Principal Performance Software Engineer- Atlas

Boston Dynamics•Waltham, MA

About The Position

We are seeking an experienced Performance Software Engineer to join the Atlas Systems Software Team. You’ll play a key role in making Atlas an amazing, AI-driven robot by squeezing every bit of performance out of the on-board accelerated compute system! This role is for you if you: Enjoy working in a fast-paced environment Are comfortable rapidly prototyping and iterating on solutions Thrive on working independently and on a variety of products While prior robotics experience is desirable, candidates with experience building optimized software in other industries such as Video Games, Automotive, or Mobile Apps are encouraged to apply. Boston Dynamics is a world leader in mobile robots, tackling some of the toughest robotics challenges. For years, our awe-inspiring viral videos on YouTube have shown the world what remarkably capable robots can do. Now we are quickly becoming a recognized leader in automation solutions for industrial applications and warehouse logistics. We are interested in every qualified candidate who is eligible to work in the United States. However, we are not able to sponsor visas for this position. The base pay range for this position is between $177,207 to $243,660 annually. Base pay will depend on multiple individualized factors including, but not limited to internal equity, job related knowledge, skills and experience. This range represents a good faith estimate of compensation at the time of posting. Boston Dynamics offers a generous Benefits package including medical, dental vision, 401(k), paid time off and a annual bonus structure. Additional details regarding these benefit plans will be provided if an employee receives an offer for employment. We are growing rapidly, building a commercial company that delivers cutting edge technology and solutions to our customers from industrial applications to logistics and warehouse solutions.

Requirements

8+ years of C++ software development in high-performance environments
Expertise in performance analysis techniques and tools
Linux systems knowledge - process/thread scheduling, IPC systems, and file systems
Exposure to image and video processing fundamentals
Experience implementing advanced model optimization techniques—such as quantization, pruning, and kernel tuning—to deploy high-performance AI models on resource-constrained GPU or accelerator hardware

Responsibilities

Own and manage the compute performance budget on Atlas and make difficult tradeoff decisions
Develop highly optimized real-time software which take advantage of modern GPU and AI accelerator technologies
Analyze performance of systems methodically, providing clear identification of bottlenecks and solutions to address them
Collaborate with roboticists to find appropriate balances between performance and capability
Debug and perform root-cause analysis on complex system failures across simulation, lab, and field environments.
Create testing approaches to ensure that hard-won performance gains do not regress