Robotics Software Engineer - Motion Planning & Manipulation
***Role is ITAR-restricted: limited to U.S. Persons (U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents/green card holders). ***
About the Opportunity
We are partnering with an innovative early-stage robotics company developing advanced automation solutions for industrial manufacturing environments.
The team is building intelligent robotic manipulation systems that combine perception, motion planning, and real-time control to enable reliable automation in complex production settings. This is an opportunity to join a small, highly technical engineering team where you will have significant ownership, work directly with robotics hardware, and help build core technology from the ground up.
This role is best suited for an engineer who has built software for real-world robotic systems and enjoys working across software, hardware, and controls to solve challenging technical problems.
What You'll Do
- Design, develop, and maintain production-quality software for industrial robotic systems.
- Build and optimize motion planning, trajectory generation, and robot control capabilities.
- Develop software for robotic manipulation systems integrating sensors, cameras, and other hardware components.
- Implement and improve algorithms related to robot movement, system performance, and reliability.
- Develop, test, and debug software running across robotics, embedded, and cloud-based environments.
- Perform simulation, hardware testing, and real-world validation of robotic systems.
- Collaborate closely with software, hardware, controls, and mechanical engineers to deliver integrated robotic solutions.
- Contribute to system architecture, technical decisions, and engineering best practices.
- Help take robotic systems from prototype development through reliable deployment.
What We're Looking For
We are looking for a robotics software engineer who has experience building and deploying software for physical robotic systems. The ideal candidate is comfortable working across software, robotics, and hardware integration and has experience solving complex problems in real-world environments.
Ideal Background
We are especially interested in engineers who have worked on robotic manipulation systems, industrial automation, or similar robotics platforms where software interacts directly with physical hardware.
Strong candidates may come from backgrounds such as:
- Robotics software engineering
- Industrial robotics
- Robot manipulation
- Autonomous systems
- Controls and motion planning
- Robotics startups
- Advanced manufacturing automation
Candidates who enjoy building new systems from the ground up, working through complex technical challenges, and taking ownership of critical engineering decisions will thrive in this role.
This Role Is Not Focused On
- Pure academic or research-only robotics work without production implementation experience.
- Computer vision-only roles without broader robotics experience.
- Autonomous vehicle software development without transferable robotics system experience.
- Traditional PLC programming or industrial automation roles without software development experience.
- General software engineering roles without hands-on robotics experience.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Robotics, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related technical field.
- Experience developing software for robotics applications or physical automation systems.
- Strong Python programming experience.
- Hands-on experience with ROS, ROS2, or comparable robotics middleware.
- Strong understanding of robotics fundamentals, including:
- Kinematics
- Dynamics
- Motion planning
- Control theory
- State estimation
- Experience debugging complex hardware/software integration issues.
- Experience with software development best practices including Git, testing, and code reviews.
- Ability to work effectively in a fast-paced, collaborative startup environment.
- Must be authorized to work in the United States without future sponsorship due to export control requirements.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience developing software for robotic manipulation systems or industrial robot arms.
- Experience with motion planning, trajectory optimization, or real-time robotic control.
- Experience deploying robotics systems in industrial, manufacturing, or production environments.
- Familiarity with computer vision, 3D perception, and sensor integration.
- Experience optimizing software for embedded or edge computing platforms.
- Experience with distributed systems or cloud-based robotics infrastructure.
- Master's degree in Robotics, Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field.
What You'll Find
- Opportunity to work on cutting-edge robotics technology in an early-stage environment.
- High-impact engineering role with significant ownership and technical influence.
- Ability to work directly with robotics hardware and see your work deployed in real-world applications.
- Collaborative team of highly technical engineers.
- Competitive compensation and equity package.
- Relocation assistance may be available for qualified candidates.