Forward Deployed Engineer - Robotics

Career Renew; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 160,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

Career Renew is seeking a Forward Deployed Engineer in San Francisco to work on cutting-edge robotics systems. This role focuses on deploying reliable robotic software in real-world settings.

The ideal candidate will have 2–4 years of experience in software engineering or robotics, proficiency in Python, and a passion for robotics. The company offers a unique environment with a strong focus on innovation and engineering excellence.

Qualifications

• 2–4 years experience in full-stack software engineering or robotics engineering.
• Experience in early-stage startups or Big Tech with robotics interest.
• Handled end-to-end customer deployments in production environments.

Responsibilities

• Deploy systems in real-world environments.
• Partner closely with end users to understand workflows.
• Translate real-world constraints into engineering improvements.

Skills

Python proficiency

Robotics interest

Back-end development

Rust proficiency

TypeScript proficiency

Tools

ROS

Job description

Career Renew is recruiting for one of its clients a Forward Deployed Engineer – Robotics – this is an onsite position in San Francisco. Salary range: 160-200K USD base plus benefits plus equity.

We are building the operating system for general-purpose robotics – the foundational software layer that sits between robot hardware and AI models, enabling robots to perceive, reason, learn, and act across diverse real-world environments.

Think of us as what Windows was to the personal computer. Before Windows, computers ran on fragmented DOS-based interfaces that weren’t built for people to build on or use. We are doing the same for robotics: creating a unified, developer-first platform that enables software engineers, roboticists, and hobbyists to deploy and operate robots without stitching together 10 fragmented open-source tools.

The platform provides a modular, composable architecture for training and deploying robotic intelligence at scale. By abstracting hardware differences and standardizing core capabilities – perception, spatial understanding, navigation, decision-making, and control – we allow developers and partners to build, transfer, and operate robotic skills efficiently across platforms and embodiments.

Key highlights:

• $30M raised – making us one of the best-capitalized software robotics startups in the space
• Open source – the entire platform is available on GitHub, attracting a mission-driven engineering community
• Hardware distribution partnerships – we are the distributor for two of the largest robotics hardware OEMs in the world, giving them unique go-to-market leverage
• Second-time founder – CEO previously dropped out of MIT and co-founded Mock Industries, now valued at $1.8B after raising $500M
• Early and lean – ~10 people in the SF office, almost entirely engineers and the founder. Product-focused, flat structure, high ownership

We're looking for a Forward-Deployed Engineer to work directly at the intersection of customers, software, and physical robotic systems. This role is about closing the last 10%: taking cutting-edge robotics software and making it work reliably in real-world environments. You'll partner closely with end users to understand their workflows, deploy systems in the wild, and translate real-world constraints into product and engineering improvements.

Tech stack

Python, Rust, ROS, TypeScript

Requirements

• 2–4 years of experience in full-stack (back-end leaning) software engineering, robotics engineering or FDE with an engineering foundation (Mandatory)
• Experience in an early or growth-stage startup OR Big Tech with demonstrated robotics interest (Mandatory)
• Owned end-to-end customer deployments/integrations of complex technical systems in production environments (Mandatory)
• Navigate unfamiliar Python codebase, find issues and ship back-end code (Mandatory)
• Genuine interest or experience in robotics or physical automation (hardware deployment a plus) (Mandatory)
• Other archetypes: ex-founder or technical solutions engineer with robotics/hardware experience (Nice-to-have)
• Python proficiency (Mandatory)
• Rust and Typescript (Optional)
• Exposure to robotics middleware, ROS, or physical systems integration (Optional)
• Translate ambiguous customer requirements into defined technical specs and deploy/integrate into stack (Mandatory)
• Willingness to travel domestic 10–25% to client sites (Mandatory)