Chief Engineer - MV Switchgear

About Fluidstack

We exist to make humanity more free. For most of human history, you farmed or you starved. Technology gave people more time for the things they wanted to do, instead of things they had to do. Powerful AI will be the biggest lever for human choice we've ever built - but only if models are aligned with what humanity actually wants. There are groups building AI who don't share these goals. Whoever deploys frontier compute infrastructure fastest will decide whether AI expands human freedom or shrinks it.

We're singularly focused on delivering 10 to 100s of GWs of compute faster than anyone else, rethinking every layer of the stack. We acquire power, design and build data centers, and operate them - with teams spanning hardware and software. Speed and scale are our key differentiators. Come be a part of building civilization-scale infrastructure for AI.

We hire people who care deeply about this problem space. If that is you, please apply!

How We Operate

• Be a barrel. Full autonomy. Own things end to end, take on scope without being asked, no permission required to operate outside your core role.

• Insane urgency. We drive everything forward as fast as possible.

• Reason from first principles. Challenge every assumption. Zero analogy thinking, no egos, the best idea wins.

• Love of the game. The frontier of AI is the most interesting problem of our time. We put in long hours at high intensity to push the frontier forward.

• Build something that actually matters. If you're going to spend your time, spend it on something that matters to the world.

The Electrical Equipment Team

You'll join the product engineering group that designs the electrical equipment inside Fluidstack's data centers: medium-voltage switchgear, low-voltage switchboards and busway, and the prefabricated electrical skids and e-houses that carry them to site. We specify and design this equipment as products, not one-off procurements, so the same designs repeat across gigawatt-scale campuses and arrive on a schedule the build can hold.

Examples of key problems the team is working on

• Standardizing medium-voltage switchgear lineups so that long-lead orders can be placed before a site's final electrical design is complete.

• Qualifying second and third sources for switchgear, breakers, and protection relays without reopening the design each time.

• Holding arc-flash, short-circuit, and coordination margins across equipment from different vendors.

• Turning field and commissioning findings into design changes that reach the next production lot.

Role Scope

• Own the medium-voltage switchgear product. Define the standard lineups, ratings, and configurations Fluidstack buys, and hold vendors to them.

• Run the technical specification. Write and maintain the switchgear specifications, including bus ratings, breaker duty, protection and metering, arc-resistant construction, and interface requirements to transformers and e-houses.

• Lead vendor engineering. Review vendor drawings, run factory acceptance tests, and close technical exceptions before release to manufacture.

• Drive protection coordination. Deliver the short-circuit and coordination studies for the medium-voltage system and set relay settings the commissioning team can apply.

• Feed the roadmap. Bring emerging switchgear technology, including solid-state and higher-voltage options, into the product roadmap with cost and schedule cases.

What We're Looking For

The below is a starting point. We always make space for exceptional people, so if you don't fit this role exactly, tell us where you would.

• 15+ years of electrical engineering on medium-voltage switchgear, either at an equipment manufacturer or specifying and commissioning it for mission-critical facilities.

• Hands-on with metal-clad and metal-enclosed switchgear, vacuum circuit breakers, protection relays, and arc-resistant designs.

• You have run short-circuit, arc-flash, and coordination studies in ETAP, SKM, or equivalent and set relays from them.

• Working knowledge of IEEE C37, IEC 62271, and NEC requirements for medium-voltage installations.

• You have reviewed vendor submittals and run factory acceptance tests, and you know which exceptions matter.

• You write specifications that a vendor can bid without a meeting.

• You're comfortable with regular travel: expect 25% or more, depending on business needs.

• Most of our engineering team, stakeholders, and work are based in Austin, TX, and we value working in person. We have a strong preference for Austin and run a hybrid model, but we're open to other locations for the right role and candidate.

• Bonus: Professional Engineer license. Experience with switchgear for high-density compute loads. Exposure to solid-state breakers or medium-voltage DC.

Physical Requirements

• Work in non-climate-controlled environments, including active construction areas, data halls, electrical and mechanical rooms, and outdoor spaces. Temperatures can be high or low, and conditions can be humid, loud or dusty.

• Lift, carry, push and pull up to 40 pounds on your own.

• Sit, stand, walk, kneel, bend and crouch for long periods, including full shifts on your feet.

• Wear the required personal protective equipment (PPE), such as hard hats, safety glasses, steel-toed boots, gloves and hearing protection, and follow site safety rules.

• Climb stairs and ladders, and move around equipment, cable trays and uneven surfaces.

We are committed to pay equity and transparency.

Fluidstack is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability and protected veterans’ status, or any other characteristic protected by law. Fluidstack will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records pursuant to applicable law.

Applicant Privacy Notice
AI Screening Notice
Ashby Bias Audit

You will receive a confirmation email once your application has successfully been accepted. If there is an error with your submission and you did not receive a confirmation email, please email [email protected] with your resume/CV, the role you've applied for, and the date you submitted your application-- someone from our recruiting team will be in touch.