Software Engineer, Robotics Generalist
The Role
We're hiring software engineers to build the robotics software stack that brings our product to life. You'll work across the full system—from low-level motion control to high-level task planning—building robust, real-time software that controls our robotic hardware. This is a hands-on role where you'll touch everything: sensor integration, motor control, perception pipelines, and the software infrastructure that ties it all together.
You'll be joining at square one, working directly with the founding team to make critical architectural decisions and ship our first product. If you love the thrill of seeing code become physical motion and want to build novel technology people will interact with daily, this is the role for you.
What You'll Do
Robotics Software Stack: Develop and maintain our ROS-based control systems for real-time robotic motion and coordination
Embedded Systems: Write high-performance C++ for embedded platforms, optimizing for reliability and low-latency control
Sensor Integration: Interface with cameras, time-of-flight sensors, IMUs, and encoders to build robust perception and feedback loops
Hardware-Software Integration: Work closely with hardware engineers to debug, calibrate, and optimize the full system
Motion Planning & Control: Implement kinematics, trajectory planning, and control algorithms for smooth, natural movement
Production-Ready Systems: Build the monitoring, diagnostics, and update infrastructure needed for manufacturing a high-volume product
Who You Are
Required:
3-4+ years of professional software engineering experience
Strong C++ skills—you're comfortable with performance optimization, memory management, and debugging complex systems
Python proficiency for scripting, testing, and rapid prototyping
Experience with sensors, cameras, motors, or embedded systems in a professional context
Excellent debugging skills—you know how to track down issues across hardware, firmware, and software
High energy and enthusiasm for building physical products
Based in or willing to relocate to the San Francisco Bay Area (in-person collaboration is essential for hardware development)
Preferred:
ROS/ROS2 experience (we use it extensively)
Shipped a robotics product or worked on production robotic systems or similar (cars, consumer electronics, etc)
Embedded development experience (bare-metal, RTOS, or resource-constrained environments)
Computer vision, sensor fusion, or perception experience
Background in controls, kinematics, or motion planning
Experience with consumer electronics, IoT devices, or hardware startups
This Role Might Not Be For You If:
You prefer purely backend web development or application software
You need well-defined specifications and established infrastructure
You're looking for a remote-only position
To Apply
Send your resume and a note about what excites you about this role to careers@art-lab.ai
The pay range for this role is: $160,000-200,000 per year
Competitive benefits and early equity stake