FOUND · 13 hours ago
VP of Hardware Engineering
LA Metro Area
Full-time
Hybrid
Lead/Staff, Director/Executive
$150K/yr - $275K/yr
5+ years expFOUND is a high-growth technology company focused on building a next-generation, mobility-driven data platform. They are seeking a hands-on VP of Hardware Engineering to architect, prototype, and scale vehicle-based sensing and telemetry hardware, ensuring the development of a distributed IoT hardware platform that captures high-integrity mobility and environmental data.
Staffing & Recruiting
Hiring Manager
Franchesca Mueller
Responsibilities
Lead the development of a distributed IoT hardware platform operating across thousands of moving vehicles in uncontrolled, real-world environments
Own architecture decisions across embedded electronics, sensor selection and integration, edge processing and firmware, wireless communication and data transport, device lifecycle management, and manufacturing readiness
Design vehicle-deployable hardware platforms, including PCB architecture, component selection, and system integration
Develop embedded systems incorporating GNSS / GPS modules, IMU and motion sensors, optical or exposure detection sensors, environmental sensors, and communication modules
Define system power architecture, including battery design, regulation, and power optimization
Design devices to operate reliably across temperature, vibration, weather, and long-duration field deployment
Oversee or directly contribute to firmware development in C/C++ or Rust for embedded microcontrollers or edge processors
Implement real-time telemetry collection, buffering, and transmission logic
Develop device-side filtering, compression, and edge inference where applicable
Build OTA firmware update and remote configuration infrastructure
Establish secure device authentication, encryption, and provisioning workflows
Design communication strategies balancing bandwidth, reliability, and cost
Implement store-and-forward architectures for intermittent connectivity
Evaluate and implement messaging protocols (MQTT, WebSockets, custom streaming pipelines, etc.)
Optimize telemetry ingestion patterns for downstream analytics systems
Lead rapid hardware prototyping using evaluation boards, dev kits, and custom PCB iterations
Define test harnesses and field validation strategies
Build instrumentation and diagnostic tooling for hardware performance monitoring
Conduct environmental, durability, and lifecycle testing
Transition designs from prototype into manufacturable products
Work directly with contract manufacturers, ODMs, and component suppliers
Own BOM optimization, cost engineering, and component lifecycle planning
Define quality assurance, device certification, and compliance processes (FCC, CE, etc.)
Develop deployment tooling and device fleet lifecycle management strategies
Architect hardware-level and firmware-level security controls
Define secure boot, encrypted storage, and device identity management
Design failure recovery, health monitoring, and resilience systems
Build and mentor a small, highly technical hardware and firmware engineering team
Establish documentation, design review, and validation standards
Partner closely with software and data infrastructure teams to ensure clean telemetry integration
Maintain strong vendor, supplier, and manufacturing engineering relationships
Qualification
Required
5+ years building embedded or IoT hardware systems deployed at scale
Proven experience shipping hardware from early prototype through production manufacturing
Strong PCB design and electronics system integration background
Deep expertise in embedded firmware development (C/C++ or comparable low-level languages)
Experience with GNSS, telematics, or mobile sensing systems
Strong knowledge of wireless communication protocols and cellular modules
Experience designing power-efficient hardware for long-duration field deployment
Familiarity with device fleet management and OTA update systems
Direct experience working with contract manufacturers and hardware supply chains
Preferred
Automotive, fleet, or mobility hardware development
Optical sensing or exposure detection technologies
Edge compute or on-device inference
Geospatial or telemetry data systems
Proprietary or patent-driven hardware development
Scaling distributed IoT networks with thousands of deployed devices
Company
FOUND
Strategic hiring solutions for Family Offices, early-stage ventures, and growth-phase companies. Stop searching. Become FOUND.
2-10 employees
H1B Sponsorship
FOUND has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships. Please note that this does not
guarantee sponsorship for this specific role. Below presents additional info for your
reference. (Data Powered by US Department of Labor)
Distribution of Different Job Fields Receiving Sponsorship
Represents job field similar to this job
Trends of Total Sponsorships
2025 (1)
2024 (5)
2023 (2)
2022 (4)
2021 (1)
Funding
Current Stage
Early StageCompany data provided by crunchbase