---
title: 'Rapid Prototyping Engineer at Tacit'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/rapid-prototyping-engineer-tacit-san-francisco-c6r78rgdqcrg'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-09'
---

# Rapid Prototyping Engineer at Tacit

- **Company:** Tacit
- **Location:** San Francisco, CA
- **Compensation:** $123k–$139k
- **Employment:** full-time
- **Work type:** onsite
- **Posted:** 2026-08-27
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-09
- **Apply:** https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/tacit/368b287c-3773-4952-8927-dab9019615da

## Job description

## About Tacit

We are an early-stage, deep tech startup based in San Francisco, developing innovative hardware that rethinks human-computer interaction. We are backed by General Catalyst, Khosla Ventures, and Greylock Partners, with a founding team from Stanford, BrainGate, Oculus, and Tesla. While we can’t reveal too much just yet, our team is tackling cutting-edge engineering challenges to bring revolutionary products to life.

## ABOUT THE ROLE

We are looking for a Rapid Prototyping Engineer, an engineering generalist who sits at the intersection of R&D and hardware engineering. You'll work closely with our design, electrical, and sensing teams to rapidly design, build, and iterate on mechanical, electrical, and sensor prototypes for novel wearable devices — while also owning the assembly and test fixtures that make those prototypes buildable and repeatable.

This is a hands-on, builder-at-heart role for someone who thrives on ambiguity and enjoys turning a rough concept into a working, testable physical system. You'll be the person the hardware and research teams come to when something new needs to be designed, fixtured, built, and iterated on fast — and when successful, you'll turn those one-off builds into scalable, DFM-friendly processes that support our product ramp from NPI/NTI through production.

## WHAT YOU'LL DO

- Prototyping & Build
- Rapidly design and fabricate mechanical, electrical, and sensor prototypes to support R&D experiments and engineering development for wearable and consumer-electronics form factors.
- Build end-to-end prototype systems: from concept sketches through CAD, fabrication, wiring, sensor/RF component integration, and validation.
- Develop quick-turn PCBs, flex circuits, wiring harnesses, and cable assemblies for prototype electronics.
- Hands-on soldering and assembly of electrical and sensing circuit components, including delicate flex and fine-pitch work.
- Evaluate and select sensors, actuators, and off-the-shelf components for integration into prototype systems.
- Fixtures & Tooling
- Design, build, and iterate on assembly and test fixtures, jigs, and tooling from the ground up to support novel processes and ensure build quality and efficiency for complex devices and wearables.
- Partner with design engineers to provide DFM/DFA feedback and drive design iterations before problems reach production.
- Build fixtures that improve repeatability, cycle time, and debug visibility for both R&D builds and early manufacturing runs.
- Debug, Troubleshooting & Iteration
- Perform hands-on assembly, troubleshooting, and debugging of electromechanical systems, isolating whether an issue is mechanical, electrical, or process-related.
- Identify and address failure modes specific to wearable hardware (fit, comfort, cable management, contact forces, thermal effects, wear over repeated use).
- Take initiative in driving design iterations, documenting findings, and proposing next steps with minimal supervision.
- Cross-Functional Collaboration
- Collaborate with electrical, RF, mechanical, and firmware engineers to integrate hardware with control systems and test software.
- Support NPI/NTI/R&D efforts, working closely with design and validation teams as products move from early prototype toward production intent.
- Communicate build status, design risks, and recommendations clearly to both technical and non-specialist audiences.
- Document designs, build procedures, and test results to support knowledge transfer and continuous design improvement.

## REQUIREMENTS

- Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Electrical, Mechatronics Engineering, or a related field.
- 2+ years of experience in prototyping, R&D engineering, or hardware development, ideally in wearables, consumer electronics, robotics, or research lab environments.
- Required experience with NPI/NTI/R&D processes, taking hardware from early concept through pre-production.
- Proficiency in CAD software (Onshape, SolidWorks, or Fusion 360) with strong 3D modeling and drafting skills.
- Working knowledge of PCB design and electronics, and comfort with soldering electrical and RF circuit components, wiring, reading schematics, and integrating sensors.
- Hands-on ability to build and troubleshoot electromechanical systems.
- Hands-on expertise with rapid prototyping methods: 3D printing (FDM/SLA), laser cutting, CNC machining, sheet metal fabrication, and manual machining.
- Demonstrated experience designing and building assembly and test fixtures, jigs, and tooling from scratch.
- Excellent project management and cross-functional collaboration skills.
- Strong track record of troubleshooting, debugging, and iterating on designs independently.
- A builder at heart: someone who takes initiative, brings creativity and problem-solving to ambiguous challenges, and can work with minimal supervision.
- Excellent communication skills and comfort operating in a fast-paced, ambiguous environment where requirements evolve quickly.

## STRONG CANDIDATES MAY HAVE

- Familiarity with wearable or consumer-electronics form factors and the constraints of designing for comfort, fit, and durability against the body.
- Experience with RF or antenna hardware integration and the fixturing challenges specific to RF test and assembly.
- Basic scripting ability (Python) for test automation, data collection, or hardware interfacing.
- Experience supporting builds across EVT, DVT, and PVT stages with contract manufacturers

## SUCCESS IN THIS ROLE LOOKS LIKE

- Research and design concepts are rapidly and reliably turned into working physical prototypes.
- Assembly and test fixtures enable consistent, repeatable builds across R&D and early production runs.
- DFM/DFA feedback delivered early prevents costly design iterations downstream.
- Cross-functional teams have a trusted go-to person for hands-on build, debug, and fixture needs.
- Prototype learnings and fixture designs translate smoothly into scalable production processes.

## BENEFITS

- Competitive equity package
- Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance
- Company size: 30-50 people
- Unlimited PTO
- Visa sponsorship
- 4% 401k matching

## About Tacit

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: An early-stage, stealth deep tech startup based in San Francisco, developing innovative hardware that rethinks human-computer interaction, with a focus on neurotechnology and Edge AI.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Early Stage, Stealth)
- **Headquarters**: San Francisco, California, United States
- **Founded**: Not publicly available
- **Founders**: Not publicly available (founding team includes alumni from Stanford, BrainGate, Oculus, and Tesla)

## Core Business
- Primary industry/industries: Neurotechnology, Edge AI Hardware, Human-Computer Interaction
- Target customers: B2B/B2C in consumer electronics, wearable tech, neurotech, and AR/VR sectors
- Mission or purpose statement: To develop revolutionary hardware that redefines how humans interact with computers, leveraging deep tech innovations in neural interfaces and on-device artificial intelligence.

## Products & Services
- **Product/Platform**: A next-generation neurotech hardware platform (stealth mode – specific product details are not publicly disclosed) that integrates production-grade on-device intelligence, realtime sensor processing, and NPU/DSP-accelerated inference.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not disclosed (stealth startup)
- **Key Metric**: Total Funding – Backed by top-tier venture firms (General Catalyst, Khosla Ventures, Greylock Partners) but specific funding amounts are not publicly available.
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: General Catalyst, Khosla Ventures, Greylock Partners
- **Growth Signals**: Company size estimated at 20–30 employees ([bebee.com](https://bebee.com/us/companies/tacit)), rapidly hiring across firmware, AI, and hardware engineering roles; founding team from elite institutions (Stanford, BrainGate, Oculus, Tesla), indicating strong talent acquisition and ambitious R&D trajectory.

## Competitive Advantages
- Deep tech moat: proprietary neurotech hardware combined with custom Edge AI runtimes and NPU/DSP optimization.
- World-class founding team with proven expertise in neural interfaces (BrainGate), consumer VR (Oculus), and electric vehicle engineering (Tesla).
- Backing from a powerhouse coalition of venture firms (General Catalyst, Khosla, Greylock), providing significant resources for long-term, capital-intensive hardware development.
- Stealth positioning allows focused R&D without competitive pressure, enabling breakthrough innovation.

## Strategic Focus
- Shipping production-grade edge intelligence: developing realtime sensor-to-inference pipelines for neurotech hardware.
- Power optimization: deeply optimizing end-to-end energy per inference for battery-powered consumer devices.
- Scaling engineering team: actively recruiting Senior Firmware Engineers, AI Product Engineers, and other hardware/software roles to accelerate productization.
- Building a full-stack neurotech platform from sensor acquisition through model deployment and user experience.

## Why Work Here
- **Culture**: Early-stage, high-autonomy environment; team members own critical parts of the embedded AI stack and shape the product’s intelligence.
- **Remote/Hybrid/Office**: On-site in San Francisco (based on all job postings specifying "Location Type: On-site" and "San Francisco").
- **Compensation**: $150,000 – $200,000 base salary plus competitive equity package, 3% 401k matching, comprehensive medical/dental/vision, and unlimited PTO.
- **Engineering Culture**: Hands-on work with cutting-edge hardware (NPUs, DSPs, custom sensors) and production AI; strong cross-functional collaboration between firmware, ML, electrical, and product teams.
- **Visa Sponsorship**: Offered for qualified candidates.
- **Perks**: Full medical/dental/vision coverage, 401(k) with company match, unlimited PTO, and the opportunity to ship revolutionary neurotech hardware to real users.

## Sources
1. [Tacit Careers Page (Ashby)](https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/tacit/62712a3e-e5b8-4884-9450-aae4d2dfa45c)
2. [BeBee - Tacit Company Profile](https://bebee.com/us/companies/tacit)
3. [Jobright.ai - Tacit AI Product Engineer Posting](https://jobright.ai/jobs/info/6971dbb2b707bf728a4b654d)
4. [Indeed.com - Tacit Careers and Employment](https://www.indeed.com/cmp/Tacit)
5. [Tacit AI Official Website (Tacit AI)](https://tacitx.ai/about/) – *(Note: this domain appears distinct from tacit.ai; included as potential affiliate/likely same company under different brand)*
6. [Tacit Official Website](https://tacit.ai/)

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