Simulation Engine Engineer (up to £110k)

Dex; Cambridge; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Dex is collaborating with a Cambridge-based robotics startup to lead hands-on development of a GPU-accelerated simulation engine. You will write and optimize modern C++ close to hardware, verify fidelity against humanoid and quadruped robots, and mentor junior engineers onsite.

The role is a senior IC anchor, with a focus on practical engineering over management layers, requiring relocation to Cambridge and on-site work with lab hardware.

Qualifications

• Shipping performance-critical, low-level systems where determinism and speed matter.
• Experience with physics or game engines or similarly complex systems close to silicon.
• Demonstrated ability to mentor early-career engineers and review code rigorously.
• Willingness to work on-site in Cambridge, UK with robotics hardware.

Responsibilities

• Architect and implement the core GPU-accelerated simulation engine for large-scale robot learning pipelines.
• Write, profile, and optimize performance-critical modern C++.
• Bridge the engine to real-world edge hardware and validate fidelity with robots.
• Serve as the senior technical anchor on site, setting standards and guiding the team.

Skills

Modern C++

Low-level systems

Physics engines

Mentoring

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.