Simulation Engine Engineer (up to £110k)

Dex; Cambridge; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Dex is partnering with a Cambridge-based robotics startup to hire a senior systems engineer to lead hands-on development of core simulation and engine infrastructure, writing modern C++ and mentoring junior engineers on site.

You will review complex code, unblock bugs, and ensure fidelity of simulation against real robots, bridging to edge hardware and driving engineering standards. This role is a senior IC anchor in a small, deeply technical team that ships advanced robotics software daily.

Qualifications

• Experience in modern C++ for performance-critical systems.
• Hands-on work with physics or game engines close to silicon.
• Mentored junior engineers and led by example through pair programming and code reviews.

Responsibilities

• Architect and implement the core GPU-accelerated simulation engine.
• Write, profile, and tune performance-critical C++ code.
• Bridge the engine to edge hardware and validate against robots.
• Mentor early-career engineers and establish coding standards on site.

Skills

Modern C++

Low-level systems

Mentoring

Code reviews

Pair programming

Tools

C++

Physics engines

GPU programming

Real-time systems

Job description

This role is with one of Dex's trusted partner companies. We work closely with their teams to truly understand their culture, goals, and what they're looking for, so we can match you with the right opportunity and give you context about the role before you commit to a process. Dex is an AI recruiter agent that helps you run your job search. Tell Dex your stack, seniority, and what you want to build. We will manage your applications and surface other opportunities that are a fit.

The role

Most robotics simulation still relies on engines built for video games or legacy CPU physics packages never designed for massive parallelisation. This Cambridge-based startup, backed by leading VCs with a long runway and founded by veteran architects who spent over a decade building physics engines at a major semiconductor giant, is rewriting the simulation and learning stack for modern robotics from the ground up. They are a lean, deeply technical team of eleven working alongside live humanoid and quadruped hardware.

You will lead the hands-on development of the core simulation and engine infrastructure, coding alongside founders who still commit engine code daily. This is a senior IC anchor seat, not an ivory-tower management track: the on-site engineering team is early-career and needs a senior systems engineer in the room to review, unblock, and mentor. If you want layers of middle management and abstracted ticket-shuffling, this is not it; if you want to write modern C++ close to the hardware and watch your simulation train physical robots in the lab, it is.

The work

• Architect and implement the core GPU-accelerated simulation engine powering massive-scale robot learning pipelines.
• Write, profile, and tune performance-critical modern C++ where throughput and execution speed directly dictate training viability.
• Bridge the engine to real-world edge hardware, validating simulation fidelity against in-house humanoid and quadruped robots.
• Act as the senior technical anchor on site—setting engineering standards, unblocking complex bugs, and mentoring early-career engineers through pairing and rigorous code reviews.

What You Bring

• Deep expertise in modern C++ with a track record of shipping performance-critical, low-level systems where speed and determinism are the product.
• Direct experience building or working deep inside physics engines, game engines, or comparably complex systems close to the silicon.
• Demonstrated seniority through mentoring earlier-career engineers, levelling up the room via pairing, rigorous code reviews, and clear technical guidance.
• Comfort debating technical trade-offs openly and iterating directly alongside highly technical, code-writing founders.
• Based in or able to relocate to Cambridge, UK, to work fully on site with the lab and robotics hardware every day.

Why apply through Dex

Exceptional low-level systems roles in robotics simulation are scarce, often masked by generic game-dev or robotics listings, and run by founders with a razor-thin tolerance for superficial code. Applying through Dex cuts out cold outreach and puts your systems depth directly in front of technical decision-makers. We brief you thoroughly on the underlying architecture and the team before you ever enter the room.

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