Embedded Systems Engineer

Formulate Labs; Mountain View (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Firmware ownership

In-person collaboration

Autonomy

Job summary

Formulate Labs is seeking an Embedded Systems Engineer in California to design robust firmware for robotics-driven manufacturing systems. You will bridge hardware and cloud, implementing device interfaces, real-time control, and safety logic.

You will collaborate with hardware, controls, AI, and cloud engineers, owning core firmware powering a Gen 3 platform. This role emphasizes production-ready software and hands-on board bring-up in a fast-moving environment.

Qualifications

• 3+ years of experience developing embedded systems or firmware in production environments.
• Strong proficiency in C/C++ or Rust for embedded systems.
• Experience with microcontrollers, SBCs, or industrial controllers.
• Understanding of real-time constraints, interrupt-driven systems, and hardware interfacing.

Responsibilities

• Develop firmware and embedded software for robotics-driven manufacturing systems.
• Implement communication protocols between devices and cloud services (e.g., serial, CAN, RS-485, Ethernet).
• Interface with sensors, motors, load cells, heaters, and industrial components.
• Design fault detection, safety logic, and real-time control routines.
• Optimize performance for timing, reliability, and resource constraints.
• Collaborate with hardware engineers on board bring-up, testing, and validation.
• Work with cloud engineers to define device-to-cloud APIs and telemetry pipelines.
• Build tools for debugging, diagnostics, and field support.
• Continuously improve system robustness through testing and real-world feedback.

Skills

Embedded systems

C/C++

Rust

Microcontrollers

Real-time

Debugging

Safety-critical design

Job description

About The Role

As an Embedded Systems Engineer, you'll build the low-level software and firmware that connects intelligence to physical systems. You will work at the boundary between hardware and cloud - writing the code that runs on controllers, interfaces with sensors and actuators, and enables reliable, real-time operation of our Gen 3 manufacturing platform.

Our systems control motors, pumps, valves, load cells, heaters, safety interlocks, and industrial peripherals. This role is about building robust firmware and device-layer systems that are safe, deterministic, and production-ready -- not hobby prototypes.

You’ll collaborate closely with hardware, controls, AI, and cloud engineers to define clean interfaces between embedded devices and higher-level orchestration systems.

This is a full-time role based in California, with in-person collaboration expected in our Mountain View office.

What You’ll Do

• Develop firmware and embedded software for robotics-driven manufacturing systems.
• Implement communication protocols between devices and cloud services (e.g., serial, CAN, RS-485, Ethernet, etc.).
• Interface with sensors, motors, load cells, heaters, and industrial components.
• Design fault detection, safety logic, and real-time control routines.
• Optimize performance for timing, reliability, and resource constraints.
• Collaborate with hardware engineers on board bring-up, testing, and validation.
• Work with cloud engineers to define device-to-cloud APIs and telemetry pipelines.
• Build tools for debugging, diagnostics, and field support.
• Continuously improve system robustness through testing and real-world feedback.

What We’re Looking For

• 3+ years of experience developing embedded systems or firmware in production environments.
• Strong proficiency in C/C++ or Rust for embedded systems.
• Experience working with microcontrollers, SBCs, or industrial controllers.
• Understanding of real-time constraints, interrupt-driven systems, and hardware interfacing.
• Comfortable debugging hardware/software integration issues.
• Strong systems thinking -- you understand failure modes and safety considerations.
• High agency and bias toward action in fast-moving environments.
• Actively leverages modern AI tools to accelerate development and troubleshooting.
• Nice-to-haves: motor control, PID systems, industrial automation, Linux-based embedded systems, device provisioning at scale.

What We Offer

• Competitive compensation with equity.
• Ownership over core firmware powering real-world robotic systems.
• Opportunity to work at the intersection of robotics, AI, and physical manufacturing.
• In-person collaboration with a small, ambitious engineering team.
• A high-autonomy environment built for scrappy builders.