Founding Machinist

About UsFoundation Industries is building the supply base for the next generation of hardware companies. Our customers are building rockets, robots, and technologies that don't yet exist, and they move faster than any traditional contract manufacturer can keep up with. We exist to change that. We are purpose-built for frontier hardware companies, and we're growing the team that will make it possible.We are based in Redwood City, California.About the RoleWe're hiring a Founding Machinist.US manufacturing is plagued by the death of tribal knowledge. We're building the system that changes that, one that captures process knowledge, encodes it, and gives operators leverage that doesn't exist anywhere today. That system is being built from scratch, and the person we hire will have a direct hand in designing it.In the near term, producing parts for the existing customer base. In parallel: closing the feedback loop between what happens at the machine and how we develop our capabilities. You'll be the one identifying where the process breaks down and where improvements compound. Over time, you'll help lead our technical direction, equipment, process architecture, and the systems we build to scale precision manufacturing without increasing headcount in proportion.This is a ground-floor role with real ownership. The decisions made in the next two years will define what the Foundation becomes.What You'll DoProgram and run complex 5-axis work across a range of materials, mainly aluminum and hardened steelsOwn parts end to end: CAM, fixturing, production, first article, and inspectionWork alongside our engineers to translate what you see on the production floor into process improvements, tooling decisions, and system designMake the calls on equipment, workholding, and process architecture as we growBuild the documentation, workflows, and institutional knowledge that lets the next person we hire hit the ground running at a level they couldn't reach anywhere elseWhat You'll Need5+ years running CNC, with 5-axis experienceAbility to write your own CAM programs; Fusion, Mastercam, Solidcam; we care about the output, not the softwareExperience holding tight tolerances on complex geometryComfort reading GD&T drawingsFamiliarity with inspection CMMBonus Points ForWorked at a venture-backed hardware startup (aerospace, robotics, defense tech)Experience using inspection and metrology tools (CMM, optical comparators, Renishaw probing)Experience with exotic or difficult-to-machine materials (Inconel, titanium, hardened steels)Compensation: $100,000–$175,000 salary + 1–1.5% equity. Real ownership in what we're building, we want you here for the long haul