Senior UI Engineer

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Senior UI Engineer

Company: Atomic Machines

Location: Emeryville, CA, United States & Santa Clara, CA, United States

Job Type: Full-time

Category: Software Engineering / UI Engineering / Data Engineering & Analytics

Date Posted: 2026-09-08T21:34:38

Experience Level: Mid-Senior Level (3-10 years)

Remote Status: On-site

🚀 Role Summary

• Spearhead the front-end development and maintenance of critical internal applications supporting advanced micromanufacturing and engineering workflows.

• Architect and implement complex, stateful UI systems using React and TypeScript, with a focus on interactive graph editors and visual process definition tools.

• Drive data integrity and deterministic behavior within user interfaces, ensuring precision for manufacturing, process, and AI/ML teams.

• Collaborate cross-functionally with Data, AI, Process, Design, and Software Engineers to translate intricate domain requirements into intuitive and robust user experiences.

• Take full ownership of feature development lifecycles, from initial concept and UI design to state management, validation, testing, documentation, and release.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role is positioned within the Data Engineering and Analytics team, specifically supporting AI and Modeling & Simulation. While the title is UI Engineer, the description emphasizes a deep understanding of complex technical domains (manufacturing, materials science) and a focus on data integrity and deterministic behavior, indicating a highly specialized UI role rather than a generalist front-end position. The emphasis on "first principles" and "reasoning from first principles" suggests a need for deep problem-solving skills beyond typical UI development.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• Lead the front-end development, maintenance, and stabilization of internally developed applications crucial for manufacturing and engineering operations.

• Design, build, and sustain a sophisticated, stateful React + TypeScript application, including a complex visual graph editor for defining manufacturing processes.

• Engage in deep problem-solving, working from first principles to grasp underlying challenges, user workflows, and data constraints before implementing solutions.

• Foster strong partnerships with AI researchers, process engineers, chemists, device engineers, designers, and software engineers to translate complex domain needs into practical UI tools.

• Manage end-to-end ownership of small-to-medium sized features, encompassing UI implementation, state management, data validation, comprehensive testing, user documentation, and successful release.

• Proactively triage issues reported by manufacturing and process engineers, efficiently reproduce problems, conduct thorough root cause analysis, and implement secure, long-lasting fixes.

• Ensure strict adherence to data contracts and maintain deterministic behavior across all aspects of the application, including validation, state management, and data exports.

• Develop and maintain robust unit tests utilizing Jest and TypeScript to guarantee code quality and application reliability.

• Clearly articulate technical decisions, trade-offs, and implementation details through well-crafted Pull Requests, exemplary commit hygiene, and precise documentation.

• Continuously enhance the maintainability, reliability, and performance of the front-end codebase as the product and user base evolve.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a deep dive into a specialized domain. The emphasis on "triage issues," "reproduce problems quickly," and "identify root causes" points to a support and stabilization aspect that goes beyond typical feature development, requiring strong debugging and analytical skills. The mention of "strict data contracts and deterministic behavior" is a key differentiator for this role, demanding meticulous attention to detail in state management and data handling.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or a related technical field is preferred; other technical degrees will be considered.

Experience: 3-10 years of hands-on experience in building software for complex technical environments such as industrial, robotics, manufacturing, or scientific applications.

Required Skills:

• Proven expertise in building complex, stateful UI systems using React and TypeScript.

• Demonstrated experience with graph or diagram editors, visual workflow builders, or similarly interaction-intensive applications.

• Ability to solve complex, ambiguous technical problems through effective cross-functional collaboration with multiple stakeholders.

• Solid understanding of front-end state management principles, application architecture patterns, and performance optimization techniques.

• Experience working with validation systems, data schemas, data contracts, and ensuring deterministic outputs.

• Exceptional debugging skills with a proven ability to identify root causes across intricate system architectures.

• Capacity to reason from first principles, moving beyond established patterns or prior solutions to find optimal implementations.

• Skill in translating the needs of highly technical users from diverse disciplines into clear product and engineering decisions.

• A rigorous and precise communication style, especially when detailing implementation specifics, technical constraints, and strategic trade-offs.

• Comfort and proficiency in taking ownership of existing codebases, including critical maintenance and stabilization efforts, rather than solely focusing on greenfield projects. Preferred Skills:

• Direct experience with manufacturing systems, including familiarity with Manufacturing Execution Systems (MES), process planning, or core manufacturing concepts like recipes, methods, and catalogs.

• Understanding of UX/UI design principles and a strong product/design sensibility.

📝 Enhancement Note: The experience requirement (3-10 years) combined with the "Senior" title suggests a need for individuals who can operate with significant autonomy and mentorship capabilities. The emphasis on "reasoning from first principles" and "comfort taking ownership of an existing codebase" indicates a preference for experienced engineers who can adapt quickly and contribute to both new development and legacy system improvements within a highly specialized technical domain.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Demonstrations of complex, stateful UI applications, ideally involving graph editors, visual workflow builders, or intricate data visualization.

• Case studies showcasing the ability to reason from first principles to solve ambiguous technical problems in industrial, manufacturing, or scientific contexts.

• Examples of maintaining strict data contracts, validation systems, and deterministic outputs within front-end applications.

• Projects that highlight strong debugging skills and root cause analysis in complex systems.

• Evidence of end-to-end feature ownership, including UI, state management, testing, and documentation. Process Documentation:

• Showcase projects where detailed documentation of implementation details, constraints, and technical trade-offs was crucial.

• Include examples of how unit tests (e.g., using Jest and TypeScript) were integrated to ensure code quality and reliability.

• Demonstrate experience in improving the maintainability, reliability, and performance of front-end applications over time.

• Present instances of collaboration with cross-functional teams to translate technical requirements into practical UI solutions.

📝 Enhancement Note: Given the role's emphasis on complex technical domains and data integrity, the portfolio should strongly emphasize problem-solving and precision. Candidates should be prepared to walk through specific examples of how they approached a complex UI challenge, managed state for intricate data, ensured deterministic outputs, and collaborated with domain experts. Demonstrating an understanding of manufacturing-specific concepts (even if theoretical) would be highly advantageous.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range: $165,000 - $220,000 USD per year.

Benefits:

• Equity: Opportunity to own a stake in Atomic Machines' growth and success.

• Comprehensive Benefits Package: Details to be provided, typically including health, dental, vision insurance, retirement savings plans, and paid time off.

Working Hours: 40 hours per week (standard full-time).

📝 Enhancement Note: The provided salary range is based on the AI-generated data. This range is competitive for a Senior UI Engineer role in the San Francisco Bay Area, especially within a specialized, high-growth technology company like Atomic Machines. The "On-site" work arrangement implies that the full scope of benefits, including potential office perks and in-person collaboration advantages, will be available.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Micromanufacturing Technology / Advanced Materials / Semiconductor Manufacturing Alternatives. Atomic Machines is at the forefront of revolutionizing manufacturing with its Matter Compiler™ technology, enabling the creation of novel micromachines beyond the capabilities of traditional semiconductor manufacturing. This disruptive approach involves multi-process, multi-material digital manufacturing.

Company Size: Not explicitly stated, but the mention of multiple offices (Emeryville, Santa Clara) and a specialized AI/Modeling & Simulation organization suggests a growing, well-funded entity likely in the startup or scale-up phase.

Founded: Not explicitly stated, but the company is described as "ushering in a new era," indicating a relatively young and innovative company.

Team Structure:

• The UI Engineer will join the AI and Modeling & Simulation organization, which sits within the broader Data Engineering and Analytics team.

• This role requires close collaboration with AI researchers, process engineers, chemists, device engineers, designers, and software engineers, indicating a highly cross-functional and interdisciplinary environment.

• The reporting structure is likely to be within the Data Engineering and Analytics leadership, with direct collaboration with leads in AI/Modeling & Simulation and potentially product management. Methodology:

• Data-Driven Development: Emphasis on data integrity, strict data contracts, and deterministic behavior in UI development, reflecting a rigorous approach to data management and application logic.

• First Principles Thinking: Encourages deep understanding and problem-solving from fundamental concepts rather than relying on established patterns.

• Agile & Iterative: While not explicitly stated, the nature of product development in this field and the mention of feature ownership and release cycles suggest an agile or iterative development process.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration: A core methodology, requiring constant interaction and alignment with diverse technical disciplines.

Company Website: [Atomic Machines Website URL - To be inserted if available]

📝 Enhancement Note: The company's focus on a novel, complex technology platform (Matter Compiler™) means the culture likely values deep technical expertise, innovation, and meticulous execution. The "AI and Modeling & Simulation" context suggests a strong emphasis on scientific rigor and data-driven decision-making. The dual locations imply a potentially distributed yet collaborative team structure.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This Senior UI Engineer role represents a significant step in a specialized UI engineering career. It moves beyond general UI development to encompass ownership of complex, domain-specific applications critical to core business operations (manufacturing, R&D). The role demands a blend of deep technical UI skills and a strong aptitude for understanding and translating complex scientific and engineering concepts.

Reporting Structure: The role reports into the Data Engineering and Analytics organization, specifically within the AI and Modeling & Simulation group. This places the UI Engineer in a central position to support critical R&D and operational functions.

Operations Impact: The UI Engineer's work directly impacts the efficiency and effectiveness of manufacturing and engineering teams. By creating intuitive and reliable tools for defining processes, analyzing data, and supporting AI/ML workflows, this role contributes directly to the speed of innovation, the quality of manufactured products, and the overall operational success of Atomic Machines' groundbreaking technology.

Growth Opportunities:

• Technical Specialization: Deepen expertise in building highly complex, stateful UIs for scientific and industrial applications, potentially becoming a subject matter expert in UI for micromanufacturing.

• Cross-Functional Leadership: Grow into a technical lead role within the UI engineering function, guiding junior engineers and influencing architectural decisions across multiple teams.

• Domain Expertise Development: Gain profound knowledge in areas like micromanufacturing, MEMS, materials science, and AI/ML data pipelines, becoming a valuable hybrid engineer.

• Product Influence: Contribute significantly to the product roadmap by translating user needs and technical possibilities into actionable development plans for critical internal tools.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Senior" title and the emphasis on ownership and first-principles thinking suggest that growth opportunities will involve taking on more complex projects, mentoring other engineers, and potentially moving into technical leadership or architectural roles. The unique domain of Atomic Machines offers a rare opportunity for UI engineers to develop deep expertise in a cutting-edge manufacturing technology.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: The company operates from physical offices in Emeryville and Santa Clara, California, indicating a preference for an on-site or hybrid work model. The description suggests a traditional office environment conducive to collaboration.

Office Location(s):

• Emeryville, CA, United States

• Santa Clara, CA, United States

These locations are in the heart of the San Francisco Bay Area, offering access to a vibrant tech ecosystem.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Environment: The role explicitly requires close collaboration with diverse engineering and research teams, suggesting an open or semi-open office layout designed to facilitate communication and teamwork.

• Advanced Technology Tools: Expect access to modern development tools and hardware necessary for complex UI development, potentially including high-performance workstations.

• Interdisciplinary Interaction: The workspace will foster frequent interaction with domain experts in AI, materials science, and manufacturing, creating a rich learning and problem-solving atmosphere.

Work Schedule: The standard working hours are 40 hours per week, typical for a full-time role. Given the on-site requirement, adherence to a regular office schedule is expected, though flexibility may be available depending on team needs and project deadlines.

📝 Enhancement Note: The on-site requirement for this role is a key differentiator. It suggests that the company values in-person collaboration, spontaneous problem-solving, and the tangible interaction that comes with working closely with manufacturing and research teams in a physical lab/office setting. Candidates should be prepared for a structured work environment within these established office locations.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A conversation with a recruiter to assess basic qualifications, experience, and cultural fit.

• Technical Interview(s): Likely to involve deep dives into React, TypeScript, state management, and architectural patterns. Expect coding challenges, potentially live coding sessions, and system design questions focused on complex UI applications.

• Domain/Problem-Solving Interview: Focus on how candidates approach complex, ambiguous problems, reason from first principles, and translate technical requirements from non-UI experts. Case studies or hypothetical scenarios related to manufacturing processes or data integrity may be presented.

• Portfolio Review: A dedicated session to walk through selected projects, discussing technical challenges, solutions, trade-offs, and impact. Emphasis will be placed on the complexity of the UI, data handling, and problem-solving approach.

• Hiring Manager/Team Fit Interview: Discussion about collaboration style, ownership, communication, and alignment with Atomic Machines' culture and values.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Prioritize Complexity: Showcase projects that demonstrate your ability to handle intricate state management, complex data structures, and demanding UI interactions (e.g., graph editors, visual tools).

• Highlight First Principles: Be prepared to explain your thought process for solving problems from the ground up, especially for projects where you had to go beyond standard patterns.

• Demonstrate Data Integrity: If possible, include examples where you implemented robust validation, schemas, or deterministic output mechanisms.

• Quantify Impact: Where feasible, articulate the positive outcomes of your work, such as improved user efficiency, reduced errors, or successful feature launches.

• Showcase Collaboration: Be ready to discuss how you worked with domain experts (engineers, scientists) to understand their needs and translate them into functional UIs.

Challenge Preparation:

• System Design: Practice designing complex UI systems, considering state management, data flow, performance, and scalability, particularly for interactive editors.

• Problem-Solving Scenarios: Prepare for questions that require breaking down ambiguous problems and proposing solutions based on logical deduction and first principles.

• Coding Proficiency: Ensure fluency in React and TypeScript, including common patterns, hooks, and best practices. Practice debugging common front-end issues.

• Domain Translation: Think about how you would explain a complex UI concept to a non-technical person, and conversely, how you would understand a complex technical requirement from a manufacturing engineer.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process will heavily scrutinize a candidate's ability to handle complexity and ambiguity. Candidates should prepare not just for coding tasks but also for in-depth discussions about their problem-solving methodology, communication skills, and ability to integrate into a highly technical, cross-functional team. A strong portfolio that explicitly demonstrates the required skills is paramount.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• React 18: The core JavaScript library for building user interfaces. Proficiency in the latest features and best practices is expected.

• TypeScript: Essential for building robust, scalable, and maintainable applications, particularly with complex state and data contracts.

• Vite: A modern front-end build tool known for its speed and efficiency, likely used for project setup and development server.

• Tailwind CSS: A utility-first CSS framework for rapid UI development and consistent styling.

• ReactFlow: A popular library for building node-based UIs, graph editors, and visual programming interfaces, directly relevant to the role's requirements.

• AJV (Another JSON Schema Validator): Crucial for implementing and enforcing strict data contracts and validation rules within the application.

• Jest: A widely-used JavaScript testing framework for writing unit and integration tests.

• ESLint: A linter to enforce code style and identify potential errors in JavaScript/TypeScript code.

Analytics & Reporting:

• While not explicitly listed for this UI role, expect integration with internal analytics or monitoring tools to track application performance and user behavior. The output of the UI will feed into data analysis and reporting systems. CRM & Automation:

• GitLab API: Likely used for code management, CI/CD pipelines, and issue tracking, requiring familiarity with API interactions.

• OpenAPI (Swagger): Used for defining and interacting with APIs, ensuring clear contracts between front-end and back-end services.

• Okta: An identity and access management service, implying integration with authentication and authorization workflows.

📝 Enhancement Note: The technology stack is modern and focused on developer productivity and application robustness. The inclusion of ReactFlow and AJV points directly to the need for experience in building complex visual editors and enforcing strict data integrity, which are key requirements for this role. Candidates should be prepared to discuss their experience with these specific tools and their application in complex scenarios.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Precision & Rigor: A core value, evident in the emphasis on strict data contracts, deterministic behavior, and reasoning from first principles. Operations professionals must uphold high standards of accuracy.

• Innovation & Disruption: The company is built on a novel technology platform, fostering a culture that embraces new ideas, challenges existing paradigms, and drives forward-thinking solutions.

• Collaboration & Cross-Pollination: Working closely with diverse teams (AI, Process, Design, Software) highlights the importance of open communication, knowledge sharing, and mutual respect across disciplines.

• Ownership & Accountability: Taking full ownership of features and applications, including maintenance and stabilization, demonstrates a commitment to delivering reliable solutions and seeing tasks through to completion.

• Data-Driven Decision Making: The integration of data engineering and analytics into the company's structure underscores the value placed on insights derived from data to guide development and strategy.

Collaboration Style:

• Interdisciplinary Partnership: Expect a highly collaborative environment where UI Engineers work hand-in-hand with domain experts to translate complex technical concepts into functional tools.

• Transparent Communication: Emphasis on clear, precise communication through PRs, commit messages, and documentation, promoting understanding and alignment across teams.

• Feedback-Oriented: A culture that likely values constructive feedback to improve code quality, application reliability, and user experience.

• Continuous Improvement: A drive to enhance application maintainability, reliability, and performance, suggesting a proactive approach to process and product evolution.

📝 Enhancement Note: The culture at Atomic Machines is likely to attract individuals who are not only technically proficient but also enjoy tackling challenging, novel problems in a collaborative, research-driven environment. The blend of cutting-edge technology and rigorous operational execution will be central to the team's ethos.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Domain Complexity: Mastering the intricacies of micromanufacturing, materials science, and AI/ML workflows to effectively translate them into intuitive UI solutions.

• Legacy Code Maintenance: Taking ownership of existing applications requires navigating and improving codebases that may not have been built with current best practices in mind, demanding strong debugging and refactoring skills.

• Balancing Innovation with Stability: Continuously developing new features while ensuring the stability and deterministic behavior of critical manufacturing tools presents a constant challenge.

• Cross-Disciplinary Communication: Effectively bridging the gap between highly specialized technical domains (e.g., AI researchers, process engineers) and UI development requires exceptional communication and empathy.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Deep Domain Expertise: Gain unparalleled knowledge in the cutting-edge field of micromanufacturing and its related scientific disciplines, becoming a specialist in UI for advanced technology applications.

• Advanced UI Architecture: Master building highly complex, stateful applications and visual editors, honing skills in modern front-end architecture and performance optimization.

• Cross-Functional Skill Development: Learn from AI researchers, process engineers, and data scientists, expanding your understanding of their disciplines and how they intersect with UI/UX.

• Technical Leadership: Opportunities to mentor junior engineers, lead feature development, and influence technical strategy within the Data Engineering and Analytics organization.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges presented are significant but are directly linked to substantial growth opportunities. This role is ideal for engineers who thrive on solving complex, novel problems and are eager to develop deep expertise in a highly specialized, future-forward industry.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• UI for Complex Domains: "Describe a time you had to build a UI for a highly technical or domain-specific application. How did you approach understanding the user's needs and translating them into the UI? What were the key challenges?" (Preparation: Focus on your process of learning a new domain, interviewing users, and documenting requirements.)

• First Principles & Ambiguity: "Imagine you need to design a UI component for visualizing material properties that are highly variable and have complex interdependencies. How would you start, and what questions would you ask to clarify requirements before writing any code?" (Preparation: Practice breaking down ambiguous problems, identifying core needs, and articulating a logical, step-by-step approach.)

• Data Integrity & Determinism: "How would you ensure that a user-defined manufacturing process, visualized in a graph editor, remains consistent and produces deterministic outputs even after multiple edits and complex state changes?" (Preparation: Discuss strategies like schema validation (JSON Schema), robust state management patterns, immutable data structures, and thorough validation logic.)

Company & Culture Questions:

• Atomic Machines' Mission: "What excites you about Atomic Machines' Matter Compiler™ technology and its potential impact on manufacturing?" (Preparation: Research the company's website, press releases, and understand their core technology and market disruption.)

• Collaboration Style: "This role requires working closely with AI researchers and process engineers. How do you ensure effective communication and collaboration with colleagues from very different technical backgrounds?" (Preparation: Prepare examples of successful cross-functional projects and highlight your communication strategies.)

• Ownership & Maintenance: "The role involves maintaining and stabilizing existing applications. What is your approach to taking ownership of a codebase you didn't initially build, and how do you balance new feature development with bug fixing and performance improvements?" (Preparation: Emphasize your methodical approach to understanding existing code, prioritizing issues, and contributing to long-term maintainability.)

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure Your Narrative: For each project, clearly state the problem, your role, the technical challenges, your solution (highlighting specific technologies like React, TypeScript, ReactFlow, AJV), the trade-offs you made, and the impact of your work.

• Focus on Complexity: Emphasize projects that demonstrate your ability to handle state management, complex data, and intricate UI interactions. For graph editors, walk through the data model, rendering logic, and user interaction flows.

• Explain Your 'Why': Be prepared to discuss the reasoning behind your technical decisions, especially how you applied first principles or addressed specific constraints like data integrity or deterministic behavior.

• Showcase Collaboration: If possible, include a project where you worked closely with non-UI engineers or domain experts, detailing how you managed that collaboration.

• Prepare for Deep Dives: Anticipate questions about specific code snippets, architectural choices, and debugging approaches.

📝 Enhancement Note: Interviewers will be looking for a blend of strong technical UI skills and a mature, problem-solving mindset capable of handling complex, real-world engineering challenges. Your ability to articulate your thought process and demonstrate a deep understanding of the technologies and the underlying domain will be critical.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this operations position:

• Submit your application through the Greenhouse application link provided.

• Tailor Your Resume: Highlight your experience with React, TypeScript, complex state management, and any work on graph editors or visually interactive applications. Quantify achievements where possible and explicitly mention experience in technical or scientific environments.

• Curate Your Portfolio: Select 2-3 projects that best showcase your ability to build complex UIs, handle data integrity, and reason from first principles. Be prepared to walk through these projects in detail, focusing on the technical challenges and your solutions.

• Prepare for Technical & Behavioral Interviews: Practice coding problems in React/TypeScript, system design questions for complex UIs, and behavioral questions focusing on problem-solving, collaboration, and ownership.

• Research Atomic Machines: Understand their core technology (Matter Compiler™), their market position, and the implications of their work. This will help you tailor your answers and demonstrate genuine interest.

⚠️ Important Notice: This enhanced job description includes AI-generated insights and operations industry-standard assumptions. All details should be verified directly with the hiring organization before making application decisions.

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