Senior Mechanical Engineer/Industrial Designer & Upside Robotics

Who Is Upside Robotics & How Are They Changing the World

Upside Robotics is transforming modern agriculture with AI-powered, autonomous field robots that deliver water and nutrients directly to plant roots; cutting fertilizer waste, improving yields, and reducing environmental impact. Founded in Kitchener-Waterloo, they’re backed by world-class investors and already partnering with Ontario farms to prove what sustainable, high-efficiency farming looks like in practice. They’re deploying real machines in real fields and preparing for the next phase of manufacturing scale.

How Will I Make An Impact?

As Senior Mechanical Engineer / Industrial Designer, you’ll own the evolution of Upside’s physical robot platform as it moves from proven field prototypes to scalable, manufacturable products.

This role is about industrializing reality: mud, vibration, corrosion, UV exposure, and operators who aren’t engineers. You’ll design systems that are durable, serviceable, cost-aware, and ready for volume production.

You’ll work closely with autonomy, electrical, and data teams to ensure mechanical design enables reliable operation, efficient manufacturing, and long-term field performance.

You’ll play a critical role in taking Upside from:

• Low-volume builds → hundreds of units
• Hundreds → thousands
• And ultimately into mass-manufacturable systems

What you’ll do:

• Lead mechanical and industrial design for next-generation autonomous field robots
• Redesign and refine existing systems for manufacturability, cost, reliability, and serviceability
• Own DFM/DFA decisions across structural components, enclosures, fluid systems, and mounting hardware
• Design for harsh agricultural environments (dust, moisture, chemicals, vibration, temperature swings)
• Drive cost-down initiatives and BOM optimization as production volume increases
• Produce production-ready CAD, drawings, and documentation
• Partner with suppliers and contract manufacturers on prototype builds, first articles, and ramp-up
• Improve assembly flow, maintenance access, and field repair through thoughtful industrial design
• Support field testing and iterate quickly based on real-world failure modes

How Do I Know If This Is For Me?

• You’ve taken designs into manufacturing and seen what breaks at scale
• You build things for fun; your garage, basement, or workshop is full of projects
• You enjoy rethinking designs when manufacturing constraints change
  
• You want to be hands-on while shaping long-term product direction
• You’re excited by the idea of helping a company grow from hundreds to thousands of physical products
• You want ownership over a real, deployed product, not just components

Our Ideal Candidate Looks Like:

You’ll thrive here if you bring:

• Proven experience taking mechanical designs into manufacturing
• Exposure to medium- or high-volume production (thousands of units)
• Strong understanding of DFM/DFA and production tradeoffs
• Hands-on mechanical background with real-world build experience

Backgrounds that could have exciting parallels:

• Automotive or automotive-adjacent manufacturing
• Industrial robotics or automation (e.g., factory robots, material handling)
• Aviation-adjacent industries (ground equipment, automated systems)
• Companies building complex electromechanical products at scale

Manufacturing experience such as the following is a strong plus:

• Stamping, forming, hemming
• Laser welding or robotic welding
• High-volume assembly systems

Location and Working Model: 

This role is based in Kitchener-Waterloo. The team works together in-office at least 4 days per week during the off-season. From May through October, you’ll also spend regular time in the field at farms across Ontario (Owen Sound → Sarnia corridor).

Because agriculture is seasonal and weather-driven:

• Hours are less predictable in the growing season. Sunny days mean long days in the field; rainy days mean downtime.
• Off-season (Nov–Apr) looks more like a standard 9–5 schedule focused on architecture, simulation and readiness. 
• You should genuinely enjoy being outdoors - walking fields, troubleshooting robots, and seeing your code impact crops! 

We understand, accept, and value the differences between people of different backgrounds, genders, sexual orientations, ages, beliefs, and abilities. We are happy to make any accommodations you may need throughout the interview process.  We aim to create an inclusive environment and encourage diverse individuals to apply.

The Process:

• Screening conversation with Carly at Artemis Canada
• Intro conversation with the CEO (values, culture, motivation)
• Technical deep dive (design decisions, past products, manufacturing experience)
• Practical design or review session
• Final meeting (onsite/shop/field visit, where possible)

Your Artemis Canada partner, Carly,  will work closely with you throughout every step of the process.

We’d love to hear from you - even if you don’t meet 100% of the requirements! Send a note to Carly@artemiscanada.com if you or someone you know is interested!