Senior Robotics Software Engineer, System Integration

Field Ai; Boston (MA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

FieldAI is transforming robotics by delivering risk-aware AI systems that operate in unstructured environments. We develop a production-ready software stack for humanoid robots, integrating perception, planning, locomotion, and manipulation for real-world deployments.

The team blends cutting-edge research with practical field deployment, and the role emphasizes building maintainable, testable software that scales across hardware and simulation.

Qualifications

• 7+ years hands-on experience developing and integrating robotics software, including work on physical hardware.
• Strong C++ and Python proficiency; able to work in large, multi-language codebases.
• Solid understanding of real-time systems, inter-process communication, and resource-constrained embedded compute environments.
• Experience hardening research/prototype code into production-quality software with testing and fault handling.
• Experience deploying robots in unstructured, real-world environments (construction, logistics, manufacturing, mining, defense).
• Background in CI/CD, automated testing, and release engineering for robotics software.
• Contributions to open-source robotics frameworks or tools.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain the core software framework that composes perception, planning, locomotion, and manipulation into a deployable system on humanoid platforms.
• Define and enforce subsystem interfaces, communication patterns, and data contracts for reliable, independent module development.
• Own system bring-up, sensor calibration, and validation workflows for new sensor/platform revisions and configurations.
• Partner with research engineers to take algorithms from prototype to production-quality, tested, maintainable code.
• Identify and close reliability gaps with fault handling, performance budgets, integration/regression tests, and hardware validation.
• Build repeatable “graduation” pipelines so new capabilities land without breaking existing functionality.
• Design and run end-to-end integration tests across hardware and simulation.
• Build tooling for automated diagnostics, telemetry, and post-run analysis to speed up debugging.
• Coordinate integration milestones across teams, flag risks early, and keep the system continuously shippable.
• Profile and optimize latency, throughput, and memory on embedded platforms under real-time constraints.
• Harden the stack against real-world failure modes (sensor dropouts, comms loss, thermal throttling, degraded modes).
• Implement runtime monitoring and health checks so the robot can detect, log, and recover from faults autonomously.
• Background in CI/CD, automated testing, and release engineering for robotics software.
• Experience deploying robots in unstructured, real-world environments (construction, logistics, manufacturing, mining, defense).

Skills

C++ proficiency

Python proficiency

ROS/ROS2 experience

Real-time systems knowledge

Embedded compute environments

Software engineering best practices

Fault handling and testing

Multi-language codebases

Open-source contributions

Problem-solving & independence

Education

Bachelor’s or Master’s in CS/Robotics/EE or related field

Tools

ROS/ROS2

CI/CD tooling

Profiling/Instrumentation tools

Job description

FieldAI is transforming how robots interact with the real world. Our growing R&D team is based in Boston, where we develop risk‑aware, reliable, field‑ready AI systems that tackle the hardest problems in robotics and unlock the potential of embodied intelligence. We take a pragmatic approach that goes beyond off‑the‑shelf, purely data‑driven methods or transformer‑only architectures, combining cutting‑edge research with real‑world deployment. Our solutions are already deployed globally, and we continuously improve model performance through rapid iteration driven by real field use.

FieldAI is seeking passionate engineers to play a vital role in the development of our humanoid robot software stack. You will work with a focused team in a fast‑paced environment to integrate perception, planning, locomotion, and manipulation subsystems into a single cohesive system that runs reliably on real hardware in unstructured, real‑world environments. A core part of this role will be working with integrating and graduating research‑grade capabilities into robust, production‑quality systems. The ideal candidate will have a strong understanding of robotic software systems and the practical skills to deliver high‑quality, maintainable code on a small, focused team.

• Develop and maintain the core software framework that composes perception, planning, locomotion, and manipulation into a deployable system on humanoid platforms.
• Define and enforce subsystem interfaces, communication patterns, and data contracts for reliable, independent module development.
• Own system bring-up, sensor calibration, and validation workflows for new sensor/platform revisions and configurations.
• Partner with research engineers to take algorithms from prototype to production‑quality, tested, maintainable code.
• Identify and close reliability gaps with fault handling, performance budgets, integration/regression tests, and hardware validation.
• Build repeatable “graduation” pipelines so new capabilities land without breaking existing functionality.
• Design and run end‑to‑end integration tests across hardware and simulation.
• Build tooling for automated diagnostics, telemetry, and post‑run analysis to speed up debugging.
• Coordinate integration milestones across teams, flag risks early, and keep the system continuously shippable.
• Profile and optimize latency, throughput, and memory on embedded platforms under real‑time constraints.
• Harden the stack against real‑world failure modes (sensor dropouts, comms loss, thermal throttling, degraded modes).
• Implement runtime monitoring and health checks so the robot can detect, log, and recover from faults autonomously.
• Bachelor’s or Master’s in Computer Science, Robotics, Electrical Engineering, or a related field (or equivalent industry experience).
• 7+ years hands‑on experience developing and integrating robotics software, including work on physical hardware.
• Strong C++ and Python proficiency with modern best practices; able to work in large, multi‑language codebases.
• Strong understanding of ROS/ROS2 and experience designing, building, and deploying nodes in complex robotic systems.
• Solid understanding of real‑time systems, inter‑process communication, and resource‑constrained embedded compute environments.
• Experience hardening research/prototype code into production‑quality software with testing and fault handling.
• Strong problem‑solving skills, attention to detail, and ability to work independently while managing multiple priorities.
• Strong work ethic, self‑motivated, and excellent written/verbal communication skills.
• Experience with humanoid robots, legged locomotion platforms, or complex dexterous manipulation systems.Familiarity with motion planning, whole‑body control, or contact‑rich manipulation pipelines.
• Experience working with computationally constrained platforms and designing efficient, real‑time software with low overhead.
• Background in CI/CD, automated testing, and release engineering for robotics software.
• Contributions to open‑source robotics frameworks or tools.
• Experience deploying robots in unstructured, real‑world environments (construction, logistics, manufacturing, mining, defense).

Why Join Field AI?

FieldAI is tackling one of robotics’ hardest problems: deploying robots in unstructured, previously unknown environments. Our Field Foundational Models advance perception, planning, localization, and manipulation with an emphasis on explainability and safety, so our systems can be trusted where it matters most.

You will work alongside a world‑class team that values creativity, resilience, and bold thinking. We bring a decade‑long track record of real‑world deployments, strong performance in DARPA challenges, and experience from organizations such as DeepMind, NASA JPL, Boston Dynamics, NVIDIA, Amazon, Tesla Autopilot, Cruise, Zoox, Toyota Research Institute, and SpaceX.

Our R&D organization is growing and anchored in Boston, with close collaboration across our teams in Southern California and with colleagues around the US and globally.

Be Part of the Next Robotics Revolution

Solving problems at this scale takes a team as unique as the mission. We are looking for people who push beyond conventional approaches, enjoy tackling tough and ambiguous questions, and bring interdisciplinary perspective. Our success depends on exceptional AI researchers and engineers, as well as strong software developers, product designers, field deployment experts, and communicators who can turn breakthroughs into real capability.

We are headquartered in Irvine, Southern California, with teammates across the US and around the world. Join us to shape the future of embodied intelligence as part of a fun, close‑knit team building systems that work in the real world.

Equal Opportunity

FieldAI celebrates diversity and is committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. Candidates and employees are evaluated based on merit, qualifications, and performance. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, gender, national origin, ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, or any other legally protected status.