Feeny
Physical Intelligence

Mechatronics Intern at Physical Intelligence (San Francisco, CA)

Physical Intelligence· San Francisco, CA·

Role details

Work type
Onsite
Employment
Full-Time
Level
Internship

Job description

Fundamentally, a builder. Someone who loves to make robots real. We want someone who’s as comfortable debugging a CAN bus issue as they are machining a bracket — an individual who thinks in systems, and who gets excited by tight integration between mechanical, electrical, and embedded design. You’ll join the core Hardware Engineering team at Physical Intelligence who is supporting the robots that power PI’s data collection and model training operations. The Team The core Hardware Engineering team designs and builds the robotic arms, mobile platforms, and end-effectors that underpin PI’s data collection and model training operations. They work across mechanical, electrical, embedded, and software disciplines to iterate quickly on prototypes, bring up new subsystems, and keep the fleet performant in real-world environments. In This Role You Will

  • Subsystem Design & Test: Design, build, and test key subsystems for various robotic arms and mobile platforms — including actuation, sensing, enclosures, and power systems.
  • Hands-On Prototyping: Work hands-on with prototypes in our hardware lab, including bring-up, assembly, calibration, and reliability testing of arms, lifts, mobile bases, and end-effectors.
  • Cross-Disciplinary Integration: Integrate cross-disciplinary inputs from mechanical, electrical, and software teams to root-cause mission-critical issues and drive high-level system performance.
  • Data-Driven Iteration: Analyze data from deployments to inform design iteration and reliability improvements.
  • Full-Stack Subsystem Ownership: Own the full stack of a subsystem from CAD to PCB to bench testing.

What We Hope You’ll Bring

  • Completed 3A Mechanical or Mechatronics Engineering. Students below 3A with exceptional projects, GitHubs, portfolios, and work experience will also be considered.
  • Strong mechanical and electromechanical design fundamentals (dynamic loading, FEA, DFM).
  • Familiarity with embedded and mechatronic systems (CAN, BLDC control, motor controllers).
  • Proficiency in CAD (NX, OnShape, SolidWorks) and rapid prototyping tools (3D printing — SLA and FDM — laser cutting).
  • Basic electrical design and debug (schematics, soldering, test equipment).
  • Data-driven debugging and test planning (Python, MATLAB, or similar).

Bonus Points

  • Exposure to manufacturing or assembly environments.
  • Prior experience in robotics, autonomous systems, or hardware startups.

The duration of this internship is January-May 2027.

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.

Application questions