Helix AI Engineer, Android

Figure; San Jose (CA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 400,000; Full time

Job summary

Figure, based in San Jose, is seeking a Senior Android Engineer to develop the mobile application for its innovative humanoid robot. The role requires building high-performance applications that connect directly with custom sensor hardware, optimizing real-time data processing, and leveraging low-level Android systems.

Candidates should have deep expertise in Android NDK (C/C++), experience with real-time data infrastructure, and a proven track record in shipping production apps. Competitive salaries range from $150,000 to $400,000 annually.

Qualifications

• Deep expertise in Android NDK for hardware interfacing and custom HAL development.
• Proven experience with real-time, low-latency pipelines for high-bandwidth sensors.
• Strong proficiency in C/C++ and Kotlin/Java.

Responsibilities

• Build and own the Android application for Figure's humanoid robots.
• Architect high-throughput data ingestion pipelines for image sensors and IMU data.
• Implement custom hardware abstraction layers (HAL) and leverage the Android NDK.

Skills

Android NDK (C/C++)

Low-latency data pipelines

Real-time concurrency

C/C++ and Kotlin/Java

Production Android applications

CPU/GPU workload optimization

Tools

TensorFlow Lite

OpenCV

WebRTC

Job description

Figure is an AI Robotics company developing a general purpose humanoid. Our humanoid robot is designed for commercial tasks and the home. We are based in San Jose and require 5 days/week in-office collaboration. It’s time to build.

We're looking for a Senior Android Engineer with deep expertise in low-level Android systems, the NDK, and real-time sensor and video pipelines. This is not a standard Android app role — you'll be building the mobile application that interfaces directly with our custom sensor hardware over USB, ingests high-frequency camera and IMU data in real time, and runs on-device AI inference at the edge.

If you've spent time below the Java/Kotlin layer — writing C/C++ via the NDK, implementing custom HALs, or building zero-copy sensor pipelines — this role was built for you.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

• Build and own the Android application that serves as the primary mobile interface to Figure's humanoid robots, connected via USB Host / Android Open Accessory protocols.
• Architect high-throughput, zero-drop data ingestion pipelines for high-FPS image sensors and high-frequency IMU data, using zero-copy memory techniques and real-time concurrency models.
• Implement custom hardware abstraction layers (HAL) and leverage the Android NDK (C/C++) for high-performance, low-latency processing.
• Optimize CPU/GPU workloads for real-time edge filtering under strict thermal and battery constraints, using foreground services and WorkManager for bulletproof background operation.
• Integrate on-device AI inference libraries (TFLite, MediaPipe, ONNX Runtime, OpenCV) for real-time computer vision and sensor fusion.
• Implement low-latency video streaming protocols (e.g. WebRTC).

WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR

• Deep expertise in Android NDK (C/C++) — custom HAL development, USB Host/AOA protocol communication, and direct hardware interfacing below the standard SDK layer.
• Proven experience architecting real-time, low-latency data pipelines for high-bandwidth sensors — zero-copy memory, real-time concurrency, and synchronization with zero frame drops.
• Mastery of Android system resource management: CPU/GPU workload optimization, thermal and battery constraints, foreground services, and WorkManager.
• Strong proficiency in both C/C++ (NDK) and Kotlin/Java for Android.
• Experience shipping production Android applications in hardware-connected, latency-critical environments.
• Proven track record shipping and maintaining production Android applications at scale — including crash rate management, OTA update rollout strategies, real-time telemetry and monitoring pipelines, and sustaining reliability across a large, diverse active user base spanning multiple device configurations and Android OS versions.

NICE TO HAVE

• Experience integrating on-device CV/ML inference: TensorFlow Lite, MediaPipe, ONNX Runtime, or OpenCV applied to raw sensor feeds.
• Familiarity with WebRTC or other low-latency streaming protocols for real-time video.
• Background in DSP techniques applied directly to raw sensor data.
• Prior work in robotics companion apps, industrial Android devices, AR/computer vision mobile apps, automotive HMI, or drone control applications.

The US base salary range for this full-time position is between $150,000 - $400,000 annually.