Director of Software Engineering (Robotics)
Our client is a pioneering software company at the forefront of developing AI-driven autonomy solutions for robotic systems. The company's mission is to transform the capabilities of robotic platforms by enabling them to perceive, reason, and act with human-like intelligence. Their cutting-edge software reduces the time and complexity involved in deploying autonomous robotics, allowing machines to operate effectively even in dynamic and complex environments.
Their solution is designed to achieve exceptional precision with minimal training data and reduced power consumption. Applications span across a wide range of industries including automotive, aerospace, manufacturing, defense, logistics, infrastructure inspection, and unmanned systems (aerial, ground, and underwater). By enabling enhanced autonomy and streamlined deployment, the company is redefining the potential ROI on robotic platforms across sectors.
Role Overview
The Director of Engineering will play a mission-critical leadership role in driving the execution, delivery, and commercialization of next-generation autonomy software. Reporting directly to the CTO, this individual will assume day-to-day engineering leadership, enabling the Head of Product to focus on strategic roadmap and innovation initiatives.
This is a hands-on leadership position ideal for someone with a robust technical foundation in robotics, AI/ML, and embedded systems, along with a proven track record of leading high-performance engineering teams through commercialization phases in industrial or defense applications.
Key Responsibilities
Leadership & Engineering Management
- Lead multidisciplinary engineering teams (software, perception, optimization, controls) to execute and deliver commercial-grade autonomy software.
- Oversee sprint planning, architecture reviews, and release management processes.
- Drive the translation of advanced R&D innovations into scalable, customer-ready solutions.
- Foster collaboration across product, commercial, and engineering functions to ensure alignment with business objectives and product roadmap.
Autonomy & Robotics Development
- Design and implement robust software for AI-driven perception, reasoning, and decision-making across robotic platforms, particularly UAVs and other autonomous systems.
- Lead the development and refinement of algorithms for edge-based deployment with hardware integration.
- Own the software architecture strategy for robotics applications on embedded and real-time systems.
- Ensure a high standard of code quality through thorough testing, debugging, and validation.
Data Systems & Edge Integration
- Define data structures and implement management protocols for model training and system analytics.
- Integrate with edge hardware platforms including sensor and actuator configuration, calibration, and troubleshooting.
- Support customer deployments with system validation and field-readiness assurance.
Cross-Functional Collaboration
- Contribute to internal technical documentation, reporting, and intellectual property development.
- Assist in technical scoping, estimation, and writing in support of business proposals.
- Participate in agile workflows and ensure continuous communication between teams.
Qualifications
Education
- M.S. or Ph.D. in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Applied Mathematics, Electrical or Mechanical Engineering, or a related technical field.
Experience
- 10+ years of software development experience, ideally within robotics, automation, or embedded systems environments.
- Demonstrated expertise in C and Python.
- Experience with software for unmanned vehicles (e.g., UAVs, UGVs) is highly desirable.
Technical Expertise
Proficiency in at least two of the following:
- Robotic control systems
- Guidance and navigation
- Computer vision and multi-modal sensor fusion
- Scene reasoning and robotic task planning
- Reinforcement learning
- Multi-agent or multi-robot system coordination
- Robotic kinematics, rigid body dynamics, motion planning
- Real-time operating systems and ROS integration
- Firmware and hardware-level programming
Leadership Skills
- Proven track record managing or mentoring high-performing engineering teams.
- Strong communication skills with the ability to explain complex technical concepts to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.