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Application Design Engineer Jobs in California (NOW HIRING)

Career Renew

Design Engineer

San Francisco, CA

$200K - $250K/yr

... application * Work closely with the founding team to shape product direction through the work ... The design engineer will be the person who answers it, setting conventions that the broader market ...

Belcan

Design Engineer

San Diego, CA

$145K - $170K/yr

Design Engineer Location: San Diego, CA Zip Code: 92123 Duration: 7 Months Pay Rate: $145k-$170k ... Demonstrated ability to make good decisions related to component design and application * Creative ...

AllSTEM Connections

Design Engineer

Valencia, CA · On-site

$99K/yr

Electromechanical Design Engineer (Automotive Systems) Role Overview We are seeking a versatile ... Prepare and release comprehensive drawing packages, ensuring accurate application of raw material ...

Northland Controls

Regional Design Engineer

Fremont, CA · On-site

$110K - $130K/yr

This role works closely with project managers, application engineers, CAD teams, and clients to ensure security solutions meet both customer requirements and Northland design standards. The Design ...

Northland Controls

Regional Design Engineer

Fremont, CA · Hybrid

This role works closely with project managers, application engineers, CAD teams, and clients to ensure security solutions meet both customer requirements and Northland design standards. The Design ...

Image Engineering

Mechanical Design Engineer

Valencia, CA · On-site

$77K - $104K/yr

Meet with clients and design teams to understand project application * Create 2D sketches or preliminary drawings to communicate initial concept design * Consult engineering and manufacturing ...

Image Engineering

Mechanical Design Engineer

Valencia, CA

$77K - $104K/yr

Meet with clients and design teams to understand project application * Create 2D sketches or preliminary drawings to communicate initial concept design * Consult engineering and manufacturing ...

Answer Consulting

Design Engineer

Burbank, CA

$57.69 - $62.50/hr

The employee is part of the Design Engineering Team and shall serve as a stress analysis and ... Significant application of concepts such as design to specification, design for manufacturing ...

Replit

Design Engineer

Foster City, CA · On-site

$180K - $290K/yr

With millions of users worldwide, Replit is democratizing software development by removing traditional barriers to application creation. About the role: We're seeking a Design Engineer to bridge the ...

Midi Health

Design Engineer

San Francisco, CA · On-site +1

$135K - $175K/yr

The Design Engineer will also own the setup and evolution of AI-enabled design workflows ... We will never ask for payment of any kind during the application or hiring process. If you receive ...

TAE

Design Engineer

Irvine, CA · On-site

We are applying science and engineering to design transformational technologies. Whether it ... the job application or interview process, perform essential job functions, and receive other ...

OMNIVISION

Analog Design Engineer

Santa Clara, CA

$110K - $140K/yr

We are looking for qualified Analog design engineers who have a good understanding of analog ... Collaborate with verification, process, test, and application engineers to debug, characterize and ...

OMNIVISION

Analog Design Engineer

Santa Clara, CA · On-site

$110K - $140K/yr

Description We are looking for qualified Analog design engineers who have a good understanding of ... Collaborate with verification, process, test, and application engineers to debug, characterize and ...

OMNIVISION

Analog Design Engineer

Irvine, CA · On-site

$110K - $150K/yr

Description We are looking for Image Sensor Analog Design Engineer for design and development of ... Collaborate with verification, process, test, and application engineers to debug, characterize and ...

OMNIVISION

Analog Design Engineer

Santa Clara, CA

We are looking for qualified Analog design engineers who have a good understanding of analog ... Collaborate with verification, process, test, and application engineers to debug, characterize and ...

OMNIVISION

Analog Design Engineer

Irvine, CA

We are looking for Image Sensor Analog Design Engineer for design and development of next ... Collaborate with verification, process, test, and application engineers to debug, characterize and ...

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All JobsApplication Design Engineer JobsApplication Design Engineer Jobs in California

Application Design Engineer information

See California salary details

$20

$56

$85

How much do application design engineer jobs pay per hour?

As of Jun 9, 2026, the average hourly pay for application design engineer in California is $56.97, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $41.54 and $72.36 per hour, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is the difference between Application Design Engineer vs Software Engineer?

AspectApplication Design EngineerSoftware Engineer
CredentialsBachelor's in Engineering, CAD or design certificationsBachelor's in Computer Science or related field, coding certifications
Work EnvironmentDesign labs, manufacturing settings, client sitesOffices, development labs, remote work
Industry UsageElectronics, automotive, industrial equipmentIT, software development, tech companies
Primary FocusDesigning and testing physical products and systemsWriting, testing, and maintaining software applications

Application Design Engineers focus on creating and testing physical product designs, often working with hardware and systems integration. Software Engineers primarily develop and maintain software applications. While both roles require technical skills and collaboration, their core responsibilities and work environments differ significantly, making this comparison useful for those exploring career options or job opportunities in engineering fields.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as an Application Design Engineer, and why are they important?

To thrive as an Application Design Engineer, you need a solid background in engineering principles, software development, and system design, usually supported by a degree in engineering or computer science. Familiarity with CAD software, simulation tools, and programming languages such as Python or C++ is typically required, along with certifications like Certified Systems Engineering Professional (CSEP) being advantageous. Strong problem-solving skills, creativity, and effective communication are essential soft skills for translating client needs into technical solutions and collaborating with cross-functional teams. These skills ensure that complex applications are designed efficiently, meet user requirements, and function reliably in real-world environments.

What are some common challenges faced by Application Design Engineers when working on custom solutions for clients?

Application Design Engineers often encounter challenges such as balancing client requirements with technical feasibility, managing tight deadlines, and ensuring seamless integration with existing systems. They must frequently adapt to evolving project scopes and navigate communication between cross-functional teams, including sales, development, and support. Strong problem-solving and collaboration skills are essential, as is the ability to clearly translate client needs into practical design specifications.

What are Application Design Engineers?

Application Design Engineers are professionals who develop, customize, and optimize technical solutions or products to meet specific client or industry needs. They work closely with customers, sales teams, and product development teams to ensure that applications perform efficiently and address user requirements. Their role often involves both engineering design tasks and application support, requiring a strong understanding of both product capabilities and customer use cases. They may also assist in troubleshooting, prototyping, and modifying existing systems to improve functionality.
What cities in California are hiring for Application Design Engineer jobs? Cities in California with the most Application Design Engineer job openings:
Application Design Engineer jobs near you
Infographic showing various Application Design Engineer job openings in California as of June 2026, with employment types broken down into 1% As Needed, 78% Full Time, 17% Part Time, and 4% Contract. Highlights an 87% Physical, 5% Hybrid, and 8% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $118,490 per year, or $57 per hour.

Design Engineer

Career Renew

San Francisco, CA

$200K - $250K/yr

Full-time

Posted 29 days ago

Job description

Career Renew is recruiting for one of its clients a Design Engineer - this is a hybrid role in San Francisco. Salary range: 200-250K USD yearly plus benefits plus equity.
We are a proactive assistant for client-facing professionals.

In just a few clicks, it connects with a user's email, calendar, meeting notes, CRM, and Slack to proactively automated repetitive workflows like auto-drafting email responses, updating the CRM with custom fields, and spin up an internal deal room on Slack.


Think of what Claude Code has done for software engineers – we are building that for client-facing professionals.

The role

We are evolving from a single-channel email product into a proactive AI assistant that operates across a user's full set of tools. This role sits at the centre of that transition. The design engineer will own the end-to-end user experience of how a person works alongside AI agents – how tasks are surfaced, prioritised, delegated, and reviewed.

This is a zero-to-one remit. There is no inherited design system to maintain or existing interface to iterate on. The person in this role will define the interaction patterns, visual language, and information architecture of a product category that does not yet have established conventions.

Day-to-day responsibilities

  • Own the full design and front-end build of core product surfaces – from initial concept through to shipped code

  • Define interaction models for human–agent collaboration: task handoff, progress visibility, agent output review, and prioritisation

  • Produce Figma designs and translate them directly into production React components, working within an Electron-based Mac application

  • Work closely with the founding team to shape product direction through the work itself, not through a handoff process

  • Establish and maintain a design standard that scales as the team grows

  • Move quickly through iteration cycles – prototyping, testing, and shipping in short loops

Scope and ownership

The design engineer will be the sole design function at the company. They will have complete ownership over the product's visual and interaction quality, working directly with the founders rather than within a layered design organisation. This requires both the ability to operate independently and the judgement to know when to push back, when to simplify, and when to move.

The most pressing near-term work is defining how users navigate and act across an agent-driven workspace – a problem that sits at the intersection of task management, ambient intelligence, and workflow design. This is the kind of problem that requires genuine product thinking, not only execution.

Requirements:

2 - 6 years of experience as a designer who can code or a frontend engineer with strong design sense (Mandatory)

Demonstrated track record as a design engineer (strong coder) or frontend engineer with immaculate design sense at a product-led growth company (Mandatory)

Experience at a well-designed productivity start-up (e.g., Superhuman, Notion, Airtable, Slack, Figma, Grammerly, Granola) (Nice-to-have)

Design school background (e.g. RISD, SCAD, Emily Carr) or CS degree (Nice-to-have)

Ability to ship frontend code (not just vibe code) and proficient in Figma / React (Mandatory)

Pragmatic and business-minded (not a pure artist) with a strong bias to action (Mandatory)

Background or demonstrated interest in productivity and workflow automation (e.g., thinking about how users present, prioritise, and collaborate with tasks and agents) (Mandatory)

Why you should join us

  • A genuinely unsolved design problem – we are evolving from an email-focused product into a proactive AI assistant that operates across a user's full set of tools. The central design question this raises – how should a person collaborate with AI agents across many tasks simultaneously – does not yet have an established answer in the industry. The design engineer will be the person who answers it, setting conventions that the broader market will likely follow.

  • Complete ownership from day one – This is the sole design function at the company. There is no design organisation to navigate, no approval chain, and no handoff process. The design engineer works directly with the founders and is making foundational decisions about the product from the outset. Crucially, this is not work that is abstracted from the end user – it is directly shaping the system that sits inside someone's working life. For a designer who wants to feel the impact of what they ship, that is a rare opportunity at any stage.

  • A rare moment to join – we've shipped a working product with real users, which means the canvas is not blank – but the most consequential design decisions have not yet been made. Joining now means being present for the transition from a backend-heavy MVP to a product where UX becomes the primary differentiator. That window does not stay open for long.

  • Working on the defining interface problem of the AI era – How humans prioritise, delegate to, and oversee AI agents is one of the most consequential UX questions of the next decade. This role sits at the centre of that question in a practical, daily way – not as an abstract research exercise, but as a live product with users depending on it. For a designer who wants their work to matter beyond the company they are at, the problem space itself is the opportunity.

  • Traction and backing – we've raised $7.8M from Kleiner Perkins and founders of Box and Dropbox, and already have paying users at companies including Avoca, Rho, xAI, and Brex who use the product daily. This is a company with real market validation behind it, not a pre-revenue bet.