Senior Embedded Linux Engineer
Apptronik
Salary undisclosed
Need a reasonable accommodation to apply or interview? Contact us.
JobMinglr uses automated technology to recommend jobs based on profile information and job preferences. Match Score does not determine eligibility for a position, prevent a user from viewing or applying to a job, or make hiring decisions on behalf of an employer.
Description
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 Applied 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 Senior Embedded BSP Engineer to own the board support package and OS configuration for the NVIDIA Jetson Thor compute platform in our humanoid robots. You will collaborate with our firmware, hardware, and robot software teams to bring up custom carrier boards, develop and maintain the boot chain, kernel or RTOS configuration, and device drivers, and deliver reproducible, secure, field-updatable OS images. You will tune the platform for low-latency, real-time performance, support hardware bring-up from prototype through production, and help own platform quality and reliability as we scale from prototypes to fleets of hundreds and thousands of robots in the field. As you grow on the team, you will participate in code and design reviews and contribute to the architectural direction of our compute platform alongside your peers.
ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES or KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES
- Develop and maintain the BSP for NVIDIA Jetson Thor modules and custom carrier boards, including board bring-up, device tree, pinmux, and peripheral enablement. ● Customize and maintain the boot chain (firmware, UEFI, and OS loader), kernel or QNX microkernel configuration, and out-of-tree kernel modules or QNX resource managers and drivers.
- Build and maintain OS images (Linux via Yocto or JetPack/Ubuntu, and/or QNX via QNX SDP) with reproducible, CI-driven builds.
- Tune the OS for real-time and low-latency behavior, including PREEMPT_RT, CPU isolation, IRQ affinity, QNX scheduling and partitioning, and power and thermal profiles. ● Own OS lifecycle tooling: JetPack / NVIDIA BSP upgrades, A/B OTA updates, secure boot, disk encryption, and fleet flashing and provisioning.
- Triage lab and field issues such as boot failures, kernel panics, driver regressions, and thermal throttling, and document root causes.
- Define new hardware requirements and review schematics and layout with the hardware team.
- Work with cross-functional engineering teams, including Hardware, Robot Software, QA, Validation, and Manufacturing, to bring up compute hardware from prototype through production.
- Collaborate with validation teams to develop test strategies and test plans. ● Participate in code reviews, design reviews, and pair debugging; help raise the bar for platform quality across the team.
SKILLS AND REQUIREMENTS
- Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or equivalent practical experience.
- Minimum of 5 years of experience building, debugging, and shipping embedded systems using Linux and/or QNX.
- Hands-on experience with NVIDIA Jetson (Thor or Orin) and JetPack, including flashing and carrier board customization.
- Strong OS-level skills: Linux kernel configuration, device tree, driver development and debugging, kernel upgrades or backports.
- Experience with Yocto, Buildroot, or a comparable image build system. ● Solid understanding of the boot process: bootloaders, initramfs, and rootfs layout. ● Proficiency in C/C++; working knowledge of Python or Bash for tooling, and Git. ● Strong hardware debugging skills using tools such as oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, and JTAG / serial debug.
- Ability to read and interpret system schematics and hardware datasheets. ● Working knowledge of embedded networking protocols such as CAN, EtherCAT, and Ethernet.
- Familiarity with embedded Linux security fundamentals such as secure boot, PKI, and hardware key storage.
- Experience writing and understanding technical specifications.
Strong collaboration and communication skills, with a desire to grow technical leadership within a team setting.
EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE
- Experience with QNX Neutrino, including SDP, BSP development, and resource managers. Experience with real-time Linux tuning such as PREEMPT_RT.
- Experience with humanoid robotics, industrial robotics, or other high-performance real-time systems.
- Experience with CUDA, TensorRT, and container environments on Jetson. Experience with OTA update frameworks (RAUC, SWUpdate, Mender) and fleet provisioning. Familiarity with ROS 2 and DDS middleware.
- Familiarity with safety-critical embedded system design standards, including ISO 26262. Contributions to upstream kernel or open-source BSP projects.
PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:
- Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer
- Must be able to lift 15 pounds at times
- Vision to read printed materials and a computer screen
- Hearing and speech to communicate
*This is a direct hire. Please, no outside Agency solicitations.
Apptronik provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.
About this role
Apptronik is building humanoid robots at scale, and this role owns the embedded Linux and real-time OS foundation that makes Apollo work. As Senior Embedded BSP Engineer, you'll take full responsibility for the board support package on NVIDIA Jetson Thor—from custom carrier board bring-up through production deployment across fleets. This means developing and maintaining the boot chain, kernel configuration, device drivers, and OS images; tuning for low-latency real-time performance; and owning the complete OS lifecycle including secure boot, OTA updates, and fleet provisioning.
The work spans the full depth of embedded systems: you'll debug hardware issues with oscilloscopes and JTAG, collaborate with hardware teams on schematics and pinmux, triage field failures, and drive platform quality as the company scales from prototypes to thousands of robots in operation. You'll need at least five years shipping embedded Linux or QNX systems, hands-on Jetson experience, strong kernel and driver skills, and proficiency with build systems like Yocto. Real-time tuning expertise (PREEMPT_RT, CPU isolation, scheduling) is essential, as is the ability to read schematics and work comfortably across hardware and software boundaries.
This is an in-office role in Austin where you'll work directly with firmware, hardware, robot software, and manufacturing teams. As you grow, you'll participate in design reviews and help shape the platform's technical direction alongside your peers. The position suits someone who thrives owning a critical platform end-to-end and wants to see their work deployed in real robots solving real problems.
How this employer is doing
solid
- H1B: Sponsors Visas
- Recently Raised Funding
- Sponsors Visas
This role's local market on JobMinglr
Pay for this role
The employer didn't post a pay range for this role. That usually means pay is set in negotiation, which favors whoever arrives with numbers. Check ranges on comparable Senior Embedded Linux Engineer postings in Austin, and analyze any offer before you accept it.
Before you apply, worth reading
How JobMinglr reads this job
Every listing here is scored against your profile before you apply: skills overlap, experience level, location and work arrangement, each weighted and explained. You see the score and the reasons, not just a list. How the matching works.