Remote Senior Mechanical Design Engineer — AI Research & Domain Evaluation

ZR Talent Group is recruiting a qualified Remote Senior Mechanical Design Engineer — AI Research & Domain Evaluation for a 100% remote contract opportunity ($40 - $90/hour) open to candidates across the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, and South Africa. In this specialist engagement, you will collaborate with advanced AI research teams to design domain-specific evaluation scenarios, audit complex model reasoning, and establish gold-standard reference solutions in Design intent & assembly reasoning, Parametric modeling depth, Mechanism & kinematic sense, GD&T & tolerance judgment.

Prior experience building machine learning systems is not required—our research partners value authentic practitioner judgment, domain rigor, and clear analytical writing.

Key Responsibilities & Deliverables

• Analyze and dissect multi-part mechanical assemblies to identify critical design decisions, constraints, and potential failure points that challenge expert reasoning.
• Formulate challenging, non-obvious technical questions that test real-world mechanical design judgment, ensuring relevance and difficulty beyond junior-level understanding.
• Validate and document defensible, exact answers directly from CAD models, ensuring clear traceability and accuracy.
• Review model-generated outputs, pinpoint breakdowns or inaccuracies in mechanical reasoning, and suggest targeted improvements.
• Flag ambiguous, trivial, or unanswerable questions, refining or sharpening them for clarity and precision.
• Thoroughly document edge cases and sources of disagreement within answers to maintain strict verifiability.
• Communicate findings and reasoning in clear, professional written and verbal form to support continuous project improvement.

Required Qualifications & Technical Criteria

• Demonstrated professional or advanced academic background in Design intent & assembly reasoning, Parametric modeling depth, Mechanism & kinematic sense, GD&T & tolerance judgment.
• Strong analytical writing and critical evaluation skills in English.
• Self-directed work ethic suited for an asynchronous, 100% remote research environment.

Preferred Experience & Bonus Attributes

• 5+ years of professional experience creating and overseeing multi-part mechanical assemblies from concept, not just from existing drawings.
• Mastery in at least one major parametric CAD tool (SolidWorks, Creo, NX, CATIA, Inventor, Fusion, Onshape, or Solid Edge).
• Demonstrated experience in teaching, mentoring, or leading — whether through formal instruction, leading design reviews, or coaching engineering teams.
• Expertise in design intent, assembly reasoning, mechanism and kinematic analysis, and robust GD&T/tolerance judgment.
• Background in at least one discipline: industrial machinery and automation, robotics, automotive and heavy equipment, aerospace and defense, medical devices, consumer products, or tooling and fixture design.
• Exceptional written English communication skills — your documentation directly influences project deliverables.
• Bonus: Experience with FreeCAD, advanced GD&T/tolerance analysis, or formal design review leadership.

Compensation, Remote Eligibility & Schedule

• Compensation Band: $40 - $90/hour
• Work Model: 100% Remote / Work From Home with flexible asynchronous scheduling
• Eligible Remote Locations: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, and South Africa
• Current Openings: 20 active specialist positions
• Hiring Organization: ZR Talent Group
• Core Skills & Technologies: Design intent & assembly reasoning, Parametric modeling depth, Mechanism & kinematic sense, GD&T & tolerance judgment, CAD tools expertise