Ayushman Dutta
Mechanical engineer working across robotics, automotive, consumer products, and manufacturing.
Currently
I’m a founding mechanical engineer @ Arn Autonomy (formerly Spacer Robotics). We’re building a robot that ties rebar on construction sites on its own, one of the most repetitive and back-breaking jobs in construction.
How I work
Start with first principles and physics. Validate with analysis. Build it, test it, break it, fix it.
Previously
At Scout Robotics, I owned the hardware for rail-inspection robots and deployed them on-site for a pilot with New York Metro. Before that, I designed 4680 cell-manufacturing tooling at Tesla. At Novelis, I designed fixtures, installed and brought up equipment, and worked on car BIW structures with OEMs like Ford, JLR, and Lucid. I also worked at GE HealthCare.
At Clemson, I led vehicle structures and chassis design and development on Deep Orange 16, an autonomous rescue vehicle built with the U.S. Army. I also researched tool wear when milling Inconel 718, one of the toughest metals to machine.
Some facts about me
LEGO got me into robots as a kid. RC cars kept me hooked.
Born in India, moved to the US four years ago, and landed in SF this year. The startup scene here completely rewired how I think about building things.
I raced go-karts competitively before I started designing cars.
I taught myself to DJ. It’s a lot like engineering: lots of knobs, and you find out fast when something’s off. I also play guitar.
I spent four years building off-road race cars during my undergrad that mostly lived covered in mud. Our switchable 4WD system is patent-pending and took us to a top 3 finish in BAJA SAE Mexico.
My favourite engineering fix used a piece of PVC pipe, a cut glass lens, some silicone, and a tissue. It passed waterproof testing.
I built an ornithopter in college, a plane that flies by flapping its wings like a bird.