Lead Prototype Engineer
Humanoid · Boston · $150,000–$200,000 (stated in the posting)
Here at Humanoid, we believe in a future where robots amplify human potential. That’s why we’ve set out on a mission to build the world’s most capable, commercially-scalable, and safe humanoid robots. We’re bringing that mission to life with HMND‑01 - our rapidly developed humanoid platform being deployed in real industrial environments - and we’re growing the team to take it even further.
About the Role
As Lead Prototype Engineer on the Core Platform team, you will lead and grow a team of prototype engineers and technicians while staying hands-on at the bench. You’ll set the technical standard for how we build, diagnose, and evolve advanced humanoid robotic platforms. Your focus is electrical integration, bring-up, and root-cause analysis across the full hardware lifecycle, from concept and prototyping to field repair. You’ll emphasize reliability and repeatable processes.
What You'll Do
Lead, mentor, and develop a team of prototype engineers and technicians. Set priorities, allocate work, and raise the team’s technical and process standards.
Stay hands-on: personally drive troubleshooting and resolution of the most complex electrical issues in prototype humanoid robots, across operational and in-development systems. Lead detailed failure analysis and share learnings with hardware and software engineering teams.
Own electrical bring-up of new prototype builds, including power distribution, motor drive and actuator electronics, sensor integration, communications buses, and high-density electromechanical integrations.
Collaborate closely with electrical, mechanical, firmware, and software engineers on prototype design, assembly, and design-for-test.
Define, maintain, and enforce test procedures, troubleshooting guides, and repair runbooks for the prototyping lab, and make sure the team follows them.
Design, document, and iterate on cable assemblies, wiring harnesses, and test jigs built for repeated use on dynamic robotic platforms.
Own lab planning and priorities: build schedules, resource allocation, tooling, equipment, and spares. Balance competing demands from multiple engineering teams.
Identify and drive continuous improvement in processes and products, reducing downtime, improving test and repair efficiency, and raising first-pass yield and manufacturability.
Build strong feedback loops across design, build, and test, and communicate status, risks, and lessons learned to engineering leadership.
What We're Looking For
Strong, hands-on electrical engineering background in rapid prototyping, debugging custom hardware, and troubleshooting complex electrical systems in robotics or similar domains.
Deep working knowledge of low-voltage power and mixed-signal circuits, motor drives, connectors, sensors, and compact electromechanical systems. You are comfortable using oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, power supplies, and other bench instrumentation to diagnose faults.
Experience reading schematics and PCB layouts, performing board-level rework and repair, and designing or specifying harnesses and cable assemblies.
Prior experience leading or mentoring engineers or technicians, formally or as a technical lead. You are comfortable taking on direct reports and balancing people management with hands-on work.
Track record of communicating concisely through documentation, procedures, test plans, diagnostics, and lessons learned.
Adept at collaborating across electrical, mechanical, and software boundaries to solve urgent, ambiguous problems. Mechanical prototyping skills are a plus.
Comfortable in a high-velocity, high-ambiguity startup setting where priorities shift fast.
Preferred:
Experience designing for manufacturability and reliability in human-sized or mobile robotics.
Familiarity with automated test and diagnostic tools used in modern hardware labs.
Experience building or scaling a prototyping or field engineering team, including hiring and setting up lab processes.
Mechanical assembly and integration experience alongside strong electrical skills.
What We Offer
Comprehensive health coverage for US‑based employees, including fully paid medical, dental, and vision insurance, with virtual care and employee assistance resources.
Meaningful time off to rest and recharge: 23 days of PTO (accrued), separate sick leave, and paid company holidays.
401(k) retirement plan with 4% employer match.
Competitive equity: stock options with meaningful upside as we scale.
Free daily catered lunch, snacks, and drinks in‑office.
Collaboration with top‑tier engineers, researchers, and product experts in AI and robotics.
Freedom to influence the product and own key initiatives.
For this role in Massachusetts, the expected base salary range is $150K–$200K USD per year; your placement in that range depends on how your experience maps to our internal leveling.