Industrial Design Lead - Caper

We are currently seeking an Industrial Design Lead who will oversee Caper Cart, Instacart’s IDF award winning AI-powered smart cart. Caper aims to transform the in-store shopping experience by helping customers save time and money while helping grocery retailers grow their business. You will be at the forefront of building an innovative product that sits at the intersection of industrial design, computer vision, and software; it’s already actively changing the entire grocery industry! As the Lead, your mission is to build a world class smart shopping cart by improving on our current cart generation as well as driving future cart generations through a deep understanding of the customer experience, technology landscape & requirements, and market trends. You will be responsible for overseeing the work and career development of our two industrial designers in Shanghai, driving work in a hands-on manner, and ensuring a high bar craft and quality bar.

Caper’s Design team is responsible for the hardware and software experiences that customers and retailers use while shopping in grocery stores. This includes the industrial design of our carts as well as the software experience throughout the pre-shopping, shopping, and post shopping journey. Our team is distributed across Shanghai, LA, New York, and the Bay Area; the industrial design team is based out of Shanghai.  

• We’re seeking a hands on creative problem solver to define our Caper cart experiences by pushing the boundaries of industrial design. This includes improving/refining our current generation of carts and defining future generations. 
• You’ll use your full range of skills including strategic design, ideation, prototyping iteration and research. 
• You’ll partner closely with Product, Engineering, User Research, and Product Design to bring our carts to life. 
• You’ll drive getting customer insights throughout the development process and be responsible for translating them into actionable improvements in partnership research
• You’ll be responsible for coaching and developing the careers of our industrial designers. 
• You will be driving work in a hands-on manner, jumping in when needed, while also overseeing the work of our industrial designers. 

• Minimum 8+ years experience working as an industrial designer. Proven track record of working on innovative consumer hardware products with impact to customers and the business. 
• Portfolio case studies that show end to end experience working on hardware products, from generative concepts to prototypes to final production. 
• A craft leader with strong attention to detail, including form, proportion, visual aesthetics, materials, and color. Track record of building world-class products with simple, intuitive, and aesthetically pleasing form even when faced with complexity or tough constraints. 
• Proven track record of transforming experiences by fluidly moving between innovative visioning and near-term execution. Keeps a pulse on industry and market trends, as well as latest technologies. 
• Able to work across disciplines and collaborate with mechanical and electrical engineering, product designers, and product managers. 
• Able to work in a fast-paced, start-up environment with excellent communication and collaboration skills. 
• Prior experience managing industrial designers with a track record of mentoring and growing designers at different points in their careers. 
• Able to work hours that work for the team in Shanghai when needed; willing to travel to Shanghai during key moments of the development process.

• Experience working on consumer hardware products with computer vision or weight sensors is a plus. 
• Language fluency in Chinese (Mandarin) is a plus, but not a requirement.
• Experience managing a remote team across different time zones.