Hardware Engineer

Onepot•South San Francisco, CA

7d•Onsite

About The Position

onepot is automating chemistry. Our goal is to enable a self-improvement loop for chemistry by combining AI and advanced robotics. In this loop, AI systems design experiments, robotic systems execute them, and the resulting data improves the next generation of models. This goal can only be achieved by bringing together people from different backgrounds: ML engineers, chemists, computer scientists, and hardware engineers. We are building a small, unusually ambitious team and are looking for an engineer who wants substantial ownership over design and creation of systems that operate in the world. Most existing automation equipment was developed for biology, where much of the work involves pipetting easy-to-handle aqueous solutions. Chemistry is very different: reagents can corrode metals, attack plastics, evaporate, react with air or moisture, precipitate, and clog tubing. Solids may not dispense consistently, reaction mixtures may change behavior over time, and workflows that appear simple on paper can fail in dozens of unexpected ways. This makes chemistry automation extremely challenging. In many cases, existing equipment cannot simply be adapted to the task. Entire workflows, instruments, and robotic modules must be redesigned from first principles. In this position, you will build key parts of onepot's hardware stack and enable previously inaccessible chemistry to be performed automatically. The work will involve both the design of bespoke hardware modules and the integration of commercially available equipment. You may build systems for liquid or solid dispensing, vial and plate handling, reaction setup, heating and cooling, inert-atmosphere operations, sampling, instrument loading, or automated analysis. This is a deeply hands-on role. You will design parts, assemble prototypes, write control software, debug systems in the lab, and work directly with chemists to understand why existing tools fail. You will own systems from initial concept through fabrication, deployment, failure, and improvement. This is not a role centered on producing designs for someone else to build. We are looking for someone who wants to see their work operate reliably under real laboratory conditions. In many ways, building hardware for chemistry presents challenges unseen in most settings. Lab-automation equipment is often extremely expensive and, in many cases, simply not good enough. We approach the problem from first principles and in a scrappy, entrepreneurial manner. We move quickly between design, fabrication, testing, and deployment. We use commercial components when they are good enough and build our own when they are not. We prefer a simple system that works today over an elaborate system that exists only on paper. Requirements will evolve as we learn. Prototypes will be tested immediately. Designs will fail, and you will be expected to understand why, fix them, and make the next version substantially better.

Requirements

Familiarity with CAD software of your choice
Ability to develop electronic components and software that interfaces with physical hardware
Strong capability in at least one of mechanical engineering, electronics, embedded systems, robotics, or controls
Comfort working across disciplines and learning unfamiliar technical areas as necessary
Experience working with motors, pumps, valves, sensors, microcontrollers, or other electromechanical components
Strong written and verbal communication skills
Curiosity and excitement about chemistry
A strong bias toward building, testing, and learning from real systems
Ability to work extended hours and weekends as necessary
Ability to work safely in an active chemistry laboratory and around scientific equipment

Nice To Haves

Degree in an engineering discipline or physics; we will consider exceptional candidates without one
Demonstrated engineering ability and what you have built
Things you have built independently or as part of a small team — drones, robotic arms, scientific instruments, manufacturing equipment, custom electronics, liquid-handling robots, or other technically ambitious projects
Experience taking a physical system from an initial idea to a functioning and reliable implementation
Evidence that you can move quickly, make good decisions with incomplete information, and solve difficult problems without waiting for detailed instructions
Experience in a startup, research group, competition team, or other environment where you had significant ownership and limited resources
Fluid handling and chemical compatibility
Motion control
Embedded systems and microcontrollers
Machine vision
PLCs, ROS, or industrial communication protocols
Safety interlocks and fault-tolerant systems
Machining, fabrication, or rapid prototyping
Designing systems that must operate reliably in harsh or unusual environments

Responsibilities

Build key parts of onepot's hardware stack
Enable previously inaccessible chemistry to be performed automatically
Design bespoke hardware modules
Integrate commercially available equipment
Build systems for liquid or solid dispensing, vial and plate handling, reaction setup, heating and cooling, inert-atmosphere operations, sampling, instrument loading, or automated analysis
Design parts
Assemble prototypes
Write control software
Debug systems in the lab
Work directly with chemists to understand why existing tools fail
Own systems from initial concept through fabrication, deployment, failure, and improvement