI is an AI research and deployment company developing general-purpose artificial intelligence and robotics systems.

What you will do

• Own the mechanical architecture of PCBA test stations, including frames, board nests, datum schemes, guarding, ergonomics, access, and serviceability.
• Design probe and bed-of-nails fixtures, connector-mating mechanisms, board supports, clamps, interchangeable tooling, enclosures, and thermal interfaces.
• Use analysis and simulation to evaluate stiffness, insertion and probe forces, board deflection, tolerance stacks, thermal growth, and fixture life.
• Build, instrument, validate, and debug fixtures in the lab, including acceptance checks for alignment, force, board strain, contact repeatability, and cycle life.
• Collaborate with electrical, firmware, software, manufacturing, reliability, and operations teams on test-point access, ESD, cable routing, cooling, interlocks, sequencing, and troubleshooting.
• Manage fabrication partners and deploy fixtures at contract manufacturers with released documentation, operator training, acceptance checks, replication support, and maintenance procedures.

Requirements

• Demonstrated ability to independently deliver significant precision-fixture or equipment projects from ambiguous requirements through detailed design, fabrication, validation, and sustained use.
• Strong mechanical intuition for precision interfaces, load paths, compliance, tolerances, controlled forces, and delicate electronic assemblies.
• Strong 3D CAD and released-drawing capability, including complete fabrication and assembly packages, bills of materials, and revision control.
• Strong fundamentals in GD&T, tolerance analysis, locating schemes, stiffness, compliance, contact forces, and load paths.
• Hands-on experience working with fabrication partners, assembling and measuring fixtures, diagnosing failures, and iterating hardware in a lab or manufacturing environment.
• Ability to define and execute acceptance checks for alignment, force, repeatability, wear, and safe operation, and distinguish fixture problems from product variation.
• Ability to communicate interfaces and tradeoffs across electrical, software, manufacturing, and operations teams and support deployment and troubleshooting at contract manufacturers.
• Degree in Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics, Robotics, or a related field, or equivalent practical experience.
• Prior PCBA test-fixture experience with board nests, probe or bed-of-nails fixtures, connector mating, and protection of delicate electronic assemblies.

Nice to have

• Experience with ESD-aware tooling, thermal interfaces, actuated fixtures, interlocks, or structural and thermal simulation.
• Experience with NX, SolidWorks, Creo, or equivalent tools; robotics hardware; or fixture replication and new-product builds at contract manufacturers.

Culture & Benefits

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance with employer contributions to Health Savings Accounts.
• 401(k) retirement plan with employer match, paid parental and medical leave, paid time off, company holidays, and paid sick or safe time.
• Mental health and wellness support, life and disability coverage, and an annual learning and development stipend.
• Daily meals in offices, meal delivery credits where eligible, relocation support for eligible employees, and additional taxable fringe benefits.
• Work focused on general-purpose robotics, advanced AI capabilities, and physical-system constraints in dynamic real-world settings.

Hiring process

• More detailed benefits information is provided during the hiring process.
• Background checks are administered in accordance with applicable law.