Mechatronics Engineer, Maneva, IL, US

About Maneva Maneva, a startup founded by an ex-Google Deepmind researcher, is an AI service provider revolutionizing manufacturing operations with cutting-edge AI solutions for autonomous factory operation and optimization. Our solution generates AI-powered actions and insights using off-the-shelf hardware or existing vision systems for real-impact manufacturing problems in products and equipment inspection, production efficiency, safety, and more.

What You'll Do As a Mechatronics Engineer at Maneva, you'll be the full-stack technical leader driving the complete integration of AI-powered systems into manufacturing environments. You will design, install, and integrate machine vision systems from the ground up — enabling manufacturers to identify defects (like imperfect chocolate bars) and optimize operations using Maneva's technology. Beyond hardware integration, you'll own, execute, and maintain the entire production software implementation, serving as the bridge between cutting-edge AI algorithms and real-world manufacturing applications.

This role demands expertise across mechanical, electrical, and software domains. You'll travel to manufacturing sites, embed yourself into operations, and own full-cycle deployments that span hardware design, software development, system integration, and ongoing maintenance. From vision setup and PLC integration to deploying AI models and maintaining production software stacks, you will make our AI come alive on the line.

Travel: Up to 50% (35%+ in territory, 15%+ out-of-territory), including travel to the U.S

Key Responsibilities

• Take project ownership and architect end-to-end customer projects from design proposal through implementation and ongoing software maintenance, ensuring seamless integration of hardware and software systems
• Design and orchestrate AI vision system implementations by analyzing application requirements and generating hardware BOM for camera, lens, lighting, and compute component sourcing
• Develop, deploy, and maintain production software applications on Linux-based edge devices, including AI inference pipelines, image processing workflows, and system monitoring solutions
• Design and integrate AI vision systems with PLCs and existing industrial automation infrastructure, implementing robust software interfaces for real-time communication and control
• Communicate regularly with customers and internal stakeholders throughout the entire project lifecycle, providing technical leadership on both hardware and software aspects
• Deploy and maintain containerized applications using Docker, manage software updates, and ensure system reliability in production environments
• Navigate onsite networking, configure edge computing infrastructure, and implement secure, scalable software architectures
• Design signal integration and wiring for communication with sensors, I/O, and control systems while developing corresponding software drivers and interfaces
• Implement and maintain AI model deployment pipelines, including data preprocessing, real-time inference, and post-processing workflows using computer vision and machine learning frameworks
• Support plant walk-throughs and site assessments to identify high-impact AI use cases in the pre-sales process, providing technical expertise on both feasibility and implementation approaches
• Provide onsite support for data collection efforts in live production environments and develop software tools for training data management and model iteration
• Troubleshoot complex hardware-software integration issues and rapidly iterate on deployments based on real-world operational results
• Deliver comprehensive training to plant operators and managers on both system operation and software interfaces
• Document deployment configurations, software architectures, system performance metrics, and maintain technical documentation for internal use and customer value stories