Based in Berkeley, CA, UPSIDE Foods grows meat, poultry, and seafood directly from animal cells. These products are not vegan or vegetarian—they are delicious meat, made without the need to raise and slaughter billions of animals. In a historic first, UPSIDE Foods received regulatory approval to sell its product in the US in June 2023.

Founded as the world’s first cultivated meat company in 2015, UPSIDE Foods (formerly Memphis Meats) has achieved numerous industry-defining milestones, including being the first company to produce multiple species of meat (beef, chicken, and duck). The company believes that people shouldn’t have to choose between the foods they love and a thriving planet, and is working to build a better food system with access to delicious, humane, and sustainable meat, poultry, and seafood. UPSIDE Foods has won various industry awards, including New York Times’ Good Tech Awards, FastCo’s Next Big Thing in Tech, and the Best and Brightest Companies to Work For in the Nation by the National Association for Business Resources. UPSIDE Foods has raised a total of $608 million, including from the Abu Dhabi Growth Fund (ADG), Baillie Gifford, Bill Gates, Cargill, John Doerr, John Mackey, Kimbal and Christiana Musk, Norwest, Richard Branson, Softbank, Temasek, Threshold, Tyson Foods, and others.

About this job

UPSIDE Foods is building novel cultivation systems to enable massive scalability of cell-based meat production. We are seeking an experienced mechanical engineering team leader with both technical depth and creative vision to lead a team capable of rapid ideation, design, fabrication and testing of novel cultivator prototypes. The mechanical engineering team works collaboratively with the bioprocess development team to define the system requirements and evaluate the performance of novel prototypes, all within the context of the overall company’s near and long-term goals. There is a massive white space of engineering design ahead in this emerging field to be explored. We are looking for a creative and enthusiastic engineer and leader who enjoys hands-on work to be a key addition to our growing team.

Responsibilities include

Leading a functional team of mechanical engineers to deliver novel and effective process equipment solutions for meat production
Managing timelines and plans for new equipment from development through delivery
Review, editing and approval of designs and strategies for improving manufacturability
Determining best manufacturing options for equipment designs
Mentoring career growth of the mechanical engineering team
Managing and distributing work within the mechanical engineering team
Representing the work and strategies of the mechanical eng. team to the larger organization

About you

College or graduate degree in a scientific or technical discipline and 12+ years of relevant work experience including design, prototyping, manufacturing and testing of novel industrial equipment
5+ years of experience managing the work of a team of 3 or more people
Experience managing outside vendors and contractors, including international manufacturers
Able to estimate and provide scheduling for upcoming work
Prototyping experience and/or familiarity
Large scale manufacturing processes (CNC, injection molding etc) experience and/or familiarity
Metal working process experience (welding, stamping, forming etc)
Experience designing and fabricating systems for food and/or bio processing
Experience with computational fluid dynamics, finite element analysis and thermal analysis software(s)
Demonstrated ability to come with novel solutions to difficult problems
Can-do attitude and thrives in ambiguity

Who you’ll work with

The mechanical engineering team participates in most technical functions at the company, working with everyone from early-stage science teams to manufacturing teams at our production facility.
This role will most frequently interact with our bioprocess teams and is a great opportunity to help scale technologies from benchtop to production.

Key Contributions in First Year

Leading a team to scale next-generation hygienic equipment
Establish strategy and vendor relations for high volume manufacturing
Work with internal customers to identify testing and process improvements

Compensation Range: $115,500 - $200,000*
*Pay may vary depending on factors including job-related knowledge and skills.

UPSIDE Benefits!

Stock options for all full-time incoming team members!
90-100% employer-paid healthcare premiums for team members (medical [including HSA and FSA], dental, and vision)
Pet insurance for your furry family members!
Unlimited PTO
DE&I (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion) Council and People Engagement Programs
Company-sponsored learning & development opportunities

UPSIDE Foods is an equal opportunity employer and we value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. Our company-wide mission is to create a product for everyone, so we are deeply committed to having teams and leaders that reflect this mission.

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