Senior Electrical Engineer - HRI Austin, TX

Apptronik Systems, Inc.; Austin (TX); On-site; USD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Apptronik Systems, Inc. in Austin, Texas is seeking a Senior Electrical Engineer to develop electronic systems for the Apollo robot. This role requires expertise in designing audio and display systems, particularly for robotics and smart electronics. Responsibilities include defining electrical requirements, ensuring compliance with safety certifications, managing vendor relationships, and leading a team. A Bachelor's or Master's degree in Electrical Engineering and 5+ years of experience in audio electronics are essential. The position offers an opportunity to work in cutting-edge robotics development.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of industry experience in audio electronics design.
• Expertise in designing high-power, high-speed PCBs.
• Ability to lead and mentor junior engineers.

Responsibilities

• Define electrical requirements for the human-robot interface.
• Design and test audio and display subsystems.
• Manage third-party relationships with vendors.

Skills

PCB Tools expertise

Audio validation tests proficiency

Knowledge of audio components

Simulation tools proficiency

Adaptive filtering background

Education

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering

Tools

Altium Designer

COMSOL

Audio Precision

Job description

Company Overview

Apptronik is a human‑centered robotics company developing AI‑powered robots to support humanity in every facet of life. Our flagship humanoid robot, Apollo, is built to collaborate thoughtfully with people, starting with critical industries such as manufacturing and logistics, with future applications in healthcare, the home, and beyond. We operate at the cutting edge of embodied AI, applying our expertise across the full robotics stack to solve some of society's most important problems.

Job Summary

We are seeking a highly skilled senior electrical engineer with proven experience designing audio and display systems. In this role, you will drive the electronics development for the human‑robot interface in the next generation Apollo robot from concept, through design, and into production. We are primarily interested in candidates who have developed electronics for smart speakers, headphones, teleconference equipment, or robotics.

Responsibilities

• Define electrical requirements to inform component selection and electronics architecture for the human‑robot interface subsystem.
• Design and test the audio and display subsystems of Apollo.
• Ensure all electrical designs meet stringent EMI/EMC standards and contribute to achieving necessary safety certifications (e.g., UL, CE) for both power and communications.
• Design, simulate, implement, and test multi‑layer mixed signal PCBAs.
• Develop comprehensive validation and test plans (DVT/PVT), design necessary test fixtures, and execute rigorous testing to confirm compliance with performance specifications and regulatory standards (e.g., FCC, CE).
• Own the entire lifecycle of power hardware systems, from initial concept and architecture definition through design, prototyping, validation, production release, and ongoing support.
• Manage 3rd‑party relationships with vendors, contract manufacturers, and external design services.
• Lead and mentor within the electrical engineering team, guiding junior engineers on best practices for complex compute hardware design, documentation, processes, and troubleshooting.

Skills and Requirements

• PCB Tools: expert proficiency with modern schematic capture and PCB layout tools (e.g., Altium Designer) for complex, high‑power, high‑speed boards.
• Preferred: knowledge of microphones, speakers, audio amplifiers, I2S, signal conditioning and filtering, A/D and D/A converters, and digital signal processing (DSP).
• Testing and Validation: ability to design and execute electrical and audio validation tests (Audio Precision, SoundCheck, B&K HATS).
• Nice to have: understanding of Thiele/Small parameters, lumped element modeling, and non‑linear distortion mechanisms.
• Nice to have: proficiency in simulation tools (COMSOL, LEAP, or equivalent).
• Nice to have: Experience designing for high‑performance audio systems where physical acoustics are critical to system‑level accuracy.
• Nice to have: strong background in adaptive filtering (LMS/RLS), array processing, and speech enhancement algorithms.
• Nice to have: familiarity with the signal processing requirements for Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) engines and wake‑word systems.

Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering or a related field.
• At least 5 years of industry experience in the area of audio electronics, with focus in acoustic electronics design (smart speakers, headphones, or robotics).

Physical Requirements

• Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer.
• Must be able to lift 15 pounds at times.
• Vision to read printed materials and a computer screen.
• Hearing and speech to communicate.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

Apptronik provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.