Tesla Physics Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Location: Central Texas (Greater Austin region)
The client is a defense-grade advanced manufacturer, automating heavy-industrial production for critical
U.S. infrastructure. Our first facility will produce Large Power Transformers (≥100 MVA, 34.5 kV-765 kV class),
delivering the precision, reliability, and speed required to strengthen and expand America's grid. We are building the
first automated LPT manufacturing platform in the United States uniting modern robotics and digital twin design to
meet growing demand for transformer production and deployment.
Job Description:
The Chief Technology Officer is a founding executive responsible for defining and owning Terminus'
full technology stack-from transformer design software and digital twins to factory automation, controls, data systems,
and AI-driven optimization. This role unifies product engineering, manufacturing automation, and software under a
single technical vision. The CTO is accountable for turning first-principles transformer physics and manufacturing
processes into a scalable, software-defined production platform ("FOUNDATION OS") that enables rapid design
iteration, automated fabrication, closed-loop testing, and continuous improvement. This role is foundational to
Terminus' ability to: (i) Achieve step-change reductions in LPT lead times; (ii) Automate traditionally manual
heavy-industrial processes; (iii) Scale output without linear headcount growth; and (iv) Establish a durable,
technology-based moat versus incumbents.
Key Responsibilities:
- Technical Leadership & Execution: Build and lead teams across automation, controls, applied software, and
advanced manufacturing; Set technical standards, development velocity, and system-level accountability; Act
as final technical decision-maker for factory and product technology choices
- Technology Strategy & Architecture: Lead development of the internal LPT design and manufacturing platform
(parametric electrical, mechanical, thermal, and dielectric models); Own integration of CAD/CAE, BOM
generation, routing, work instructions, and cost models; Ensure closed-loop feedback between design,
production, and test results; Design the end-to-end technical architecture spanning design software, digital
twins, factory automation, robotics, controls, data infrastructure, and analytics; Own the long-term technology
roadmap aligned to product, factory scale-up, and regulatory requirements; Translate transformer physics,
standards, and manufacturing constraints into software-native systems
- Product-Manufacturing Integration, Factory Automation, & Industrial Controls: Ensure transformer designs are
natively optimized for automated manufacturing; Partner with Product Engineering to standardize
architectures, modules, and interfaces; Drive Design-for-Automation and Design-for-Test across all products
- Architect and deploy automation across winding, core assembly, insulation, tank fabrication, drying, oil filling,
and test operations; Define standards for PLCs, robotics, sensors, machine vision, and industrial networks;
Ensure automation systems meet reliability, safety, and inspectability requirements
- Manufacturing Data & Optimization: Define machine-level and process-level data capture required for yield,
quality, and throughput optimization; Apply modeling, simulation, and ML techniques to loss reduction, defect
prevention, and cycle-time compression; Enable real-time visibility into production and test performance;
Implement end-to-end architecture spanning transformer design tools, digital twins, automation, controls, and
production data systems; Translate transformer physics and manufacturing processes into software-native,
scalable systems
- External Technical Interface: Represent Terminus' manufacturing and product technology with utilities,
regulators, national labs, and strategic partners; Support technical diligence with investors and federal
stakeholders; Evaluate and integrate third-party manufacturing technologies where advantageous
Required Qualifications:
- 12-20+ years in advanced manufacturing, industrial automation, robotics, or complex electromechanical
systems; with at least 5 years of experience leading teams in an innovative, fast-paced environment
- Proven experience building software-defined production systems or highly automated factories and track
record of taking complex systems from concept to production scale
- Hands-on experience with industrial controls, robotics, or high-throughput automated lines
- Prior CTO, VP Engineering, or equivalent senior technical leadership role in a scaling company with
experience operating in regulated, safety-critical, or infrastructure-grade environments, power systems,
transformers, grid infrastructure, aerospace, defense, or semiconductor manufacturing (ex - SpaceX, Tesla,
Anduril)