Mechanical Engineer

Impulse Labs is a green technology appliance company that designs and manufactures high-performance electric cooking appliances aimed at accelerating the transition away from fossil fuels in the home. Their flagship product, the Impulse Cooktop, is a battery-integrated induction stove that delivers up to 10,000 watts of peak power per burner, enabling water to boil in under 40 seconds — significantly faster than both traditional gas and standard induction cooktops. The cooktop is available in 30-inch and 36-inch four-burner configurations and is priced at $6,999. The company's mission is to build the most powerful and precise appliances on the planet in order to power a clean energy future. A key differentiator is the Impulse Cooktop's integrated 3 kWh battery, which allows the appliance to operate on standard 120V or lower-amperage 240V circuits without requiring a dedicated high-amperage electrical upgrade or a licensed electrician for installation. This makes electrification of the kitchen more accessible to homeowners. The cooktop also features proprietary Active Temperature Sensing technology, enabling single-degree temperature control, and includes a 12.8-inch display with passive magnetic knobs and over-the-air software update capability. Impulse Labs positions itself at the intersection of high-end culinary performance and climate-conscious home electrification. By eliminating the need for gas infrastructure while surpassing gas stove performance, the company addresses both the practical and aspirational barriers to household decarbonization. The product has received coverage from outlets such as the New York Times Wirecutter, which praised its intuitive design.

About us:

We’re Impulse. We’re a team of engineers, designers and innovators based in San Francisco who believe making good decisions for your home and the environment should not come at a cost to your lifestyle. We’re dedicated to building delightful, high-performance products for everyday needs that enable rewarding, long-term, scalable solutions for whole-home electrification.

We're looking for individuals excited to join an early-stage, VC-backed growing company with powerful aspirations to make positive change in a major industry - come build with us!

About the Role

Impulse is seeking a Mechanical Engineer to work on-site in San Francisco. In this role, you’ll work closely with cross-functional teams - including software, product management, and leadership - to design, architect, and help manufacture new products.

Location: Design District, San Francisco, CA. Commuting to Impulse San Francisco HQ is expected. Strong preference for fully on-site, although open to remote 1-2 days per week.

What you’ll be doing:

• Developing next generation hardware products at a strongly backed, growing company with a powerful vision of the future that we can build together

• Building long-term architectures that will have impact beyond our first products

• Working closely with the whole team during product definition and development

• Building first-in-class prototypes

• Hands-on designing and testing of new and unproven technologies

• Some support of in-production / sustaining work of existing and future products to continuously improve our design and manufacturing process

• Bringing up production-intent devices

• Shepherding volume manufacturing for a new product category

Required Qualifications:

• 7+ years of experience working as a mechanical engineer

• A proven track record of building and shipping high-quality consumer electronics, automotive, or IoT products

• Demonstrated expertise in mechanical CAD software (SolidWorks preferred)

• Demonstrated excellent communication skills, especially with complex technical topics across the organization in the interest of driving decisions and execution

• Demonstrated experience in plastic injection molding and sheet metal design

• Demonstrated ability to take ownership of tasks and results while holding yourself and others to high standards

• Demonstrated experience in the failure analysis process of identifying root causes and finding appropriate mitigations

• Experience creating and overseeing design of experiments related to product development and manufacturing systems

• Proven experience collaborating across disciplines and functions, recognizing that cross-functional partnership drives success

• Demonstrated ability to manage ambiguity in a constantly evolving environment

• High ownership mindset; able to operate independently in an evolving environment

• Demonstrated ability to take ownership of tasks and results while holding yourself and others to high standards

• Proven experience collaborating across disciplines and functions, recognizing that cross-functional partnership drives success

• A bold, experimental mindset that embraces risk and thinks beyond current limitations

• Strong communication skills with the ability to deliver honest, constructive feedback with both care and directness.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience working with international Contract Manufacturers and Joint Development Manufacturers

• Experience developing or managing reliability test plans

• Experience developing manufacturing test stations and fixtures

• Familiarity with writing lab level firmware or software for experimental use

• The ability to speak Mandarin

What’s in it for you:

• Meaningful equity in a fast-moving company with top investors

• Generous benefits including health, vision, dental, fitness, & 401k (with company match)

• Help define culture for what will be a diverse, inclusive, and global team

Compensation:

This is an exempt and salaried role and the range for this position is $150,000 - $180,000 annually (depending on experience)

Our Interview Process

At Impulse, we want to make sure the fit is right for both you and us. Our interview process is designed to help us get to know each other better. Here’s what you can expect:

• Introduction call with our People Operations team

• Phone Screen with the Hiring Manager

• On-site Technical Interviews with the team, including the CEO and COO

We’re excited to meet you and help you figure out if Impulse is the right fit for you!

Impulse is an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and prohibit discrimination and harassment. We are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees where everyone feels safe and welcome.

Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States without need for sponsorship now or in the future.