Staff Product Manager, Applied AI

Apptronik; Sacramento (CA); On-site; USD 215,000 - 245,000; Full time

Job summary

Apptronik in California is seeking a senior product manager to drive the product vision for its robotic platform, bridging hardware and software, and translating market needs into executable roadmaps. You will own the core model stack roadmap, coordinate with design, engineering, and data teams, and ensure releases deliver real-world value while meeting safety and manufacturing constraints.

This role requires 7+ years in product management, experience with AI/ML models, and a track record of

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree (or equivalent) in a relevant engineering/domain field.
• 10+ years of experience in product management or engineering, including 5+ years leading product managers, with a track record of shipping complex hardware products.
• Strong background in robotics, AI/ML, and model integration into hardware-software systems.

Responsibilities

• Own and maintain the product roadmap for the core hardware-software stack.
• Drive integration and fine-tuning of foundation models into the autonomy stack for Apollo.
• Translate customer use cases into model capability requirements and acceptance criteria.
• Define data strategy: what to collect, why, and the quality bar; align with data teams.
• Communicate requirements to engineering via clear docs and diagrams.
• Collaborate with design, UX, and engineering on interactive features and releases.
• Support product marketing and partnerships to accelerate adoption.

Skills

Product management

Robot learning

Model adaptation

Edge devices

Data-driven decisions

Communication

Decision under uncertainty

User feedback advocacy

Education

Bachelor's degree

Advanced degree or MBA helpful

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

You will focus on driving the product vision, ensuring seamless execution across the complex hardware/software divide, and translating market demands into user oriented, executable product roadmaps.

Essential Duties And Responsibilities / Key Accountabilities

• Own and maintain the physical AI model roadmap: product vision, milestones, and release cycles for the core model stack
• Drive the integration, adaptation, and fine-tuning of foundation models into Apollo's autonomy stack. Sequence which capabilities graduate into the shipping model, balancing capability velocity against reliability and safety.
• Translate customer use cases into model capability requirements and acceptance criteria
• Partner with our data collection and evaluation team on benchmarks, real-world evaluation, and the success criteria that gate real-world deployment.
• Own the data strategy that feeds model development: define what to collect and why, the target tasks and behaviors, and the quality bar.
• Align data technology and operations teams on collection techniques, tooling, and quality expectations.
• Define and prioritize use cases based on business impact, feasibility, and customer needs.
• Ensure that product development efforts align with real-world economic value for customers.
• Synthesize insights from user research, customer meetings, usage data, and sales feedback into a strategy that delivers business objectives and customer benefits.
• Work with industrial design, user experience, and engineering teams to conceptualize and implement interactive features.
• Define product features/enhancements and communicate requirements to engineering teams via clearly written requirements documents, diagrams, and concise verbal communication.
• Support product marketing initiatives, partner relationships, and other opportunities to accelerate the adoption of our products.

Skills And Requirements

• 7+ years of experience in product management
• Strong understanding of modern robot learning techniques including imitation learning, reinforcement learning
• Demonstrated experience integrating, adapting, or fine-tuning models
• Strong familiarity with the constraints of running large neural networks on physical edge devices
• Strong analytical skills with experience in performance tracking and data-driven decision-making
• Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written, enabling translation of technical insights into business impact
• You make decisions in uncertainty, prioritizing velocity over perfection
• You prioritize user feedback, promoting and advocating for that voice to internal teams

NICE TO HAVE

• Experience with autonomous robots or autonomous vehicles.
• Experience using simulation tools to improve user experience.
• Hands‑on experience training or fine‑tuning foundation
• Experience with data collection operation (teleoperation fleets, annotation and curation pipelines).
• Experience working with customers in light and heavy duty industrial environments
• Experience with robotics and functional safety standards (ISO 10218, ISO/TS 15066, ISO 13482, RIA 15.08).

EDUCATION And/or EXPERIENCE

Bachelor's degree (or equivalent) in mechanical, electrical, systems, or robotics engineering, or a related field; advanced degree or MBA helpful. At least 10 years of experience in product management or engineering, including 5+ years leading product managers, with a track record of shipping complex hardware products.

Physical Requirements

Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer. Ability to spend time on lab and manufacturing floors, and to travel to supplier and manufacturing sites as needed. Must be able to lift 15 pounds at times. Vision to read printed materials and a computer screen; hearing and speech to communicate.

The annual salary range is $215,000 - $245,000

This is a direct hire. Please, no outside Agency solicitations.

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.