OpenAI

Lead Thermal Simulation Engineer

OpenAI$130K — $180K *
Manufacturing & Automotive
Less than 5 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 5-7 years of experience in thermal simulation engineering
  • Strong proficiency in commercial CAE tools like Simcenter 3D or Ansys
  • Experience in correlating simulation results with physical testing
  • Familiarity with robotic systems and electromechanical systems
  • Proven ability to design and develop simulation methodologies

Responsibilities

  • Perform thermal simulations for system-level performance assessment
  • Collaborate with cross-functional teams to influence early design decisions
  • Develop simulation models for various robotic components and systems
  • Correlate simulation outcomes with experimental data for accuracy improvement
  • Evaluate design concepts and support architecture trade studies
  • Create standards and workflows for simulation practices across the organization
  • Identify and mitigate technical risks to enhance product reliability

Benefits

  • Collaborative work environment with engineers from diverse disciplines
  • Opportunity to influence product design from concept to deployment
  • Engaging work on cutting-edge robotic technologies
  • Pathway to enhance long-term simulation capabilities
  • Access to advanced CAE tools and resources for professional growth
Full Job Description
About the Role

We are seeking a lead thermal simulation engineer to help accelerate the design and development of next-generation robotic systems through modeling, simulation, and analysis. You will work closely with mechanical, electrical, controls, and robotics engineers to evaluate designs before hardware is built, identify risks early, and guide critical architecture decisions.

This role spans structural and thermal analysis and design across robotic subsystems including actuators, mechanisms, structures, electronics, and integrated systems. You will develop simulation workflows that improve engineering velocity, increase confidence in design decisions, and help us build more capable, reliable, and manufacturable robotic platforms.

In this role, you will:
  • Perform thermal simulations to assess heat generation, cooling strategies, thermal interfaces, and system-level thermal performance
  • Partner with mechanical, electrical, and controls engineers to influence design decisions early in development
  • Build simulation models to evaluate robotic actuators, transmissions, mechanisms, structures, soft goods, and integrated assemblies
  • Correlate simulation results with physical testing and develop methodologies to improve model accuracy
  • Support architecture trade studies by evaluating design concepts before hardware is built
  • Develop simulation workflows, standards, and best practices that scale across the robotics organization
  • Identify technical risks and recommend design changes to improve performance, reliability, and manufacturability
  • Support root cause investigations by combining test data, failure analysis, and simulation results
  • Contribute to long-term simulation capabilities including multiphysics modeling, digital twins, and system-level analysis
You might thrive in this role if you:
  • Enjoy using first-principles engineering and simulation to solve complex multidisciplinary problems
  • Are comfortable operating in ambiguous environments where simulation and design helps guide architecture decisions rather than simply validate finished designs
  • Have strong intuition for mechanical systems and can connect simulation results to real-world hardware behavior
  • Balance modeling rigor with practical engineering judgment and development speed
  • Enjoy collaborating closely with hardware teams and influencing products from concept through deployment
Preferred qualifications:
  • Experience performing thermal simulation and design of complex electromechanical systems
  • Proficiency with commercial CAE tools such as Simcenter 3D, Abaqus, Ansys, Nastran, LS-DYNA, COMSOL, or equivalent platforms
  • Experience correlating simulation models with physical test data and validation campaigns for high volume products
  • Familiarity with robotic systems, actuators, mechanisms, power electronics, batteries, or other highly integrated hardware systems
  • Experience developing simulation methodologies, automation tools, or organization-wide thermal workflows


About OpenAI

OpenAI is an artificial intelligence research laboratory consisting of the for-profit corporation OpenAI LP and its parent company, the non-profit OpenAI Inc. The company was founded in 2015 by a group of technology leaders, including Elon Musk, Sam Altman, Greg Brockman, Ilya Sutskever, and John Schulman. OpenAI's mission is to develop and promote friendly AI for the betterment of humanity. The company has developed a number of cutting-edge AI technologies, including GPT-3, a language processing system that can generate human-like text. OpenAI has received funding from a number of high-profile investors, including LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman and venture capitalist Peter Thiel.
Learn more about OpenAI
Size
100 employees
Industry
Founded
2015

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