Lead sourcing, supplier relationships, purchasing, inventory planning, inbound logistics, and supplier quality for scaling robot production. Build tooling and automation, manage POs and RFQs, negotiate terms, and travel internationally to qualify and audit suppliers.
About Ultra
What You'll Do
Who You Are
Experience and Skills
Ultra builds industrial AI robots that are working in the real world today. Our robots automate mission-critical warehouse labor end-to-end, starting with e-commerce order packaging. We deploy fast, learn from real production data, and iterate aggressively. We already have a quickly growing number of revenue-generating robots operating in U.S. warehouses, and are now scaling towards thousands of deployments over the next few years. Our mission is simple: build the world's most useful and deployable robot.
WARNING: Robotics is not for the faint of heart. There are no silver bullets here. It is tiresome, unglamorous, and at times brutal work. The only way out is through, and the only way through is treacherous and unknown. Success will require teamwork - so we are building a world-class team to tackle some of the most exciting problems out there. We hope you join us.
OverviewWe're looking for a Supply Chain & Procurement Lead to join our NYC-based team and take ownership of how parts get sourced, bought, and kept flowing as we scale robot production from 100 to 1000+ units. You'll build and run the supplier relationships behind every build, make ordering effortless for our manufacturing team, get inbound parts to the door on time, and hold our suppliers to a high quality bar. The goal is to turn buying the right parts at the right cost and lead time into a well-run system rather than a daily scramble.
We run this function software-forward: rather than scaling the team linearly with volume, we build tooling and lean on AI agents so the system does the repetitive work and the humans handle judgment, relationships, and exceptions. You'll shape and own that system as much as the sourcing itself. We're an early-stage company moving very fast in a rapidly growing space, and we welcome people from any background as long as you're excited about the mission, ready to drive impact from day one, and eager to help make automation accessible to all.
What You'll Do
Build and manage vendor relationships
- Find, vet, and set up new supplier and contract-manufacturer relationships across our parts base, at home and internationally
- Negotiate pricing, payment terms, and lead times — and revisit them as volumes grow
- Develop and deepen existing relationships through regular reviews, supplier scorecards, and quick resolution of cost and delivery issues
- Travel to China and other destinations to meet suppliers face-to-face, qualify new partners, and build out a resilient global supply base
Own ordering, purchasing, and planning
- Place purchase orders and track them to keep builds on schedule — or make it fast and easy for the manufacturing team to place orders themselves
- Run RFQs and turn new product introductions (NPI) and BOM changes into clean sourcing and buying decisions in partnership with the manufacturing and hardware teams
- Own inventory accuracy and the demand/forecasting signals that drive purchasing — approached software-forward, with tooling and automation rather than manual spreadsheets wherever possible
- Build the purchasing workflows, approvals, PO tracking, and the tooling behind them so ordering and planning stay simple as we scale
- Manage lead times and costs against targets, and proactively flag and mitigate supply risk on single-source and long-lead parts
Support inbound logistics
- Book transport for inbound parts when needed and keep shipments moving to the door
- Track shipment status and get ahead of delays before they hit the build schedule
- Coordinate international shipping, imports, and customs so parts clear cleanly and predictably
Drive supplier quality control
- Set and enforce quality expectations with suppliers, and catch issues before parts reach the line
- Track supplier quality performance over time and drive corrective action when parts fall short
- Partner with the hardware team on incoming inspection criteria and specs so what we order is what we get
Who You Are
- Highly operational and detail-oriented — you bring order to a tangle of parts, vendors, POs, and lead times
- An owner, not an executor — when something is unsourced, mispriced, delayed, or about to run out, you've already moved on it
- Software-forward — you reach for tooling and automation before headcount, and you're comfortable building lightweight systems (or working alongside AI agents) to run the function at scale
- Scrappy, resourceful, and energized by fast-paced, high-autonomy environments where you're building the process as you run it
- A strong relationship-builder who's comfortable negotiating and working across cultures and time zones
- You think in cost, speed, and reliability — and know how to balance all three under real deadlines
Experience and Skills
- 5+ years owning procurement, sourcing, and/or supply chain in a hardware or manufacturing environment — or less, if you pair real procurement instinct with unusually strong systems and software fluency
- Strong supplier management: finding and qualifying vendors, negotiating pricing and payment terms, and building long-term relationships
- A track record of making ordering and purchasing run smoothly — POs, approvals, and the systems behind them (ERP/MRP, PLM, or equivalent)
- Comfort with inventory management and demand/forecasting, and a bias toward building tooling to keep counts accurate at speed rather than managing them by hand
- Familiarity with inbound logistics: booking freight, tracking shipments, and working through international shipping, imports, and customs
- Experience holding suppliers to a quality standard — inspection, scorecards, and corrective action
- Willingness and ability to travel internationally, including to China, to develop the supply base
- Bonus: experience with contract manufacturing or scaling sourcing beyond in-house production
- Bonus: Mandarin or other relevant language skills for working directly with overseas suppliers
Expected Compensation
$120,000 - $155,000/annual salary + equity + benefits
This compensation range may be inclusive of several career levels at Ultra and will be narrowed during the interview process based on the candidate’s experience and qualifications. Adjustments outside of this range may be considered for candidates whose qualifications significantly differ from those outlined in the job description.
Equal Employment Opportunity Statement
We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. We are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment and encourage applicants from all backgrounds to apply.
Ultra (ultra.tech) New York, New York, USA Office
New York, New York, United States, 11232 2405
Similar Jobs
An Hour Ago
Artificial Intelligence • Fintech • Insurance • Marketing Tech • Software • Analytics
Develop and enhance a best-in-class private markets portfolio management platform. Provide real-time analysis and actionable insights, build and validate factor-based investment models in Python, partner with Product/Data/Technology to produce tools and automate workflows, manage multiple projects, and communicate findings to support private equity, real estate, private credit, and infrastructure investments.
Top Skills:
Ai-Enabled ToolsAladdinEfrontNumpyPandasPythonScipySQLWso
Artificial Intelligence • Fintech • Insurance • Marketing Tech • Software • Analytics
Handle inbound insurance sales calls and warm leads, consult with customers to recommend property & casualty coverage, close sales, meet schedule and work-at-home requirements, complete paid licensing and training, and maintain performance metrics and customer-focused service.
Top Skills:
Dsl)FiberPcWired High-Speed Internet (Cable
Artificial Intelligence • Consumer Web • Edtech • Enterprise Web • HR Tech • Social Impact • Generative AI
Lead strategy, roadmap, and execution for Coursera's authoring and content production tools. Define product requirements, collaborate cross-functionally (Engineering, Design, Data Science, Research, Content, Marketing, Support), monitor production/ingestion metrics, and drive AI-enabled authoring innovations to scale high-quality, career-aligned content.
Top Skills:
Adaptive LearningAi/MlAutomated Quality AssuranceContent Authoring ToolsData AnalyticsGenerative AiHypothesis TestingMultimodal Media ProcessingPersonalizationTranslation Technology
What you need to know about the NYC Tech Scene
As the undisputed financial capital of the world, New York City is an epicenter of startup funding activity. The city has a thriving fintech scene and is a major player in verticals ranging from AI to biotech, cybersecurity and digital media. It also has universities like NYU, Columbia and Cornell Tech attracting students and researchers from across the globe, providing the ecosystem with a constant influx of world-class talent. And its East Coast location and three international airports make it a perfect spot for European companies establishing a foothold in the United States.
Key Facts About NYC Tech
- Number of Tech Workers: 549,200; 6% of overall workforce (2024 CompTIA survey)
- Major Tech Employers: Capgemini, Bloomberg, IBM, Spotify
- Key Industries: Artificial intelligence, Fintech
- Funding Landscape: $25.5 billion in venture capital funding in 2024 (Pitchbook)
- Notable Investors: Greycroft, Thrive Capital, Union Square Ventures, FirstMark Capital, Tiger Global Management, Tribeca Venture Partners, Insight Partners, Two Sigma Ventures
- Research Centers and Universities: Columbia University, New York University, Fordham University, CUNY, AI Now Institute, Flatiron Institute, C.N. Yang Institute for Theoretical Physics, NASA Space Radiation Laboratory
