Dispatch is developing refurbishable reentry vehicles designed to host and return payloads for companies producing high-value materials in microgravity. Target applications include semiconductors, biotechnology, and pharmaceuticals that require space environments for production.
To bring manufactured goods back to Earth, the San Francisco-based company recently tested its first full-scale reentry heat shield in the Mojave Desert, positioning it behind a rocket engine to simulate atmospheric reentry conditions at Mach 20+. Dispatch plans to couple these return vehicles with autonomous space stations designed for uncrewed orbital manufacturing operations.
Leadership from Satellite Operations
Dispatch was founded in 2025 by CEO Payton Case and CTO Andrew Mello. Both founders previously held technical leadership positions at satellite communications developer Astranis.
Case worked in the office of the CTO at Astranis, directing spacecraft architecture, hardware production, and mission operations. Mello led the avionics engineering team at Astranis through several satellite design generations. Before Astranis, Mello worked on hardware systems at Apple, warehouse automation at Amazon, and autonomous vehicle testing systems at Zoox.
Technical Hiring Priorities
Dispatch operates as a two-person team from San Francisco and is expanding its hardware engineering capacity across core aerospace disciplines. The company is recruiting full-time technical specialists, including an Aerothermal Engineer to work on atmospheric entry dynamics and a Thermal Engineer to oversee heat dissipation and vehicle protection systems.
The team is also filling mid-level roles like Mechanical Engineer while hiring undergraduate and graduate students across multiple intern tracks. Open intern positions include a GNC Engineering Intern, an Electrical Engineering Intern, a Thermal Engineering Intern, and a Mechanical Engineering Intern, Spring 2027.
Open Roles at Dispatch
| Role | Location | Work Mode | Salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thermal Engineer | San Francisco, CA, US | Onsite | $100,000 - $170,000 / year |
| Electrical Engineering Intern | San Francisco, CA, US | Onsite | $30 / hour |
| Thermal Engineering Intern | San Francisco, CA, US | Onsite | $30 / hour |
| Mechanical Engineering Intern, Spring 2027 | San Francisco, CA, US | Onsite | $30 / hour |
| GNC Engineering Intern | San Francisco, CA, US | Onsite | $30 / hour |
| Aerothermal Engineer | San Francisco, CA, US | Onsite | $100,000 - $170,000 / year |
| Mechanical Engineer | San Francisco, CA, US | Onsite | $100,000 - $170,000 / year |
