Founding Mechanical Engineer

Whistle Robotics is making automation accessible to every factory. Our mission is to help small and medium-sized manufacturers increase productivity, extend machine utilisation, and overcome labour shortages.

We do this by building intelligent, task-specific robots that can be deployed quickly and easily, starting with CNC machine tending.

Our team combines deep technical and commercial expertise. Our CEO, Pete, is a repeat founder who previously built and exited a venture-backed manufacturing company, while our CTO, Gio, has spent 15 years building software at the intersection of AI and advanced manufacturing (CloudNC and Autodesk). We are backed by leading investors in AI and robotics.

As our Founding Mechanical Engineer, you will be the bridge between our software and the physical world. You won’t just be sitting behind a screen; you’ll be selecting and testing hardware, spending time in the lab prototyping, in the factory installing, and at the table with customers defining our product roadmap.

• Design & prototype: You will take ideas from design to production. You will work across the product, from parts of the robot like custom camera mounts and sensor brackets, to heavy-duty sheet metal stands and enclosures.
• DFM & Supply chain: You will help establish and optimise our supply chain and ensure our hardware is reliable, cost-effective, and easy to assemble.
• Hands-on Fabrication: Operate 3D printers, CNC mills and lathes to iterate fast. If a part doesn't exist, you’ll design and make it.
• Integrated Systems: Design and implement pneumatics, light electronics integration, and safety systems (CE/UKCA compliance) to ensure our robots are shop-floor ready.
• Customer-Centric Engineering: Spend time on factory floors, understanding the environments to ensure our hardware survives and thrives in the real world.

You are an experienced engineer with a passion for robotics. You are looking to join an early team where you can make a difference.

• 5+ years in a hands-on mechanical engineering role (corporate and/or startup)
• Proficiency in CAD.
• Experience interacting with suppliers and buying technical products
• Interest or experience in robotics.
• Experience in hands‑on metal fabrication (CNC milling/turning, sheet metal design, welding) and 3D printing.
• You can perform (or learn to perform) structural simulations to ensure our stands don't vibrate or tip under the dynamic loads of a robot.
• You can read technical drawings, compare different products using a datasheet and you don’t hesitate to hop on a call with a supplier to ask a question.

Research shows that exceptional people from underrepresented groups often only apply to jobs if they meet 100% of the criteria. If you are a brilliant engineer who loves building things, but you don't check every single box above, please apply anyway. We value talent, grit, and the ability to learn over a perfect resume.

• Ground-floor opportunity: Be part of our founding team. You will have a significant equity stake and a direct influence on the company’s trajectory.
• Real-world meaning and impact: We are deploying robots today. Your work will enable small local businesses to adopt Physical AI and drive the reshoring of production.
• World-class team: Work directly with founders who have been there and done it, in both manufacturing and deep-tech AI.
• The lab: A well‑equipped workspace in London where you have the tools, resources, and autonomy to build.

We are a small, high-velocity team. We look for people who resonate with:

• Driven by curiosity: You aren't afraid to dive into a problem outside your core discipline. You approach every problem with humility and a strong desire to learn.
• Focused and incremental: You ship high-quality products fast. You achieve that, not by working extra hours, but by working methodically, incrementally, constantly testing your own assumptions and focusing on the right things. Building a meaningful business is a marathon, not a sprint.
• Extreme ownership: You don't wait for a ticket to be assigned. You see a gap in the product? You design a solution and you implement it.
• Greater than the sum of parts: You amplify everyone around you. We are building something that matters, and we can’t do that alone. We work hard, in person, because the best engineering happens when the team is at the whiteboard (or the workbench) together.