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 embodied 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
We are seeking a highly skilled and experienced Staff Compute Engineer to lead the design and implementation of the next-generation compute solution for our humanoid robot platform. In this pivotal role, you will be the technical lead responsible for architecting a compute solution that meets our most demanding requirements for real-time performance, sensor bandwidth, and, most critically, functional safety.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES or KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES
- Lead the architectural design of the robot's next-generation compute solution, from high-level system architecture to component-level selection.
- Define and validate compute requirements based on the needs of complex robotics algorithms, including motion control, perception, and AI tasks.
- Develop a robust and scalable solution capable of handling high-bandwidth data from a wide array of sensors
- Design for functional safety from the ground up, implementing redundant systems, fail-safe mechanisms, and diagnostic features to meet or exceed industry safety standards.
- Collaborate closely with cross-functional teams, including software, electrical, and systems engineers, to ensure seamless integration of the compute solution with the overall robot platform.
- Conduct performance benchmarking and power analysis to optimize the compute stack for maximum efficiency and thermal management.
- Design, simulate, implement, and test multi-layer high-speed PCBs for integration of advanced System-on-Modules (SoMs) like NVIDIA Orin.
- Lead efforts in high-speed signal integrity (SI) and power integrity (PI) analysis, modeling, and validation.
- Knowledge of compute and processor power requirements, power trees, PMICs, and power sequencing.
- Drive the selection and qualification of critical components, including SoMs, memory, storage (NVMe/eMMC), high-speed interconnects, and peripheral interfaces.
- Develop comprehensive validation and test plans (DVT/PVT), design necessary test fixtures, and execute rigorous testing to confirm compliance with performance specifications and regulatory standards (e.g., FCC, CE).
- Stay abreast of the latest advancements in embedded systems, real-t