Environment Manager at Physical Intelligence (San Francisco, CA)
Physical Intelligence· San Francisco, CA·
Role details
Job description
Who We Are
Physical Intelligence is bringing general-purpose AI into the physical world. We are a group of engineers, scientists, roboticists, and company builders developing foundation models and learning algorithms to power the robots of today and the physically-actuated devices of the future. The Team The Environment team supports research and production operations at Physical Intelligence. The team builds and maintains physical work spaces and keeps them supplied so work runs on schedule across every shift. It includes coordinators, shift specialists, and contractors who flex with demand.
About the Role
Physical Intelligence builds AI for robots. Our operations teams keep hands-on work running on schedule for research and production. As Set + Props Manager, you lead a full-time hourly team across multiple shifts, and you manage the contractors who flex with demand. In This Role You Will
- People management: Hire, train, and manage an hourly team across multiple shifts. Give regular feedback and run performance conversations.
- Scheduling and compliance: Own schedules, time cards, breaks, and overtime for an hourly team in California.
- Capacity planning: Plan weekly staffing and capacity, and cover call-outs and PTO.
- Contractors and vendors: Run contractor trials and vendor relationships.
- Cross-team partnership: Work with research and production leads to resolve blockers and set priorities.
What We Hope You'll Bring
- 3+ years managing hourly frontline teams in warehouse, fulfillment, retail, production, events, or facilities
- Experience with California wage and hour rules: breaks, meal periods, and overtime
- Experience hiring and managing performance, including hard conversations
- Experience managing contractors or temp staff
- Comfort working on the floor and adjusting hours to reach every shift
Bonus Points
- Experience running a multi-shift or 24/7 operation
- Experience in film, TV, theater, or event production, or an R&D or production environment where requirements change weekly
- Experience setting purchasing budgets and spending guidelines for a team
Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.
Why work at Physical Intelligence
- Culture: Described as a “pure company” – internally driven by research needs, not external market demands. Highly collaborative, with a mix of engineers, scientists, and roboticists working together.
- Work Environment: Hybrid/in-office – most roles require on-site presence in San Francisco (396 Treat Ave), though some remote flexibility exists. In-office setting with a “no reception” vibe, open lab space with robot stations.
- Growth: Team has scaled from ~80 (Jan 2026) to 163 (mid-2026) and is still hiring across research, ML infra, hardware, and engineering roles. Plans to grow “as slowly as possible” to maintain quality.
- Perks & Engineering Highlights: Access to cutting-edge robotics hardware and compute resources; opportunity to publish research and open-source code; exposure to a wide variety of real-world automation challenges (e.g., robots learning to fold pants, peel vegetables, make espresso). Employees come from top institutions like Berkeley, Stanford, Google, NVIDIA, and Anduril.