JOB DESCRIPTION
About NIO
NIO is a pioneer and a leading company in the premium smart electric vehicle market. Founded in November 2014, NIO’s mission is to shape a joyful lifestyle. NIO aims to build a community starting with smart electric vehicles to share joy and grow together with users.
NIO designs, develops, jointly manufactures and sells premium smart electric vehicles, driving innovations in next-generation technologies in autonomous driving, digital technologies, electric powertrains and batteries. NIO differentiates itself through its continuous technological breakthroughs and innovations, such as its industry-leading battery swapping technologies, Battery as a Service, or BaaS, as well as its proprietary autonomous driving technologies and Autonomous Driving as a Service, or ADaaS.
NIO’s product portfolio consists of the ES8, a six-seater smart electric flagship SUV, the ES7 (or the EL7), a mid-large five-seater smart electric SUV, the ES6, a five-seater all-round smart electric SUV, the EC7, a five-seater smart electric flagship coupe SUV, the EC6, a five-seater smart electric coupe SUV, the ET7, a smart electric flagship sedan, and the ET5, a mid-size smart electric sedan.
About the Position
We are seeking a Mechanical Design Intern to join the team at NIO to contribute to the development of our next-generation tactile-sensing hand gloves. This role is a vital part of our embodied AI initiatives, focusing on creating the hardware necessary to capture high-fidelity contact and motion data for generalist robotic training.
In this role, you will focus on the mechanical architecture and sensor integration of a wearable glove designed to capture the nuances of human touch. You will work at the intersection of wearable robotics, sensor fusion, and human-centric design, ensuring that our data collection hardware is both high-performing and ergonomic. The ideal candidate will possess strong mechanical design skills supplemented by an understanding of how tactile data is utilized in modern robot learning frameworks.
Project Scope
Tactile Glove Development: Design and prototype wearable components for a hand glove integrated with multi-modal tactile sensors to capture pressure, shear, and vibration.
Advanced Sensor Integration: Integrate specialized sensing technologies—such as Fiber Bragg Gratings (FBG), capacitive arrays, or half-ring fingertip sensors—into flexible, wearable form factors.
Mechanical & Material Design: Utilize soft materials and ergonomic structures to ensure the glove provides high comfort and minimal resistance to natural hand motion.
Learning-Aware Design: Collaborate with AI researchers to optimize hardware parameters for imitation learning applications.
Deliverables (End of Internship)
A functional, wearable glove prototype featuring an integrated array of tactile sensors for multi-modal data capture.
A technical report detailing the sensor calibration, force-sensing accuracy, and ergonomic validation of the hardware design.
A validated hardware-in-the-loop framework demonstrating successful data collection for complex dexterous manipulation tasks.
Qualifications
Master’s or Ph.D. in Robotics, Mechanical/Electrical Engineering, or related fields.
Proficiency in 3D modeling and rapid prototyping techniques for wearable devices.
Hands-on experience with sensor integration, data acquisition, and microcontroller programming (e.g., C/C++, Python.
Strong understanding of the mechanics of materials, particularly flexible or biomimetic structures.
Demonstrated ability to implement, experiment, and iterate on research ideas, including evaluating methods through empirical results on simulated or physical robotic systems.
Strong analytical and system-building skills, with the ability to work across simulation, learning, perception, control, and real robot deployment as part of a larger technical team.
Preferred Qualifications
Prior research in developing wearable tactile interfaces, or high-resolution fingertip sensors.
Experience with imitation learning, processing human demonstration data for robotic control.
A strong interest in building robust, real-world robotic systems, and motivation to see research ideas validated through physical experiments rather than simulation alone.
Track record of publications in top AI or robotics conferences (CoRL, ICRA, IROS, RSS, NeurIPS, CVPR, ICML).
Compensation:
The US base salary range for this full-time position is $38.00 - $46.00.
Within the range, individual pay is determined by work location and additional factors, including job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training.
Please note that the compensation details listed in US role postings reflect the base salary only. It does not include discretionary bonus, equity, or benefits.