Electrical Engineer Intern

About the role

WindBorne Systems is supercharging weather models with a unique proprietary data source: a global constellation of next-generation smart weather balloons targeting the most critical atmospheric data. We design, manufacture, and operate our own balloons, using the data they collect to generate otherwise unattainable weather intelligence. Our mission is to eliminate weather uncertainty, and in the process help humanity adapt to climate change—whether predicting hurricanes or speeding the adoption of renewables. We are building a future in which the planet is instrumented by thousands of our microballoons, eliminating gaps in our understanding of the planet and giving people and businesses the information they need to make critical decisions.

The founding team of Stanford engineers was named Forbes 2019 30 under 30 and is backed by top investors including Khosla Ventures. We're seeking an Embedded Electrical Engineer to run hardware design, initial bringup, hardware debug, and manufacturing support for key elements of our flight hardware and ground support systems. This role is for someone who thrives on variety—jumping between PCB design in the morning, debugging firmware in the afternoon, and sourcing components at night—and who finds satisfaction in making things work in theory, in practice, and at scale, iterating as quickly as PCBA turnaround times permit.

You’ll be creating systems that can reliably operate from -70°C to +40°C using components entirely unrated for such conditions, while counting every gram and milliwatt. We need someone who can quickly ship a design that doesn’t appear to be broken and who enjoys spending a day at the bench playing electrical whac-a-mole when something inevitably is. The ideal candidate will balance big-picture thinking with hands-on execution, ensuring effort is directed only where it’s most useful while tackling the messy details of building the world’s largest balloon constellation.

Responsibilities

• Design, prototype, and test PCBs for critical new flight and ground systems
• Develop firmware for initial bringup of new boards and custom testing of existing boards
• Troubleshoot and resolve (only the most pressing) issues on existing hardware
• Conduct comprehensive bench and environmental testing to validate electrical systems under extreme conditions
• Work closely with mechanical engineers to ensure proper integration on a vehicle with about as many structural PCBs as custom 3D parts
• Support flight operations with troubleshooting of deployed hardware via realtime telemetry
• Coordinate PCBA manufacturing for both R&D and production

Requirements

• Strong fundamentals in embedded circuit and system design
• Hands-on experience troubleshooting circuit boards and electronic assemblies
• Proficiency with reading schematics and datasheets
• Familiarity with embedded firmware development (C/C++)
• Familiarity with common communication protocols (SPI, I2C, UART)
• Experience with PCB layout and design tools (we use Altium)
• Comfort with lab equipment including oscilloscopes, multimeters, and logic analyzers
• Interest in the underlying physics
• Enjoyment of applying increasingly creative (and sometimes "cursed") out-of-the-box solutions to reduce part count and complexity

Nice to have

• Bachelor's degree or higher in Electrical Engineering or related field
• Interest in RF system development and antenna design
• Deep knowledge of power management circuit design
• Ability to solder 0402 components by hand without frustration

Benefits

• Salary: $33/hour

Location

1600 Bridge Parkway, Redwood City, CA. In-person work required.