Senior Firmware Engineer

Location: San Francisco, CA

Department: Software Engineering

Why We Are Hiring for This Role:

• To develop, optimize, and maintain the embedded systems that control our humanoid robots, ensuring seamless integration of hardware and software.
• To design Embedded C Applications for a hybrid system consisting of multiple interconnected compute engines such as ARM SoCs and micro-controllers.
• To ensure that the robots’ embedded systems are reliable, scalable, and capable of executing AI-driven control strategies in real-time.

What Kind of Person We Are Looking For:

• Strong background in embedded software development (C/C++, RTOS), including configuring and optimizing cross compiler tool-chains for embedded architectures, working with software drivers and shared libraries.
• Comfortable writing and debugging highly performant embedded C/C++ applications for ARM based SoCs that include GPUs. Confidence in CUDA programming is a major plus.
• Familiarity with networking protocols such as Ethernet, WiFi, CANBus, Ethercat, etc.
• Extensive experience in embedded systems design and development, particularly for AI-driven robotics, computer vision devices, or automated driving systems. 
• Ability to work on both software and hardware aspects of embedded systems, ensuring they work seamlessly together.
• Graduate degree (Masters or PhD in Computer Science or Computer Engineering preferred) and 5+ years of experience with high performance Linux based embedded systems. 
• Nice-to-haves:
• • Experience with computer vision pipelines on ARM SoCs
  • Experience with an RTOS such as VxWorks or freeRTOS

Benefits

• We provide market standard benefits (health, vision, dental, 401k, etc.). Join us for the culture and the mission, not for the benefits.

Salary

• The annual compensation is expected to be between $180,000 - $300,000. Exact compensation may vary based on skills, experience, and location

About the Company

About Us

Foundation is developing the future of general purpose robotics with the goal to address the labor shortage.

Our mission is to create advanced robots that can operate in complex environments, reducing human risk in conflict zones and enhancing efficiency in labor-intensive industries.

We are on the lookout for extraordinary engineers and scientists to join our team. Your previous experience in robotics isn't a prerequisite — it's your talent and determination that truly count.

We expect that many of our team members will bring diverse perspectives from various industries and fields. We are looking for individuals with a proven record of exceptional ability and a history of creating things that work.

All positions are based in San Francisco.

Our Culture

We like to be frank and honest about who we are, so that people can decide for themselves if this is a culture they resonate with. Please read more about our culture here https://foundation.bot/culture.

Who should join:

• You like working in person with a team in San Francisco.
• You deeply believe that this is the most important mission for humanity and needs to happen yesterday.
• You are highly technical - regardless of the role you are in. We are building technology; you need to understand technology well.
• You care about aesthetics and design inside out. If it's not the best product ever, it bothers you, and you need to “fix” it.
• You don't need someone to motivate you; you get things done.