Hardware Engineer Jobs in San Francisco, CA
Hardware Engineer jobs in San Francisco are in strong demand, concentrated in SoMa, Mission Bay, and the Financial District across semiconductor design, consumer electronics, and deep tech hardware startups. Employers hiring right now include OpenAI, oura, and Wing. Find a role that fits below and apply directly.
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Meter builds networking hardware that businesses depend on to stay connected. Our products need to work flawlessly in the field, and delivering them requires tight coordination across engineering, manufacturing, and supply chain. We are building the next generation of Meter hardware, and this role sits at the center of that execution.
We are hiring a Hardware Engineer to drive the development of our hardware from concept through mass production. This role is not just about tracking timelines; it’s about owning the end-to-end execution of complex programs, aligning cross-functional teams, and ensuring that every detail—from system architecture to manufacturing readiness—is thoughtfully planned and delivered.
You will work closely with our JDM partners and internal teams to translate ideas into shipped products, balancing speed, quality, and performance.
Your work will directly shape how reliably and efficiently we bring new hardware to market, helping us scale our product portfolio while maintaining the high standards our customers expect.
What success looks like
Champion the delivery of world-class hardware: You will take pride in driving hardware programs from initial concept through every milestone (EVT/DVT/PVT) to a flawless production launch, consistently hitting your targets with precision.
Bring clarity to complex challenges: You thrive in the complex and exciting world of hardware development, using your technical expertise and sharp communication skills to turn complex programs into clear, actionable timelines. You love fostering a culture of ownership across our internal teams and JDM partners.
Unite and empower cross-functional teams: You act as the heartbeat of the project, ensuring our firmware, mechanical, supply chain, and operations teams are perfectly aligned, unblocked, and empowered to make swift, high-impact decisions.
Master the art of proactive problem-solving: You have a "get-it-done" mindset, identifying risks and evaluating tradeoffs early to clear the path for success. You anticipate challenges and drive solutions that protect the schedule, cost, and peak performance of our hardware.
Build the best: You are joining a team that refuses to settle for anything less than excellence—you will be instrumental in shipping the most advanced, industry-leading networking hardware on the market.
What your day-to-day will look like
You won’t just be managing spreadsheets—you’ll be at the heart of our hardware ecosystem, surrounded by the very tech we’re pioneering. Your day-to-day is a blend of high-level strategy and deep-dive technical problem solving.
Own the Lifecycle: You’ll be the pulse of our hardware programs, driving execution from the first EVT prototype through DVT and PVT with a relentless focus on hitting milestones without compromising quality.
Bridge the Gap with JDM Partners: Act as our primary technical voice with JDM partners, collaborating on everything from core system architecture and requirements to the nitty-gritty of build schedules.
Champion the "How" and "When": You’ll lead program reviews that people actually look forward to—surfacing risks early, smashing through blockers, and ensuring everyone on the team knows exactly where the goalposts are.
The Ultimate Collaborator: You’ll work shoulder-to-shoulder with mechanical and firmware engineers, diving into design reviews and validation plans to ensure our hardware is as robust as it is innovative.
Operational Orchestration: From supply chain to deployment, you’ll sync with our operations teams to ensure we aren’t just building a great product, but that we’re ready to manufacture and scale it seamlessly.
Get Into the Weeds: You’re never "too senior" to help. Whether it’s a late-night schematic review, a critical component decision, or debugging a stubborn build issue on the factory floor, you’re ready to jump in.
Global Travel: You’ll travel to Taiwan to collaborate in person with world-class manufacturing and design teams, turning ideas on a paper or screen into reality.
Who you are
We are searching for someone who wants to do the most ambitious work of their career. This is what makes you the best fit for our team:
You take an incredible amount of pride in doing great work and building lasting hardware
You have a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related technical field
You are comfortable reading schematics, understanding PCB layout fundamentals, and engaging in system architecture discussions and tradeoffs
You have a solid understanding of the hardware development process (design, bring-up, validation, and manufacturing)
You are highly organized and detail-oriented, able to track multiple workstreams and keep programs moving forward
You take ownership of your work and proactively follow through on open issues, risks, and dependencies
You’re comfortable working with external partners (JDM/suppliers/vendors) and learning how to manage them effectively
You are curious, detail-oriented, and open to feedback
You communicate your ideas clearly and work well across disciplines
You enjoy prototyping, testing, and refining designs through interaction
Why Meter?
The internet runs the world. Every purchase you make, video call you join, it's all packets flowing through networks. But those networks haven’t changed for decades. They’re brittle, complex, and surprisingly hard to set up in an enterprise space.
We started Meter to build better networks. We had to build everything from the ground-up: designing and building our own enterprise hardware, intuitive software, and streamlined operations to deliver great outcomes for our customers. Today, we build and deploy these networks at scale. Ambitious companies and enduring institutions like Bridgewater, Lyft, Reddit, rely on Meter to keep their thousands of employees and locations online and productive.
Our bet with Meter is simple: we will all use the internet more than we do today. We believe we have the definitive networking stack in place to enable business to do so as seamlessly and reliably as any modern utility.
Compensation
The estimated base salary for this role is between $145,000 - $250,000
Additionally, this role is eligible to participate in Meter's equity plan.
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Find Hardware Engineer JobsHardware Engineer Job Market in San Francisco
Who's Hiring
- OpenAI92

- oura55

- Wing37

- Astranis37

- DoorDash37

Top Industries Hiring
- Technology & Software73
- Science & Research55
- Aerospace & Defense18
Hardware Engineer Jobs in San Francisco: Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get a hardware engineer job in San Francisco?
San Francisco's hardware market centers on consumer electronics, semiconductor IP, and deep tech startups, with most roles concentrated in SoMa, Mission Bay, and Dogpatch. Targeting early-stage hardware companies and established chipmakers in those districts gives you the strongest pipeline. Candidates with hands-on experience in FPGA design, embedded systems, or PCB layout stand out, and a portfolio of shipped hardware products carries significant weight with San Francisco hiring teams.
Which companies hire hardware engineers in San Francisco?
Companies currently hiring hardware engineers in San Francisco include OpenAI, oura, and Wing, per current listings on Migrate Mate as of September 2026. San Francisco draws a mix of consumer electronics firms, semiconductor startups, and robotics companies, giving hardware engineers a broad range of employer types to target.
Are there remote hardware engineer jobs in San Francisco?
Yes, though remote work is less common for hardware engineers than for purely software-focused roles, since many positions require hands-on lab work, prototype testing, or access to specialized equipment. About 67% of hardware engineer openings tied to San Francisco are remote or hybrid as of September 2026, and those tend to be firmware, verification, or hardware architecture roles that rely more on digital tooling than physical bench work.
How can I get a hardware engineer job in San Francisco with little or no experience?
The most realistic entry path in San Francisco is through hardware-focused startups in SoMa and Mission Bay, which often hire junior engineers for prototype and bring-up work that larger companies outsource. Entry-level roles in PCB bring-up, hardware test engineering, or embedded firmware give you direct exposure to full product cycles. Building a project portfolio, contributing to open-source hardware projects, and connecting with San Francisco's dense network of hardware-focused incubators and meetups all improve your chances noticeably.
Which industries hire the most hardware engineers in San Francisco?
San Francisco hardware engineer roles concentrate in Technology & Software, Science & Research, and Aerospace & Defense, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of September 2026. San Francisco's density of consumer electronics companies, semiconductor IP firms, and robotics startups drives consistent hardware hiring across those sectors throughout the year.
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