Amazon Advanced Robotics Mechanical Engineer Frontier AI & 

United States, California, San Francisco 

106096490

About the Role:You will work on the mechanical architecture of advanced robotics platforms, including high degree-of-freedom systems, where considerations such as actuator selection, thermal constraints, cabling, sensing integration, and manufacturability are critical. This is a cross-disciplinary role requiring close collaboration with electrical, controls, software, and AI research teams.What You Bring:* A systems-thinking mindset with a strong grasp of cross-domain engineering tradeoffs.
* A bias toward action: comfortable building, testing, and iterating rapidly.
* A collaborative and communicative working style — especially in multi-disciplinary research environments.
* A passion for robotics and advancing the state of the art in intelligent, capable machines.
Key job responsibilities
* Lead mechanical design of robotic subsystems and full platforms, including structures, joints, enclosures, and mechanisms.
* Specify and integrate actuators and motors for high-torque density applications in high-degree-of-freedom systems.
* Design and route cabling and wire harnesses, ensuring reliability, serviceability, and thermal/electrical integrity.
* Contribute to thermal management strategies for motors, sensors, and embedded compute hardware.
* Integrate sensors such as lidar, stereo cameras, IMUs, tactile sensors, and compute modules into compact, functional assemblies.
* Prototype and test mechanical systems; support hands-on builds, debug sessions, and field testing.
* Conduct root cause analysis on system-level failures or performance issues and implement design improvements.
* Apply Design for Manufacturing (DFM) and Design for Assembly (DFA) principles to transition prototypes into scalable builds (10s–100s of units).
* Collaborate with cross-functional teams in electrical, controls, software, and AI research to meet research and product goals.

- Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics, or a related discipline.
- 6 to 10 years in designing mechanical systems for robotics or complex electromechanical products.
- Strong proficiency in 3D CAD (e.g., SolidWorks, OnShape, or equivalent).
- Significant hands-on experience building prototypes, integrating hardware, and troubleshooting mechanical/electromechanical issues.
- Deep understanding of actuator and motor selection for complex robotic applications, including sizing for torque, speed, and thermal performance.
- Experience with wire/cable harness design and routing in compact mechanical systems.
- Familiarity with integrating sensing and compute elements into mechanical designs.
- Solid knowledge of DFM/DFA principles and exposure to volume production (50+ units).

- Experience working on robotic manipulators or high-DOF electromechanical systems.
- Exposure to designing, testing and validation for compliance (design for safety) and environmental factors (thermal, vibration, ingress protection, etc.).
- Experience with structural analysis practices and tools (e.g. FEA/Ansys), thermal analysis, and material selection.
- Basic familiarity with controls or embedded system concepts for integrated design work.
- Experience with formal engineering documentation and design review processes in a corporate R&D setting.Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.