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Firmware Engineer - Actuation

Apptronik· Software Engineering
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Austin, TXfull-timePosted 3mo ago

About the role

Firmware Engineer to develop actuation and motor control firmware for humanoid robots, including real-time control loops, system identification, HIL/SIL testing, and scaling firmware for fleets of actuators in production humanoids.

Responsibilities

  • Collaborate with controls, systems, electrical, mechanical, and software engineers to architect the next generation of humanoid actuators.
  • Collaborate with the actuation firmware team to develop, deploy, and maintain motor control firmware, including field-oriented control (FOC), current controllers, and torque control for BLDC and other brushless motor topologies.
  • Contribute to system identification, plant modeling, and controller tuning for production actuators, ensuring consistent performance across units, temperature, and load conditions.
  • Help shape and execute the Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) and Software-in-the-Loop (SIL) testing strategy to validate actuation performance, safety, and reliability at scale.
  • Design and implement fault detection, fault injection, and recovery mechanisms for safety-critical motor control systems.
  • Help drive firmware quality, reliability, and field performance for fleets of actuators deployed in production humanoid robots, including telemetry, diagnostics, and root-cause analysis of field failures.
  • Work with cross-functional engineering teams to bring up actuation hardware from prototype through production.
  • Participate in code reviews, design reviews, and pair debugging; help raise the bar for firmware quality across the team.
  • Contribute to technical decision-making on tooling, processes, and architectural patterns that scale with the team and product.

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or equivalent practical experience; Master's degree with a focus on controls or motor drives is especially valued.
  • Minimum of 3 years of relevant industry experience developing production-grade embedded software, with experience contributing to firmware systems from concept through deployment.
  • 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 oscilloscopes and logic analyzers.
  • Ability to read and interpret electrical schematics (Altium Designer preferred) and hardware datasheets.
  • Experience with embedded communication protocols such as SPI, UART, RS485, and CAN.
  • Strong collaboration and communication skills, with a desire to grow technical leadership within a team setting.

Skills

Required:Motor control firmware developmentEmbedded real-time programmingC/C++
Nice to have:Python

Benefits

  • Equal employment opportunities
  • Harassment-free workplace
  • Competitive compensation typical of the robotics industry (not explicitly listed in the description)
Last updated Aug 2, 2026. Interested? Apply on the company site.

About Apptronik

One Platform for the Future of Work

Apptronik designs humanoid robotics platforms with mobility, manipulation, and human-centered interaction to support people in the workplace.

3PLApolloApollo for ManufacturingApollo for RetailApollo for WarehouseBuilt for the Real WorldForm That Fits the WorkGoods-to-Person
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