Senior Electrical Engineer - Sensor FPGA and PCB (Aggregator)

Capital Factory; Austin (TX); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Apptronik is seeking a Senior Electrical Engineer to design and build electronics for Apollo's sensor bridge. You will own subsystems from schematic capture to RTL blocks, working with a team to enable safe, scalable robotics.

This role emphasizes FPGA design, high-speed interfaces, and collaboration with perception and staff engineers. The ideal candidate has hands-on RTL development (VHDL/Verilog), experience with CSI-2 and Ethernet interfaces, and a proven ability to deliver prototypes

Qualifications

• Experience in FPGA hardware design for time-sensitive, high-performance applications.
• Proficiency in RTL development and high-speed interface design.
• Strong knowledge of signal integrity and debugging hardware.

Responsibilities

• Own subsystems of a multi-Gbps PCBA, including schematic capture and RTL blocks.
• Design and validate high-speed interfaces and power sequencing within constraints.
• Develop RTL for CSI-2, Ethernet, and camera synchronization, and support timing closure.
• Create test plans, documentation, and DFx deliverables; mentor junior engineers.

Skills

FPGA design

RTL development

High-speed interfaces

VHDL/Verilog

Hardware debugging

Signal integrity

Mentoring

Education

Bachelor's/Master's/PhD in Electrical Engineering

5+ years Electrical Engineering experience

Tools

Vivado

Quartus

Lattice Radiant

ModelSim/Questa

Oscilloscopes

Logic analyzers

Job description

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 Applied AI, applying our expertise across the full robotics stack to solve some of society's most important problems. You will join a team dedicated to bringing Apollo to market at scale, tackling the complex challenges like safety, commercialization, and mass production to change the world for the better.

JOB SUMMARY

We're looking for a Senior Electrical Engineer to help design and build the electronics for Apollo's sensor bridge. Strong candidates will have experience with FPGA hardware for both PCBA design and RTL development. This role works closely with the perception team to give Apollo sight and enable critical safety functions. You'll take direct, hands-on ownership of defined subsystems within the board — schematic capture, layout guidance, and RTL blocks — executing against an architecture defined in partnership with the team's Staff and/or Principal engineers.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES or KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

• Electronics & FPGA Design Execution: Contribute to requirements definition and own part selection, schematic capture, layout guidance, and RTL implementation for assigned subsystems of a multi-Gbps, mixed-signal PCBA that aggregates camera sensor data and human-robot interface functions into an efficient cable interface routed across dynamic joints. Carry the design through prototype, validation, and manufacturing release, in coordination with the engineer(s) owning overall board architecture. Generate and maintain design documentation including: schematics, RTL documentation, test plans, and fab/assembly drawings.
• High-Speed & Mixed-Signal Hardware Design: Design and validate high-speed digital interfaces (CSI-2, GMSL2/FPD-Link/PoC, 10GbE) including signal integrity, impedance control, and length-matching. Contribute to the board's power tree design for proper power sequencing and low-power consumption. Design for EMC, ESD, and thermal constraints.
• FPGA RTL Development: Develop RTL (VHDL/Verilog) for CSI-2 ingest, Ethernet packetization, timestamp/metadata insertion, and camera synchronization logic for deterministic multi-camera and multi-IMU synchronization, working within an FPGA architecture defined collaboratively with senior technical staff. Support timing closure, clock-domain crossing, and resource/power budgeting for your RTL blocks. Assist with integration of high-speed transceivers and external PHYs.
• Validation, Bring-Up, and Debugging: Develop and execute validation plans for your assigned subsystems, spanning board-level and FPGA-level testing. Build test fixtures and use lab equipment (high-bandwidth oscilloscopes, protocol analyzers, logic analyzers) to validate latency, bandwidth, and synchronization requirements. Debug across the hardware/RTL boundary — link training failures, timing violations, ISP misconfiguration, power sequencing faults — using rigorous, first-principles root-cause analysis, escalating and collaborating with technical leads on cross-subsystem issues.
• Lifecycle Management & Vendor Alignment: Support the entire component lifecycle through PLM systems, managing third-party relationships with hardware vendors and contract manufacturers (CMs) to ensure successful production scaling and design-for-manufacturability (DFM/DFA).
• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Collaborate closely with cross-functional teams, including technical lead, project managers, software, mechanical, thermal, systems engineers, and manufacturing. Act as a mentor within the electrical engineering team, guiding junior engineers on best practices for hardware design, documentation, and troubleshooting.
• Technical Execution: Execute assigned work streams reliably and communicate progress clearly to technical leads and program management. Contribute to design reviews and root-cause analysis for hardware and software defect resolution within your scope. Provide work breakdowns and time estimates for your own work to inform project execution, and raise design or schedule risks proactively.

SKILLS AND REQUIREMENTS

• Experience in FPGA hardware design for time-sensitive, high-performance applications (image processing, high-speed data acquisition, real-time networking, or similar), including:
  • FPGA device selection and architecture definition
  • RTL development in VHDL and/or Verilog
  • High-speed interface design (CSI-2, GMSL/SerDes, Ethernet, PCIe, or comparable)
  • Timing closure, clock-domain crossing, and resource optimization
  • Integration of high-speed transceivers and external PHY devices
  • FPGA tool flows (Vivado, Quartus, or Lattice Radiant) and simulation (ModelSim/Questa or equivalent)
• Understanding of high-speed digital design fundamentals: signal integrity, impedance-controlled routing, differential pairs, stack-up, and timing analysis across the board-to-FPGA boundary.
• Experience with camera/image sensor hardware: SerDes (GMSL, FPD-Link, or similar), MIPI CSI-2, and ISP integration — automotive or robotics vision systems strongly preferred.
• Experience with Ethernet-based sensor streaming and sensor bridges.
• Excellent communication (verbal & written); will be expected to develop detailed build assembly instructions and diagrams.
• Excellent problem-solving and hardware debugging skills. Hands-on experience with prototyping and testing, including the use of lab equipment.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, high-growth environment where "perfect" is the enemy of "shipped," knowing exactly when a design is robust enough for the real world.
• Travel up to 10% within US and internationally.

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE

• Bachelors, Masters, or PhD degree in Electrical Engineering or related field.
• At least 5 years of experience in Electrical Engineering.

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

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.