---
title: 'Controls Engineer (Power Generation) - Memphis at xAI'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/controls-engineer-power-generation-memphis-xai-southaven-hnswycnq1ysw'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-10-19'
---

# Controls Engineer (Power Generation) - Memphis at xAI

- **Company:** xAI
- **Location:** Southaven, MS / Memphis, TN
- **Posted:** 2026-09-21
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-10-19
- **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/xai/jobs/5243286007

## Job description

SpaceX was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not. Today, SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of making life multiplanetary and expanding consciousness to the stars.

SpaceXSI is building Super Intelligence to help humanity understand the universe. Our teams are building the full Super Intelligence stack: from our Colossus supercomputers, to Grok models, to our suite of applications, including Grok Bot, Grok Build, Grok Imagine, Grok Voice, and X. We're creating a powerful flywheel where more compute trains better models, better models power more useful products, and what we learn from people using those products shapes what we build next.

## ABOUT THE ROLE:

Join the power generation engineering team to design, commission, and maintain plant control systems. As a Controls Engineer, you will own BOP PLC/HMI and the control-room SCADA picture that brings generation and balance-of-plant into one operating view — Solar, 6000, and BOP on a single set of screens. You will work from control philosophy through commissioning and ongoing reliability, hands-on at the panel and in the control room. The position is based in Memphis, TN, with potential travel to other sites.

## RESPONSIBILITIES:

- Own BOP PLC and HMI design, programming, and commissioning for power generation balance-of-plant systems (fuel gas, water, compressed/instrument air, HVAC, cooling, electrical auxiliaries, and related process/utility systems)
- Design and maintain the plant SCADA architecture so operators have one operating picture in the control room integrating Solar, 6000, and BOP — graphics, alarms, historian, and situational awareness on a single platform
- Develop control philosophy, control narratives, I/O lists, network drawings, cause-and-effect diagrams, and HMI/SCADA standards for reuse across the facility
- Specify PLC, HMI, SCADA, remote I/O, industrial networking, and interface hardware; define data exchange with OEM turbine/generation controllers (Solar and 6000) and with electrical protection, metering, and plant systems
- Program, test, and troubleshoot PLC logic and HMI applications (IEC 61131 — ladder, function block, structured text as applicable)
- Integrate OEM packages and third-party systems into plant SCADA using industrial protocols (Modbus, DNP3, OPC UA, IEC 61850, and others as required) so Solar, 6000, and BOP operate as one system
- Commission controls: I/O checkout, loop checks, functional testing, HMI validation, alarm rationalization, and start-up support; stay hands-on with technicians and operators
- Support day-to-day operations: troubleshooting, sequence issues, bad actors, and control changes under MOPs/MOC
- Maintain configuration management for PLC/HMI/SCADA programs, as-left files, firmware, and network documentation
- Coordinate with electrical, mechanical, fluids, protection, and operations so controls scope is fully integrated through construction, commissioning, and turnover
- Apply relevant standards for industrial control systems and electrical work (NFPA 70 / 70E, IEC 61131, and site cybersecurity/ICS practices such as NERC CIP where applicable)

## BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

- Bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, controls engineering, computer engineering, or another engineering discipline
- 3+ years of experience in PLC, HMI, and/or SCADA engineering (design, programming, or commissioning) on industrial or power generation systems

## PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:

- 5+ years in a controls role at a power plant, independent power producer, OEM, EPC, or heavy industrial facility
- Hands-on BOP PLC/HMI experience on gas turbine or similar generation projects
- Experience building a unified control-room SCADA/HMI that aggregates multiple OEM controllers (e.g. Solar, 6000, or equivalent turbine packages) with plant BOP
- Familiarity with major platforms (e.g. Ignition, Allen-Bradley/Rockwell, Siemens, Emerson, GE, SEL) and industrial networking (IT/OT)
- Experience with IEC 61131 programming and protocols such as Modbus, DNP3, OPC UA, and IEC 61850
- Experience across the project lifecycle: design, programming, construction support, commissioning, and operations
- Experience with alarm management, historian, and control-room graphics that operators actually use
- Working knowledge of how BOP controls interface with electrical power systems (switchgear, protection, metering) without owning relay settings
- Experience managing OEM and contractor interfaces on multi-discipline power or capital projects
- Professional Engineering license, or actively working toward one
- Ability to support technicians in the field and to remain effective during outages, start-up, and event investigations

## ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

- Willingness to perform hands-on work in the plant and control room, including during outages and commissioning
- Ability to work extended hours and weekends as needed to support power generation operations
- Must be able to work on-site in Memphis, TN, with potential travel to other SpaceXSI facilities

SpaceXSI is an equal opportunity employer. For details on data processing, view our [Recruitment Privacy Notice](https://x.ai/legal/recruitment-privacy-notice).

## About xAI

## Company Overview
- **One‑liner**: xAI builds artificial intelligence systems to accelerate human scientific discovery and “understand the universe,” with products spanning frontier reasoning models, real‑time voice, and generative media.
- **Entity Type**: Private (last funding round: Series E, January 2026; acquired by SpaceX in February 2026)
- **Headquarters**: Palo Alto, California, USA (additional offices in Seattle, WA; Memphis, TN; London, UK)
- **Founded**: 2023
- **Founders**: Elon Musk

## Core Business
- Primary industry: Artificial Intelligence (AI research, large language models, voice AI, generative media)
- Target customers: B2B (developers via API), B2C (consumers via Grok on 𝕏, SuperGrok subscriptions), Enterprise & Government (xAI for Government)
- Mission: “To understand the universe” – building AI that extends what humanity can know and do.

## Products & Services
- **Grok (base models)** : A conversational AI assistant modeled after *The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy*, available on the 𝕏 platform and via API.
- **Grok 4 / Grok 4 Heavy**: The most intelligent reasoning models, featuring native tool use and real‑time search integration (SuperGrok and Premium+ tiers).
- **Grok Voice Agent API / Voice Agent Builder**: Create custom voice agents in under two minutes (no‑code) – includes speech‑to‑text, text‑to‑speech, custom voice cloning, and multilingual support.
- **Grok Imagine API**: State‑of‑the‑art video generation API (quality, cost, latency).
- **Grok‑1.5 / Grok‑2 / Grok‑2 mini**: Earlier model releases with improved reasoning and 128K context length.
- **PromptIDE**: An integrated development environment for prompt engineering and interpretability research.
- **xAI for Government**: A suite of frontier AI products tailored for U.S. government customers.
- **Colossus Supercomputer**: 200,000‑GPU cluster built in 122 days, used for training xAI models; now also leased to Anthropic (Colossus 1 agreement).

All products are delivered as SaaS, API, and model weights (open‑source release of Grok‑1).

## Market Standing
- **Valuation / Funding**: 
  - Series B (May 2024): $6 B 
  - Series C (Dec 2024): $6 B (led by A16Z, BlackRock, Fidelity, Kingdom Holdings, Lightspeed, MGX, Morgan Stanley, OIA, QIA, Sequoia, Valor, Vy Capital, others)
  - Series E (Jan 2026): $20 B
  - Acquisition by SpaceX announced Feb 2, 2026 (terms not disclosed).
- **Key Metric**: Total disclosed funding ~$32 B; annual revenue not publicly available.
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: A16Z, BlackRock, Fidelity, Sequoia Capital, Morgan Stanley, Kingdom Holdings, Lightspeed, MGX, Valor Equity Partners, Vy Capital, Anthropic (Colossus deal), U.S. Department of War (selected Dec 2025).
- **Growth Signals**: 
  - Rapid scaling from founding to 200K‑GPU cluster in 122 days.
  - Over 214 open roles listed on Greenhouse as of mid‑2026.
  - #1 on Big Bench Audio (Grok 4 audio performance).
  - Expanded into voice agents, video generation, and government verticals within 3 years.
  - Acquisition by SpaceX signals deep integration with space‑tech resources.

## Competitive Advantages
- **Compute infrastructure**: Colossus supercomputer – one of the largest GPU clusters in existence, enabling faster training and larger models.
- **Model performance**: Grok 4 claims “most intelligent model in the world” with top benchmarks (Big Bench Audio #1).
- **Vertical integration**: Tight coupling with 𝕏 platform for data, distribution, and real‑time world knowledge.
- **Speed of execution**: “Move quickly and fix things” culture; built Colossus in 122 days.
- **Government contracts**: Early access to public‑sector AI markets (U.S. Department of War).
- **Talent density**: Small, focused team of researchers and engineers; in‑person work accelerates iteration.

## Strategic Focus
- **Continue advancing frontier reasoning** (Grok 4 Heavy, next‑gen models).
- **Expand voice and multimodal APIs** for developers (Voice Agent Builder, Custom Voices Library).
- **Deepen government / defense partnerships** (xAI for Government, Department of War).
- **Scale infrastructure** post‑acquisition via SpaceX resources.
- **Remain “open” where strategic** (open‑source release of Grok‑1 weights).

## Why Work Here
- **Culture**: “Ambitious goals, fast execution” – rejects consensus in favor of first‑principles reasoning. In‑person work prioritized (Palo Alto, Seattle, Memphis, London).
- **Benefits**: 
  - Competitive cash + equity compensation.
  - Comprehensive medical, dental, vision, disability, life insurance.
  - 401(k) plan, fertility benefits, flexible vacation.
  - Visa sponsorship offered.
- **Engineering culture**: No recruiters for assessments – applications reviewed directly by technical team. Interview process: application → screening → technical interviews → offer.
- **Mission‑driven**: Opportunity to work on frontier AI models that aim to “advance humanity.”
- **Perks**: In‑person collaboration, fast‑paced environment, ownership of meaningful projects.

## Sources
1. [x.ai/company](https://x.ai/company)
2. [x.ai/careers](https://x.ai/careers)
3. [job-boards.greenhouse.io/xai](https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/xai)
4. [x.ai/news](https://x.ai/news)
5. [x.ai/careers/open-roles](https://x.ai/careers/open-roles)

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