Senior Firmware Engineer - Actuation

The role

You will develop actuation and motor control firmware for humanoid robots. This includes designing, implementing, and testing brushless motor control firmware and real-time control loops.

What you will do

• Architect next generation humanoid actuators with cross-functional teams.
• Develop, deploy, and maintain motor control firmware including FOC, current controllers, and torque control.
• Contribute to system identification, plant modeling, and controller tuning.
• Execute HIL and SIL testing strategies to validate performance and safety.
• Design and implement fault detection, fault injection, and recovery mechanisms.
• Drive firmware quality and field performance for deployed actuator fleets.
• Bring up actuation hardware from prototype through production.
• Participate in code reviews, design reviews, and pair debugging.
• Contribute to technical decision-making on tooling, processes, and architectural patterns.

Required qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or equivalent practical experience
• Minimum of 5 years of relevant industry experience developing production-grade embedded software
• Proficiency in C/C++
• Working knowledge of Python, Docker, and Git
• Experience developing motor control firmware for BLDC or other brushless motors, including field-oriented control (FOC), current control, and torque control
• Hands-on experience developing hard real-time embedded firmware in production environments
• Experience deploying firmware to devices in the field, including exposure to telemetry, diagnostics, and field reliability
• Experience with EtherCAT for real-time motor control communications
• Strong hardware debugging skills using tools such as oscilloscopes and logic analyzers
• Ability to read and interpret electrical schematics and hardware datasheets
• Experience with embedded communication protocols such as SPI, UART, RS485, and CAN
• Strong collaboration and communication skills

Nice to have

• Master's degree with a focus on controls or motor drives
• Experience with humanoid robotics, industrial robotics, or other high-performance servo applications
• Strong fundamentals in classical and modern control theory
• Experience developing in C and C++ for TI C2000 microcontrollers
• Familiarity with safety-critical embedded system design standards, including MISRA C and ISO 26262
• Experience with model-based design tools (e.g., MATLAB/Simulink)
• Experience with encoder and current sensing front ends, and gate driver ICs (e.g., DRV8353)
• Contributions to firmware tooling, build systems, or developer infrastructure
• Altium Designer

About the company

Apptronik is a human-centered robotics company developing AI-powered robots to support humanity. Their flagship humanoid robot, Apollo, is built to collaborate with people in industries such as manufacturing and logistics.