Robotics Software Engineer, Autonomy Integration

Contoro Robotics; Austin (TX); On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Contoro Robotics, an Austin-based startup, seeks a robotics software engineer to enhance motion, planning, and coordination across planning, robot control, end effectors, sensors, and material-handling equipment.

You will develop production software linking high-level autonomy decisions to reliable physical execution, focusing on reducing cycle time and improving recovery from real-world failures.

Qualifications

• BS or MS in robotics, CS, EE, ME, or equivalent industry experience.
• 3+ years of professional experience developing software for deployed robotic or automation systems.
• Proficiency in modern C++ and Python in a production environment.
• Experience developing with ROS or ROS 2 on Linux.
• Hands-on experience integrating software with physical robots, actuators, sensors, or industrial automation equipment.
• Working knowledge of robot kinematics, motion planning, trajectory execution, and controller interfaces.
• Experience with behavior trees, state machines, or similar task-orchestration frameworks.
• Strong debugging skills across software, communications, controls, and hardware interfaces.

Responsibilities

• Develop and improve software for robot trajectory execution, task sequencing, and hardware coordination
• Profile robot cycles and reduce delays across motion planning, trajectory execution, end-effector operation, sensing, and conveyor interaction
• Build and maintain reusable, validated robot motions for common operating scenarios and integrate them with online planning
• Extend behavior trees or state machines for autonomous task execution, event-driven coordination, fault handling, and recovery
• Integrate motion-planning outputs with industrial robot controllers, hardware interfaces, and safety constraints
• Diagnose production issues using logs, telemetry, simulation, and testing on physical robots
• Add instrumentation, automated tests, regression tests, and hardware validation for execution and autonomy software
• Collaborate with perception, motion planning, controls, hardware, test, and deployment engineers on cross-system improvements
• Participate in design reviews and contribute to system architecture and technical planning

Skills

C++

Python

ROS/ROS 2

Linux

Robot hardware integration

Behavior trees / state machines

Debugger / profiling

Education

BS/MS in Robotics, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or related field

Tools

ROS / ROS 2

Linux tooling

Git

MoveIt / OMPL

Job description

Join Contoro Robotics – Revolutionizing Warehouse Automation with Cutting-Edge Robotics

At Contoro Robotics, we're on a mission to solve labor challenges through advanced robotic solutions. Headquartered in Austin, TX, our fast-growing startup is transforming the supply chain industry with our flagship warehouse automation technology. Our team is made up of top-tier experts in robotics, AI, and logistics, working together to push the boundaries of automation.

We’re looking for talented and ambitious individuals to join us on this journey—helping shape the future of robotics while growing alongside a world-class team. If you're passionate about innovation, problem-solving, and making a real-world impact, we want to hear from you!

About Contoro

Contoro Robotics is an Austin-based startup focused on warehouse automation. We design and deploy autonomous truck-unloading robots that handle heavy and highly variable payloads in real customer environments.

The Role

We are hiring a robotics software engineer to improve how our autonomous robots execute motion and coordinate work across planning, robot control, end effectors, sensors, and material-handling equipment. You will develop production software that connects high-level autonomy decisions to reliable physical execution, with a focus on reducing cycle time, eliminating unnecessary delays, and improving recovery from real-world failures.

This role is well suited for an engineer who enjoys working across software and hardware boundaries, diagnosing system-level problems, and turning performance data into practical improvements on deployed robots.

Responsibilities

• Develop and improve software for robot trajectory execution, task sequencing, and hardware coordination
• Profile robot cycles and reduce delays across motion planning, trajectory execution, end-effector operation, sensing, and conveyor interaction
• Build and maintain reusable, validated robot motions for common operating scenarios and integrate them with online planning
• Extend behavior trees or state machines for autonomous task execution, event-driven coordination, fault handling, and recovery
• Integrate motion-planning outputs with industrial robot controllers, hardware interfaces, and safety constraints
• Diagnose production issues using logs, telemetry, simulation, and testing on physical robots
• Add instrumentation, automated tests, regression tests, and hardware validation for execution and autonomy software
• Collaborate with perception, motion planning, controls, hardware, test, and deployment engineers on cross-system improvements
• Participate in design reviews and contribute to system architecture and technical planning

Qualifications

• B.S. or M.S. in Robotics, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent industry experience
• 3+ years of professional experience developing software for deployed robotic or automation systems
• Proficiency in modern C++ and Python in a production environment
• Experience developing with ROS or ROS 2 on Linux
• Hands-on experience integrating software with physical robots, actuators, sensors, or industrial automation equipment
• Working knowledge of robot kinematics, motion planning, trajectory execution, and controller interfaces
• Experience with behavior trees, state machines, or similar task-orchestration frameworks
• Strong debugging skills across software, communications, controls, and hardware interfacesAbility to design, test, and deliver reliable software across subsystem boundaries

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with industrial manipulators such as KUKA, ABB, FANUC, Universal Robots, or similar platforms
• Experience with MoveIt, Pilz, OMPL, Ruckig, ros2_control, or comparable robotics frameworks
• Experience profiling and improving robot cycle time, throughput, latency, or trajectory execution
• Familiarity with robot communication and industrial protocols such as EtherCAT, CAN, PROFINET, EtherNet/IP, or OPC UA
• Experience with behavior-tree design, event-driven automation, or production recovery logic
• Experience building simulation, hardware-in-the-loop, or automated regression-testing systems
• Familiarity with Docker-based deployment and cloud-based logging or monitoring
• Prior work in warehouse automation, manufacturing, logistics, material handling, or robotic pick-and-place applications