Electrical Engineering & Simulation Expert – Hephaestus
$70–90/hr
Remote STEM contract with Mercor, $70–90/hr. Posted Nov 4.
$70–90/hr
Apply on MercorIs this job worth applying to?
- Pay
- Above typicalTops out at $90/hr. The typical top rate across 148 priced STEM listings is $70/hr.
- Getting in
- Some screening~30 min: resume upload + 20-min AI interview. Resume showing real experience in your field.
- Steady work
- Work is patchyProjects can pause or end with little notice.
- Payout record
- Pays on timeSchedule: weekly, every Wednesday. Paid via Stripe (Wise in a few countries).
- Freshness
- FreshPosted 2d ago. Still listed on Mercor on Nov 6, 2026.
- Where you live
- Not statedThe listing names no country.
The job description
Role Overview
Mercor is seeking experienced electrical engineers to build and validate technical tasks for AI systems working with circuits, power electronics, control systems, and electrical infrastructure. The work centers on executable engineering models, simulation, debugging, and measurable verification.
Contributors create the native engineering files and reference solutions behind each task, run the relevant analyses, and define checks that distinguish a working design from a plausible but incorrect result. Tasks may follow a US standards track (NEC / NFPA 70, NESC, IEEE) or an international track (IEC), as appropriate to the engineering problem.
Key Responsibilities
- Build realistic tasks in one or more specialties: circuit and PCB design, power electronics, power systems, embedded systems, or industrial controls.
- Create and debug schematics, SPICE netlists, component models, control logic, and other native technical artifacts needed to reproduce a task.
- Configure operating points, initial conditions, parameter sweeps, transient or steady-state analyses, and fault cases. Assess convergence, model assumptions, and the physical validity of results.
- Develop reference solutions and verification code that checks outputs such as voltage, current, efficiency, losses, timing, stability, protection behavior, and design constraints, with explicit units and tolerances.
- Package model files, dependencies, scripts, and results so another engineer can reproduce the work. Validate checks against both correct and deliberately incorrect cases.
- Review AI-generated engineering artifacts and diagnose failures in the design, simulation setup, or verifier. Use coding agents where helpful while independently checking their output.
Ideal Qualifications
- 5+ years of professional electrical engineering experience, with direct ownership of circuit designs, power systems, controls, or product validation.
- Recent hands-on experience with relevant tools such as KiCad, Altium, Cadence, SPICE/ngspice, MATLAB/Simulink, or equivalent engineering software. Expertise in every listed tool is not required.
- Ability to write, inspect, and debug Python or comparable scripts for simulation automation, data analysis, and numerical checks.
- Sound judgment about component behavior, numerical accuracy, safety margins, and applicable standards; ability to distinguish simulation predictions from measured laboratory evidence.
- Clear technical writing and a disciplined approach to documenting assumptions, reproducibility, and failure modes.
- A professional engineering credential and experience with test automation, engineering training, or evaluation design are a plus.
Compensation
- Writers: $70–$80/hour.
- Reviewers: $90/hour.
How do you apply to Mercor?
Apply on Mercor
The Apply button opens this post on Mercor's own site. You apply with them, not with Rubric. Budget about 30 min: resume upload + 20-min AI interview.
Get through screening
What Mercor asks for after you apply:
- Take the recorded AI video interview (practice round available)
- Complete any role-specific assessment and the ID check
- Accept the offer and sign the contract
Start work and get paid
Pay schedule: weekly, every Wednesday. Paid via Stripe (Wise in a few countries). You're paid for the work they hand out, not a fixed salary.
Mercor also needs
- Resume showing real experience in your field
- Webcam with your full face visible for the AI interview
- Government ID
Red flags
- Red flagLong waits with no offer after passing the interview
- Red flagProjects ending abruptly with little warning
What is Mercor like to work for?
Hiring marketplace that screens professionals with an AI video interview and places them on hourly contracts training and evaluating models for AI labs.
| Advertised pay | $20–200/hr |
|---|---|
| Getting in | Some screening |
| Application takes | ~30 min: resume upload + 20-min AI interview |
| How you get paid | Weekly, every Wednesday, via Stripe (Wise in a few countries) |
| Payout record | Pays on time |
| Countries | Hires in many countries and runs its pay week on India Standard Time; Mercor keeps a list of locations it cannot onboard, and some projects are US-only. |
Most listings sit around $50–100/hr; healthcare, legal and finance roles pay the most, language and generalist roles the least.
