Senior Mechanical Engineer

About Odin Dynamics

Founded in 2025, Odin Dynamics is a defense technology company building autonomous underwater vehicles that will define the next era of undersea warfare. We are focused on delivering capable, resilient autonomous systems that strengthen the strategic advantage of the United States and its allied navies. We move fast, build real hardware, and operate with the urgency that the mission demands.

We are building a new platform from the ground up. This is not a role where you will inherit a mature product with every architectural decision already made. You will take incomplete requirements, early hardware, and difficult technical constraints and turn them into dependable, production-ready autonomy systems.

We value rigorous engineering without unnecessary process. Decisions should be driven by physics, test data, and product outcomes—not inherited convention or documentation volume.

The Role

Odin Dynamics is hiring multiple Senior Mechanical Engineers to serve as Responsible Engineers for critical mechanical subsystems across our platform.

Each engineer will take primary technical ownership of one of five areas:

• Hull and hydrodynamics

• Structures and integration

• Mechanisms and actuation

• Battery and energy storage (mechanical)

• Propulsion (mechanical)

Candidates will apply to a common requisition, and Odin Dynamics will determine the best area of focus through the interview process. We are looking for engineers with deep expertise in at least one area who are also comfortable working across structures, hydrodynamics, mechanisms, thermal, materials, manufacturing, and test.

As the Responsible Engineer for your subsystem, you will own it throughout its lifecycle: requirements, architecture, detailed design, analysis, prototyping, integration, verification, field testing, production support, failure analysis, and continued improvement after deployment.

This is a hands‑on individual‑contributor position. You will be expected to produce substantial design and analysis work, make technical decisions, mentor other engineers, and remain accountable for the performance and reliability of your subsystem. There are no organizational handoffs when a difficult problem crosses the boundary between mechanical, electrical, and software domains.

What You’ll Do

• Serve as the Responsible Engineer for a major mechanical subsystem.

• Develop greenfield mechanical designs from initial requirements and architecture through field‑tested, production‑ready hardware.

• Produce detailed designs and complete assemblies in CAD, managing interfaces and integration across the vehicle.

• Perform structural, thermal, and fluid analyses—using both hand calculations and FEA—and apply the judgment to know which approach a problem needs.

• Select materials and design for the marine environment, accounting for pressure, corrosion, sealing, and long‑duration reliability.

• Design for manufacturing, working directly with machine shops, fabrication partners, and internal technicians to ensure designs translate cleanly from CAD to production.

• Bring up, assemble, and validate hardware on the bench, in test fixtures, and in the water.

• Define mechanical interfaces and coordinate closely with electrical, firmware, and software engineers to ensure clean cross‑disciplinary integration.

• Develop and execute test plans for your subsystem, from component‑level validation through full‑vehicle pressure testing and ocean trials.

• Support production, investigate failures on deployed hardware, and own corrective improvements throughout the product lifecycle.

• Produce concise, functional engineering documentation that enables fabrication, assembly, testing, operation, and future development.

• Use AI‑assisted design and analysis tools to accelerate work while independently validating outputs and maintaining a first‑principles understanding of the resulting system.

• Mentor other engineers and contribute to technical reviews without moving away from hands‑on engineering.

Areas of Focus

Hull and Hydrodynamics

The Hull Responsible Engineer will own the external vehicle form and the primary pressure boundary, including:

• Hull and fairing geometry design

• Pressure boundary design and analysis, including structural margin, buckling, and fatigue

• Sealing strategies and penetrator interfaces

• Material selection for pressure‑loaded and corrosive environments

• Vehicle‑body hydrodynamic performance, including drag, stability, and flow interaction over the hull

• Depth qualification and pressure‑cycle testing

• Trade studies balancing performance, manufacturability, and packaging

• Coordination with controls and propulsion on vehicle dynamics

• Verification, field testing, production support, and failure investigation

Structures and Integration

The Structures Responsible Engineer will own the load‑bearing and integration structures that are not part of the primary pressure boundary, including:

• Nose cone, payload bay, and secondary structure design

• Sensor and payload mounting and integration

• Internal component packaging, racks, and mounting structures

• Load path design, vibration, and shock considerations

• Tolerance analysis and interface management across subsystems

• Material selection and design for the marine environment

• Verification, field testing, production support, and failure investigation

Mechanisms and Actuation

The Mechanisms Responsible Engineer will own the moving systems of the vehicle, including:

• Design of mechanisms and actuated subsystems, including control surfaces and payload deployment

• Actuator selection, integration, and motion design

• Tolerance analysis, kinematics, and load path design

• Sealing and reliability of moving systems in the marine environment

• Integration with electrical and control systems

• Validation through bench, fixture, and in‑water testing

• Verification, field testing, production support, and failure investigation

Battery and Energy Storage (Mechanical)

The Battery Responsible Engineer will own the mechanical design of the energy storage system, including:

• Battery pack mechanical architecture and enclosure design

• Cell and module packaging, structure, and retention

• Thermal management and heat‑path design at the pack level

• Sealing, pressure tolerance, and environmental protection of the pack

• Structural integration of the pack into the vehicle

• Mechanical safety and abuse‑tolerance considerations

• Design for manufacturing and assembly of the pack

• Coordination with power electronics and battery‑management engineers on integration

• Verification, field testing, production support, and failure investigation

Propulsion (Mechanical)

The Propulsion Responsible Engineer will own the mechanical design of the thrust‑producing system, including:

• Propulsor design, including blade geometry and propeller hydrodynamics for thrust generation

• Shaft, bearing, and dynamic rotating seal design

• Mechanical and thermal integration of the motor into the vehicle

• Drivetrain layout and propulsor‑to‑hull integration

• Reliability and wear life of rotating machinery in the marine environment

• Coordination with electrical engineers on motor electromagnetic design and power electronics, and with embedded engineers on motor‑control firmware

• Verification, field testing, production support, and failure investigation

What We’re Looking For

• Deep practical expertise in at least one of: hull and hydrodynamics, structures and integration, mechanisms and actuation, battery mechanical design, or propulsion.

• Sufficient familiarity with adjacent mechanical domains to collaborate across subsystem boundaries.

• Strong CAD proficiency and experience managing complex assemblies across multi‑disciplinary teams.

• Strong analytical skills across FEA and hand calculations, with sound engineering judgment about when to use each.

• Demonstrated ability to design for manufacturing—you know how parts get made and you design accordingly.

• Hands‑on experience with prototyping, assembly, and test—you are comfortable in a shop and on a dock.

• Experience reading and producing engineering drawings, defining tolerances, and managing interfaces.

• Experience designing for demanding physical environments, accounting for factors such as pressure, thermal, vibration, corrosion, or long‑duration reliability as relevant to your specialization.

• Demonstrated ability to work from first principles, make progress with incomplete information, and rapidly iterate between design, analysis, fabrication, and test.

• Ability to work independently with minimal oversight while collaborating closely across engineering disciplines.

• Willingness to support field testing and sea trials when required.

• U.S. citizenship and eligibility to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance.

Approximately five or more years of relevant mechanical engineering experience is preferred, but demonstrated technical depth, multidisciplinary problem‑solving ability, and a record of delivering difficult systems matter more than a specific number of years. Exceptional candidates at any experience level are encouraged to apply.

Preferred Experience

• Developing safety‑critical, mission‑critical, or high‑reliability products.

• Taking a mechanical system from a blank sheet through multiple design, analysis, test, and refinement cycles into production or operational deployment.

• Underwater vehicles, marine systems, UAVs, robotics, aerospace, automotive, or other tightly integrated electromechanical products.

• Design for pressure‑loaded or submerged environments.

• Corrosion engineering and material compatibility in seawater environments.

• Battery pack mechanical, thermal, or enclosure design for demanding applications.

• Rotating machinery, propulsor or propeller design, shaft sealing, or drivetrain integration.

• Composite structures or advanced manufacturing methods.

• Environmental qualification testing, including shock, vibration, pressure cycling, and thermal extremes.

• Establishing or extending mechanical test and qualification environments.

$140,000 - $220,000 a year

At Odin Dynamics, we offer competitive salaries benchmarked against the defense and robotics industries, meaningful early‑stage equity, and benefits that cover the essentials — full covered health, dental, vision; 401(k); and paid time off.

We invest in professional development and support our people in growing their skills alongside the company. We tie compensation to the impact you have, not your title. As we grow, our compensation and benefits will grow with us. We're building this company alongside the people who join it, and we believe everyone here should share in what we build together.

Disclosures

This position may require access to information protected under U.S. export control laws and regulations, including the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) and the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). Please note that any offer for employment may be conditioned on authorization to receive software or technology controlled under these U.S. export control laws and regulations without sponsorship for an export license.

Odin Dynamics, Inc. participates in E-Verify and will provide the federal government with your Form I-9 information to confirm that you are authorized to work in the U.S.

Odin Dynamics is an equal opportunity employer committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace. All qualified applicants will be treated with respect and receive equal consideration for employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, uniform service, Veteran status, age, or any other protected characteristic per federal, state, or local law, including those with a criminal history, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws.