Senior Robotics Engineer / Postdoctoral Researcher 60-100 %

ZHAW - Zürcher Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften; Winterthur; On-site; CHF 110,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

ZHAW - Zürcher Hochschule für Angewandte Wissenschaften in Winterthur invites applications for a postdoctoral researcher or senior robotics engineer to move lab robots into industry with Swiss partners, deploying reinforcement learning and robot foundation models on humanoid and quadruped platforms.

You will conduct applied R&D in the Embodied Mobile Agents group, publish results, contribute open-source code, and collaborate with industry and universities across Switzerland and the EU.

Qualifications

• PhD in robotics, or in computer science or a related field with a focus on AI for robotics.
• Hands-on experience with real robots, including prototyping and modifying robots with off-the-shelf equipment.
• Proven competencies in robot learning (reinforcement learning, imitation learning, robot foundation models) and in classical robotics (motion planning, perception and navigation, teleoperation).
• Strong programming skills with ROS / ROS 2, Nav2, MoveIt, PCL, OpenCV; experience with the NVIDIA Jetson ecosystem and current deep learning frameworks.
• Strong research track record in AI for robotics or computer vision, evidenced by publications.
• Fluent in English; German is a plus.
• Position level: research associate, initially limited to 2 years.

Responsibilities

• Conduct applied research and development as a senior robotics engineer / postdoctoral researcher in the Embodied Mobile Agents group.
• Deploy reinforcement learning and policies on humanoid and quadruped robots in real-world settings.
• Drive focus topics like agentic embodied AI systems and robotic foundation models.
• Collaborate with Swiss and EU partners; contribute publications and open-source code.

Skills

Reinforcement learning

Imitation learning

Robot foundation models

ROS / ROS 2

Nav2

MoveIt

OpenCV

NVIDIA Jetson

Python / C++

Publications track record

Education

PhD in robotics or AI for robotics

Tools

PCL

NVIDIA Jetson ecosystem

Job description

We are looking for a postdoctoral researcher or senior robotics engineer. Take humanoid and quadruped robots out of the lab and into industry: with Swiss partners, you deploy reinforcement learning, robot foundation models and agentic systems in the real world.

School:

School of Engineering

Starting date:

January 2027 or by appointment.

Your role

• You conduct applied research and development as a senior robotics engineer / postdoctoral researcher in the Embodied Mobile Agents (EMA) research group, deploying reinforcement learning and VLA/WAM policies on humanoid and quadruped robots in the real world.
• You drive our current focus topics: flexible industrial automation through agentic embodied AI systems, robotic foundation models and reinforcement learning for mobile manipulation. In a new project, we will be looking into lowering the entry barrier to robot teleoperation and imitation learning for non-technical users through automated dataset curation and real-time feedback.
• You turn results into publications and open-source code contributions.
• You collaborate with companies, universities and other partners in Switzerland and the EU. Most of our projects are applied research and innovation projects with Swiss companies, mainly funded by Innosuisse.

Your profile

• You hold a PhD in robotics, or in computer science or a related field with a focus on AI for robotics.
• You are a pragmatic \"maker\" with a strong drive to build things that work and are appealing to use, and you have hands‑on experience with real robots, including prototyping and modifying robots with off‑the‑shelf equipment.
• You have proven competencies in robot learning (reinforcement learning, imitation learning, robot foundation models) and in classical robotics (motion planning, perception and navigation, teleoperation).
• You are a strong programmer and work confidently with ROS / ROS 2, Nav2, MoveIt, PCL, OpenCV, the NVIDIA Jetson ecosystem and current deep learning frameworks.
• You have a strong research track record in AI for robotics or computer vision, shown by publications, and your curiosity keeps you on top of the state of the art.
• You are fluent in English; German is a plus.
• We offer a position at the level of research associate, initially limited to 2 years.

This is what we stand for

Zurich University of Applied Sciences ZHAW is one of Switzerland's largest multidisciplinary universities of applied sciences, with over 14'000 students and 3'400 faculty and staff. The School of Engineering (SoE), as one of the leading educational and research institutions in Switzerland, focuses on topics relevant to the future. 14 institutes and centres guarantee high‑quality education, research and development with a focus on the areas of energy, mobility, information and health. The Centre for Artificial Intelligence (CAI) maintains a growing number of research groups in four strategic focus areas: Foundations of AI & Machine Learning, Generative & Multimodal AI, Physical & Agentic AI, and Trustworthy & Responsible AI. The CAI conducts method‑focused applied re‑search and development at the highest level in the field of machine learning and is committed to a human‑centered ap‑proach to artificial intelligence, thereby actively shaping the ethical dimension. We are looking for a witty, sharp, curious, and technically skilled personality. We value potential over formally certified skills, encouraging also unconventional CVs, e.g., transdisciplinary backgrounds or own entrepreneurial experience. Please honor us with a tailored cover letter and highlight facts that underline your ability to achieve high. We are looking forward to hearing from you! ZHAW is committed to gender‑mixed and diverse teams in order to promote equality, diversity and innovation.

What you can expect

We offer working conditions and terms of employment commensurate with higher education institutions and actively promote personal development for staff in leadership and non‑leadership positions. A detailed description of advantages and benefits can be found at Working at the ZHAW. The main points are listed below:

Contact

Dr. Jorge Peña Queralta Head of the Embodied Mobile Agents Research Group

Samy Shalaby Recruiting Manager