Precision Assembler

About the role

• Job Title: Precision Assembler
• Department: Manufacturing - Hand & End Effector Cell
• Employment Type: Full Time
• FLSA: Non-Exempt (hourly; overtime paid at 1.5x)
• Location: Houston, TX - Onsite

About the Role

You will build the hands that hold the torch. Persona AI's humanoids weld, grind, and inspect in shipyards and heavy fabrication shops, and every one of those jobs comes down to a hand gripping a tool in a hot, dirty place and not letting go.

The hand is the hardest thing on the robot, the most parts, the tightest tolerances, and the smallest fasteners on the machine. It is also the part that decides whether the robot can do the work at all. Ours get built one at a time, by hand, in Houston.

This is fine-motor bench assembly under magnification: finger and thumb mechanisms built from miniature bearings, pivot pins, and linkages; drive tendons routed and pre-tensioned; fasteners torqued in newton-centimeters rather than foot-pounds. A dropped part is a lost part, and a quarter-turn too far is a stripped thread in a component with a long lead time.

Sensors, encoders, and motors arrive as sealed modules that you install mechanically and never open. You will work under ESD discipline, which we train and certify you on.

If you have spent years doing precise work with your hands - watches, instruments, medical devices, firearms, dental prosthetics, jewelry - this is that same craft, pointed at something new. We are not here to replace the trades. We are building machines that take on the worst jobs in heavy industry, directed by the crews who know that work best.

What You'll Be Doing

• Assemble finger, thumb, and wrist mechanisms from engineering drawings - miniature bearings, pivot pins, linkages, retaining rings, and springs.
• Route and pre-tension drive tendons and cables to specification.
• Assemble miniature gearheads and small actuator units, keeping serialized matched sets together.
• Torque miniature fasteners (roughly M1.6 to M3) with calibrated low-range torque drivers, working in newton-centimeters.
• Apply adhesives, thread locker, and lubricant in controlled quantities; install seals, boots, and covers.
• Verify each hand against acceptance criteria - range of motion, joint backlash, tendon pre-tension, and smoothness - using pin gauges, micrometers, and dial indicators.
• Mate pre-terminated sensor connectors and dress flex cable during palm and wrist closeout, under ESD control.
• Record build data accurately - serial numbers, matched sets, torque values, and tendon tensions - in our shop floor build records.
• Flag parts, drawings, or steps that don't work as written. We would rather fix the instruction than build a hundred hands wrong.

What We're Looking For

• High school diploma or GED.
• Demonstrated fine-motor precision work with your hands, from any industry - watch or instrument repair, medical or dental device assembly, jewelry, gunsmithing, luthiery, or military precision maintenance.
• Steady hands, patience, and the ability to hold focus on detailed work. Comfort working under magnification, or confidence you will adapt to it.
• Ability to read mechanical drawings and assembly work instructions.
• Comfort with precision measuring tools, or the interest to learn them. We will train you on anything you haven't used.
• Willingness to follow a documented process exactly, and to speak up when the process is wrong.
• Availability for overtime and occasional weekend work during production pushes, paid at 1.5x.

Bonus Skills

• Watchmaking, horology, or precision instrument, camera, or optics repair.
• Medical device, surgical instrument, or dental laboratory assembly.
• Microscope or magnified assembly experience in any industry.
• Cable, tendon, or wire rope work - including bicycle, aviation control cable, rigging, or textile backgrounds.
• Miniature bearing, gearhead, or small mechanism assembly.
• Military precision maintenance - avionics, optics, ordnance, instrument, or medical equipment specialties.
• Three or more years of fine-tolerance assembly, repair, or fabrication, which may qualify you at the Assembler II level.

Physical Requirements

• Sustained fine motor manipulation of small components and precision hand tools at a bench station for the duration of a shift, with the ability to alternate sitting and standing.
• Resolving fine visual detail at close range. Magnification is provided and required for most operations.
• Handling components and assemblies weighing up to 25 lbs, occasionally throughout a shift.
• Wearing required PPE and ESD equipment. These functions can be performed with or without reasonable accommodation; alternative signaling for audible alarms can be provided.

Persona AI is an Equal Opportunity Employer.