What the work involves

This is a bench role, not a desk role. You'll be handed a test protocol and a physical sub-assembly — an actuator, a joint module, a wiring harness, a sensor mount — and asked to run it through functional and reliability sequences until it behaves unexpectedly or passes. Expect repeated setup, instrumentation, operation, and teardown cycles, with DAQ systems and standard measurement instruments (multimeters, oscilloscopes, force gauges, thermal probes) used according to written procedure rather than improvised.

The output that actually matters is the record. Every run produces a written log: what the protocol called for, what you did, what the instruments read, and — critically — any anomaly, with enough description that an engineer who wasn't in the room can reconstruct it. Anomaly write-ups are where most of the value sits. "It failed" is unusable; "at 43 minutes into cycle 3, the elbow joint began stalling intermittently at roughly 60% of commanded torque, with a repeating tick audible at the start of each stall, ambient 24°C" is the kind of record that trains a model and helps a root-cause investigation. You'll also sit with engineers to talk through what you saw and flag where the protocol itself is ambiguous or missing a step.

What the screen looks for

micro1's screening is AI-led and conversational. It probes whether you have actually touched test equipment — expect follow-ups on how you'd wire up a DAQ channel, what you'd check before trusting a reading, how you'd distinguish a genuine part failure from a fixture or instrumentation artifact. It also tests procedural discipline: whether you follow a protocol as written when it disagrees with your instinct, and what you do when the protocol is silent. Degree progress in mechanical, electrical, robotics, or mechatronics engineering is preferred but the screen weighs demonstrated hands-on comfort over credentials, and no AI or ML background is expected.

Logistics

  • On-site in San Francisco — this role cannot be done remotely, since the hardware is physical.
  • Contractor engagement, hourly. Observed band is $10–20/hr; rate is set by the platform and not guaranteed.
  • Hours are generally scheduled around lab availability rather than fully async. Expect shifts rather than open-ended flexible blocks.
  • Physically demanding in a mild way: standing, lifting sub-assemblies, repeated rig setup and teardown.
  • Open to students and recent grads alongside experienced technicians.