Staff Robotics Engineer

Bedrock Ocean Exploration

Staff Robotics Engineer setting autonomy architecture for Bedrock Ocean’s autonomous underwater vehicles. Driving reliable, scalable software for continuous ocean-floor data collection missions.

Posted 8/19/2026full-timeRichmond • California • 🇺🇸 United StatesLead💰 $190,000 - $235,000 per yearWebsite

Core Competencies

Role fit

Core Competencies

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Demonstrates expertise in building and architecting robust, modular, and scalable vehicle software for autonomous systems, with a strong focus on fault detection, health monitoring, and safe-state behaviors. Proven ability to lead cross-disciplinary teams, mentor engineers, and drive technical alignment across robotics, hardware, and software.

Highest-signal resume keywords

Robotics Software DevelopmentC++ ProgrammingPython ProgrammingROS or ROS 2 ExperienceFault Detection and Recovery (FDIR)

ATS Keywords

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Applicant Tracking System Keywords

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Hard Skills

Vehicle Software ArchitectureGNCState EstimationSensor FusionMission AutonomySoftware StandardizationOver-the-Air UpdatesVersioningContinuous IntegrationTesting and Validation

Soft Skills

Technical LeadershipMentoringCommunicationCollaborationProblem-Solving

Tools & Technologies

Simulation ToolsHardware-in-the-Loop TestingTelemetry SystemsData Logging ToolsQuality Check Systems

Certifications & Qualifications

U.S. Secret Security Clearance

Industry Keywords

Autonomous Underwater VehiclesRoboticsCommercial RoboticsProduction RoboticsSafety-Critical Systems

Tech Stack

Tools & technologies

Python

About the role

Key responsibilities & impact

Set the technical direction for autonomy and vehicle software across a fleet of autonomous underwater vehicles
Own the vehicle software architecture spanning onboard software, GNC and state estimation, sensing, vehicle management, and mission autonomy
Lead difficult cross-disciplinary robotics problems end to end
Establish standards for building, testing, and validating vehicle software
Drive testing across simulation, hardware-in-the-loop, and field trials
Diagnose vehicle software issues and ensure problems surface on a bench rather than at sea
Improve autonomy and vehicle behaviors for long, continuous missions with minimal intervention
Own fault management and vehicle health, including FDIR, safe-state and abort-to-surface behaviors, and graceful degradation
Participate in the robotics on-call rotation for live, around-the-clock campaigns
Build runbooks, telemetry, and escalation paths for sustainable on-call operations
Standardize fleet vehicle software and build safe over-the-air deployment with versioning and rollback
Ensure reliable onboard data capture and logging, sensor time synchronization, and onboard quality checks
Break down and prioritize the vehicle-software roadmap and manage commitments, risk, change, and uncertainty
Mentor robotics engineers, foster feedback and knowledge sharing, and facilitate technical decisions across disciplines
Champion practical AI adoption in the robotics workflow
Document strategic architecture and drive alignment with senior leadership and engineering peers

Requirements

What you’ll need

8+ years building robotics or autonomous-systems software
At least 5–7 years in a commercial, production robotics environment shipping at scale
Staff-level technical leadership across subsystems or teams
Deep experience architecting robust, modular, and scalable vehicle or autonomy software
Strong fundamentals in C++ and/or Python
Hands-on experience with ROS or ROS 2 on real hardware
Depth in one or more of GNC, state estimation, sensor fusion, or mission autonomy, with breadth across the rest
Experience building fault detection and recovery (FDIR), health monitoring, or safe-state behaviors
Experience standardizing and safely deploying software across a fleet of vehicles or embedded devices, including over-the-air updates, versioning, and rollback
Record of raising the technical bar through standards, mentoring, and review
Comfort with physical, safety-critical systems, intermittent connectivity, and field operations
Willingness to participate in an on-call rotation supporting continuous, around-the-clock missions
Excellent communication and ability to drive alignment across robotics, hardware, and software
Able to work on-site in the Richmond, CA office regularly
Legal authorization to work in the United States without visa sponsorship
Must be eligible to obtain a U.S. Secret security clearance if requested
Active Secret or higher clearance strongly preferred

Benefits

Comp & perks

Comprehensive employee benefits
Equity