Senior Robotics Engineer / Postdoctoral Researcher 60-100 %

ZHAW International; Zürich; On-site; CHF 90,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

ZHAW International invites applications for a Senior Robotics Engineer / Postdoctoral Researcher (60-100%). Based in Zürich, you will conduct applied R&D in the Embodied Mobile Agents group, deploying reinforcement learning and robot foundation models on humanoid and quadruped robots.

You will publish results, contribute to open-source code, and collaborate with Swiss and EU partners, advancing industrial automation through agentic embodied AI systems.

Qualifications

• PhD in robotics or AI for robotics required.
• Hands-on experience with real robots and prototyping.
• Strong research track record in AI for robotics or computer vision.
• Fluent in English; German is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Conduct applied research and development as a senior robotics engineer / postdoctoral researcher in EMA.
• Deploy reinforcement learning, robot foundation models and agentic systems on humanoid and quadruped robots.
• Publish results and contribute open-source code.
• Collaborate with Swiss and EU partners; engage in applied research and innovation projects.

Skills

Reinforcement learning

Imitation learning

Robot foundation models

Motion planning

Perception

Navigation

Teleoperation

ROS / ROS 2

Nav2

MoveIt

PCL

OpenCV

NVIDIA Jetson

Deep learning

Python

Education

PhD in robotics or AI for robotics

Tools

ROS / ROS 2

Nav2

MoveIt

PCL

OpenCV

NVIDIA Jetson

Job description

Senior Robotics Engineer / Postdoctoral Researcher 60-100 %

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.

• 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.
• 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.

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.

ZHAW is committed to gender-mixed and diverse teams in order to promote equality, diversity and innovation.

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