Builder status is awarded to DESI members in recognition of a long engagement and a significant contribution to the collaboration infrastructure and service work. The list of builders, updated annually, currently consists of the following members:
| Aguilar | Jessica | for outstanding leadership of petal fabrication and assembly |
| Ahlen | Steve | for outstanding contributions to the focal plane system |
| Alam | Shadab | for outstanding contributions to the analysis pipeline |
| Allende-Prieto | Carlos | for outstanding contributions to the stellar pipeline |
| Ameel | Jon | for outstanding contributions to the focal plane electronics |
| Bailey | Stephen | for outstanding leadership of the data systems and data pipeline development |
| Baltay | Charles | for outstanding contributions to the fiber view camera |
| Bebek | Chris | for outstanding leadership as Instrument Scientist |
| Besuner | Robert | for outstanding leadership as Project Manager and Systems Engineer |
| Blanc | Pierre-Eric | for outstanding contributions to the spectrographs |
| Blum | Robert | for outstanding contributions to project management and governance |
| Bramall | David | for outstanding contributions to the fiber system |
| Brooks | David | for outstanding contributions of the wide-field corrector |
| Buckley-Geer | Elizabeth | for outstanding contributions to the instrument control system |
| Burleigh | Kaylan | for outstanding contributions to the imaging survey |
| Cahn | Robert | for outstanding contributions to the design of the survey |
| Carton | Pierre-Henri | for outstanding contributions to the spectrographs and cryostats |
| Chuang | Chia-Hsun (Albert) | for outstanding contributions to the analysis pipeline, particularly numerical simulations |
| Claybaugh | Todd | for outstanding contributions to the focal plane system |
| Cooper | Andrew | for outstanding contributions to the support of the bright galaxy and milky way science |
| Dawson | Kyle | for outstanding contributions to the design of the survey and survey validation |
| Derwent | Mark | for outstanding contributions to the spectrographs |
| Dey | Arjun | for outstanding leadership of the observations and contributions to the imaging surveys |
| Dhungana | Govinda | for outstanding contributions to the data system |
| Dobson | Carl | for outstanding contributions to the instrument software |
| Doel | Peter | for outstanding leadership of the construction of the wide-field corrector |
| Duan | Yutong | for outstanding contributions to the focal plane system |
| Edelstein | Jerry | for outstanding contributions to the spectrographs |
| Eftekharzadeh | Sarah | for outstanding contributions to the survey design |
| Eisenstein | Daniel | for outstanding leadership as collaboration Spokesperson and contributions to the design of the survey |
| Elliott | Ann | for outstanding contributions to the instrument operation pipeline |
| Estrada | Juan | for outstanding contributions to the CCD packaging |
| Fagrelius | Parker | for outstanding contributions to the instrument and its commissioning |
| Fanning | Kevin | for outstanding contributions to the focal plane system |
| Flaugher | Brenna | for outstanding leadership as Project Scientist and leadership of the AIT&C subsystem |
| Font-Ribera | Andreu | for outstanding contributions to the Ly-a working group |
| Garrison | Lehman | for outstanding contributions to the analysis pipeline, particularly numerical simulations |
| Gaztanaga | Enrique | for outstanding contributions to the imaging validation |
| Gontcho a Gontcho | Satya | for outstanding contributions to observing operations and outreach |
| Gutierrez | Gaston | for outstanding leadership of the construction of the wide-field corrector |
| Guy | Julien | for outstanding leadership as Project Scientist and contributions to the data pipeline |
| Harris | Stewart | for outstanding leadership as Systems Engineer |
| Heetderks | Ian | for outstanding contributions to the construction of the focal plane |
| Heetderks | Henry | for outstanding leadership as Project Manager |
| Herrera | David | for outstanding contributions to the imaging survey |
| Honscheid | Klaus | for outstanding leadership of the development of the instrument control system |
| Ishikawa | Yuzo | for outstanding contributions to the spectrographs |
| Jelinsky | Patrick | for outstanding leadership of the construction of the spectrographs |
| Jelinsky | Sharon | for outstanding contributions to the construction of the focal plane |
| Jimenez | Jorge | for outstanding contributions to the construction of the guiders |
| Joyce | Richard | for outstanding leadership as Instrument Scientist for NOAO/Mayall |
| Karcher | Armin | for outstanding contributions to the detector electronics |
| Karkar | Sonia | for outstanding contributions to the spectrographs |
| Kehoe | Robert | for outstanding contributions to the data system and to project management |
| Kent | Stephen | for outstanding contributions to the focal plane software |
| Kirkby | David | for outstanding contributions to the survey design |
| Kisner | Theodore | for outstanding contributions to the pipeline software |
| Kitanidis | Ellie | for outstanding contributions to the imaging survey |
| Kremin | Anthony | for outstanding contributions to the spectroscopic pipeline and survey operations |
| Lambert | Andrew | for outstanding contributions to the focal plane system |
| Landriau | Martin | for outstanding contributions to the imaging survey |
| Lang | Dustin | for outstanding contributions to the imaging survey |
| Le Goff | Jean-Marc | for outstanding contributions to the Ly-a survey simulations |
| Le Guillou | Laurent | for outstanding contributions to the spectrograph calibration system |
| Lee | Jae Hyeon | for outstanding contributions to target selection |
| Levi | Michael | for outstanding leadership of the DESI project as Director |
| de la Macorra | Axel | for outstanding leadership of the Mexico group |
| Magneville | Christophe | for outstanding contributions to the spectrographs and cryostats |
| Martini | Paul | for outstanding leadership as instrument scientist and contributions to the commissioning instrument |
| McDonald | Patrick | for outstanding contributions to the survey design |
| Meisner | Aaron | for outstanding contributions to the imaging survey |
| Miller | Tim | for outstanding contributions to the wide-field corrector |
| Miquel | Ramon | for outstanding leadership of the guide focus arrays |
| Moustakas | John | for outstanding contributions to the imaging survey |
| Mueller | Eva Maria | for outstanding contributions at the interface of data and theory |
| Myers | Adam | for outstanding leadership of the target selection pipeline |
| Newman | Jeffrey | for outstanding contributions to the target selection |
| Nie | Jundan | for outstanding contributions to the imaging survey |
| Palanque-Delabrouille | Nathalie | for outstanding leadership as Spokesperson and contributions to target selection |
| Pappalardo | Daniel | for outstanding contributions to the spectrographs |
| Peng | Xiyan | for outstanding contributions to the imaging survey |
| Percival | Will | for outstanding contributions to the preparation of the galaxy and quasar clustering science |
| Poppett | Claire | for outstanding leadership of the fiber system |
| Prada | Francisco | for outstanding contributions to the fiber positioners |
| Probst | Ronald | for outstanding contributions to the telescope and installation work |
| Rabinowitz | David | for outstanding contributions to the fiber view camera |
| Raichoor | Anand | for outstanding contributions to the target selection |
| Rockosi | Constance | for outstanding leadership as Commissioning Scientist |
| Roe | Natalie | for outstanding contributions to the project management |
| Ronayette | Samuel | for outstanding contributions to the spectrographs |
| Ross | Ashley | for outstanding contributions to the commissioning instrument |
| Schlafly | Edward | for outstanding contributions to the imaging survey and to the focal plane |
| Schlegel | David | for outstanding leadership as Project Scientist and contributions to the imaging survey |
| Schmoll | Juergen | for outstanding contributions to the fiber system |
| Schubnell | Michael | for outstanding contributions to the fiber positioners |
| Sharples | Ray | for outstanding leadership of the fiber system |
| Silber | Joseph | for outstanding leadership of the construction of the focal plane |
| Sprayberry | David | for outstanding leadership of the installation of the corrector and instrument |
| Staten | Ryan | for outstanding contributions to the data system |
| Stephey | Laurie | for outstanding contributions to the spectroscopic pipeline |
| Tarle | Gregory | for outstanding contributions to the fiber positioners and for leadership as institutional board chair |
| Tie | Suk Sien | for outstanding contributions to the construction and commissioning of the sky camera system |
| Tyas | Luke | for outstanding contributions to the fiber system |
| Valdes | Francisco | for outstanding contributions to the imaging survey |
| Vargas Magaña | Mariana | for outstanding contributions to the analysis pipeline and leadership of the Meetings Committee |
| Weaver | Benjamin | for outstanding contributions to the software infrastructure |
| Weaverdyck | Curtis | for outstanding contributions to the fiber positioners |
| Wechsler | Risa | for outstanding leadership as collaboration Spokesperson and contributions to survey leadership |
| Wilson | Mike | for outstanding contributions to pipeline development, target selection, and survey validation |
| Yeche | Christophe | for outstanding contributions to the target selection and survey validation |
| Zhang | Kai | for outstanding contributions to the focal plane |
| Zhang | Tianmeng | for outstanding contributions to the imaging survey |
| Zou | Hu | for outstanding contributions to the BASS imaging survey |
| Zhou | Rongpu | for outstanding contributions to the target selection |
| Zhou | Xu | for outstanding contributions to the BASS imaging survey |
| Zhou | Zhimin | for outstanding contributions to the BASS imaging survey |
