Test Systems Engineer

About Tau Power conversion is the bottleneck between the compute, energy, and mobility industries and the future they're trying to build. Most of the industry is still solving it with decades-old approaches. Tau is fixing that. We're a venture-backed hardtech company in Redwood City, building power conversion technology for data centers, EVs, and energy systems. Several products are already moving into production.

We hire people who own problems end-to-end: power electronics, embedded software, controls, test and validation, mechanical design. We solve from first principles, not legacy playbooks. We're past "promising technology." Customers are buying, volume is coming, and the people who join now set the standard everyone builds on after.

Who you are

You think in systems, and you build for reality. You'd rather ship the simplest reliable answer to an engineering question than the most sophisticated one. You know the difference between complexity that earns its keep and complexity for its own sake.

You default to structure without needing to be told to. You see a recurring issue and build the fix that prevents it from recurring, not just the fix for today. You document because someone else needs to be able to run this without you in the room, not because you were asked to.

You have real judgment about risk. You know when "good enough" is actually good enough, and when it isn't, and you're comfortable being the person who says so even when it's inconvenient. High-voltage safety, interlocks, fault handling: you don't treat these as boxes to check, you treat them as the reason the job matters.

You want ownership over a domain that's core to how the whole engineering org performs, and you want to be measured on the capability you build, not just the hours you put in.

Our Engineering Approach

Innovation shows what's possible. Disciplined engineering creates products. Creative ideas matter only when they become reliable, manufacturable products that solve customer problems

About the role

The lab is where every engineering claim gets checked against reality. If the data's untrustworthy, every downstream decision, design, program timeline, and customer commitment inherits that risk without anyone noticing until it's expensive.

This role owns that. You're responsible for the test infrastructure, the standards it runs on, and the judgment call on what's good enough to trust. You'll work across Mechanical, Power Electronics, Controls, Embedded Software, Manufacturing, and Program Management, and you'll have real authority to say a system isn't ready, a result isn't credible, or a process needs to change, and make that stick.

We want someone who biases toward structure: documented, repeatable, built to outlast any one person's memory of how it works. Not because process is the point, but because at 40-50 people and growing, tribal knowledge is a liability. At the same time, this isn't a role where you build the org chart and step back. You're in the lab. You're commissioning systems, debugging with the team at 6pm, mentoring technicians on measurement methods. Player-coach, not dictator. You set the standard by being good enough at the work that people want to follow suit, not standards by decree.

Areas of ownership

Test infrastructure and standards

Own the dynamometers, inverter test systems, environmental support systems, and lab infrastructure end to end

Set the standards for what counts as commissioned, calibrated, and trustworthy, and hold the org to them

Plan and execute capability upgrades with minimal disruption to active programs

Test system development

Translate engineering objectives into safe, repeatable test capability

Integrate mechanical, electrical, controls, instrumentation, cooling, automation, and safety systems

Own the safety philosophy: interlocks, e-stop logic, fault handling, operator protection

Commission and validate systems before engineering release. Nothing goes live on your say alone until it's earned it

Measurement and data integrity

Specify sensors, instrumentation, DAQ architecture

Build measurement strategies that answer the actual engineering question, not just collect numbers

Validate accuracy through calibration, uncertainty analysis, correlation, repeatability

Be the person who can say, credibly, "trust this data" or "don't"

Lab operations and standards enforcement

Run preventive maintenance, calibration, troubleshooting, repair

Own lab organization, documentation, safety, and operating procedure as an operating system, not a set of one-off fixes

Eliminate recurring issues through durable corrective action, not repeated patching

Support procurement and lab upkeep where it affects test capability

Cross-functional authority

Partner with Mechanical, Power Electronics, Embedded Software, Controls, Manufacturing, Program Management, suppliers, and customers

Push back on requirements, timelines, or designs when the lab side can't safely or credibly support them

Translate cross-functional input into test capability that actually answers the question being asked

Technical leadership

Mentor engineers and technicians in measurement method, safe operation, and lab standards

Build capability that scales. The goal is a lab that runs at this standard whether or not you're in the room that day

Operationalize Tau's engineering principles into how the lab actually runs day to day, not just how it's described

Technical foundation

You'll likely have depth in some of these and working knowledge across most:

Electrical, mechatronic, mechanical, or controls system design

Instrumentation, sensors, signal conditioning, DAQ architecture

Controls integration and lab automation

High-voltage safety, interlocks, e-stops, fault handling

Calibration, uncertainty analysis, correlation, repeatability

Commissioning and troubleshooting complex systems

Root-cause analysis and structured problem solving

Python, LabVIEW, PLCs, or comparable automation tools

Experience

A bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Electrical, Mechatronics, Controls Engineering, or a closely related field, or equivalent demonstrated experience. Several years developing, commissioning, or improving complex test systems.

Relevant backgrounds: electric powertrains, dynamometers, aerospace test, automotive test, industrial automation, robotics, energy systems. Anywhere measurement quality and equipment reliability were treated as non-negotiable.

What success looks like in year one

The lab runs on standards you set, and people follow them because they trust your judgment, not because they were told to

Engineers make faster, better decisions because the data underneath them is credible

You've caught and fixed at least one recurring failure mode at the root, not just patched the symptom

Leadership relies on you to own the lab side of operations without needing to check in

You're still hands-on: in the room for commissioning, debugging, and the hard calls, not managing from a distance

Compensation and Benefits

US Salary Information

$91,000 - $239,000 Tau is committed to paying competitive compensation that is fair and equitable. Your experience, qualifications, training, critical skills, and/or business considerations determine your compensation. We also offer a comprehensive benefits package that may include an annual performance bonus, equity, and other incentive compensation plans considered part of Tau’s total compensation package. To learn more about our top-tier benefits, please visit www.taumotors.com . The level will depend on the candidate’s experience. Our ideal candidate exhibits a can-do attitude and approaches his or her work with vigor and determination. Candidates will be expected to demonstrate excellence in their respective fields and possess the ability to learn quickly within a fast-paced environment.

Perks

Become part of an emerging company during a rapid growth phase—within an industry undergoing dramatic transformation for a global imperative.

Work with some of the smartest and most talented experts from different fields to: (1) attack some of the most pressing issues of today while (2) contributing to technically demanding and deeply innovative solutions.

Growth potential—we advance team members who have an outsized impact.

Competitive compensation based upon experience level, including stock options—we believe in capturing value in the future we create together.

Flexible time off and paid holidays.

Centrally located in the Bay Area on the Peninsula in vibrant downtown Redwood City

Blocks from the Caltrain

Walking distance to food and entertainment

Easy access to both the 101 and 280

Excellent medical, dental, vision & life insurance

Comprehensive benefits including 401(k), HSA and FSA benefits, commuter benefits and more

Equal Opportunity Employer

Tau is an equal opportunity employer that guarantees a work environment that respects and values diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.

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