Robotics Software Engineer
zydro · Newton, MA ·
- Work mode
- Onsite
- Category
- Software engineering
- Experience
- 5+ years
- Company size
- 11-50
About Us
Zydro Marine Technologies is a venture-backed startup creating "The Geospatial Toolkit for Maritime". We're building the end-to-end ecosystem to collect, process & distribute nautical charts and other geospatial products for mission-critical usage across maritime autonomy, fleet management, and navigation applications.
We're a growing team of experts in geospatial data, marine robotics, and command & control software, and we're looking for talented, driven candidates to join us! If you love building beautiful maps, wrangling data sources, developing & testing unmanned systems, or hanging out on boats... this is the job for you.
The Role
We’re hiring a Robotics Software Engineer to help develop a new platform for automated maritime survey and ISR data collection. In this role, you will design, build, integrate, and test software and hardware systems on unmanned maritime platforms.
We’re looking for a generalist robotics engineer with strong software fundamentals, hands-on hardware integration experience, and solid systems engineering skillset. This role is ideal for someone who enjoys building real-world robotic systems that operate in challenging, unstructured environments outside the lab.
What You'll Do
Design, develop and test software for unmanned maritime robotic systems
Develop and maintain autonomy software using frameworks such as ROS or MOOS-IvP
Interface with lower-level flight controllers such as ArduPilot or PX4
Develop and tune vehicle guidance, navigation & control algorithms
Integrate sensors, payloads, compute, networking, and actuators
Develop software interfaces to devices using CAN-bus, NMEA 2000, J1939, MAVLink, etc.
Develop algorithms for simultaneous localization & mapping (SLAM) and multi-target tracking
Build tools for system diagnostics, logging, monitoring, replay, and post-mission analysis
Debug complex software and system integration issues in both lab and field environments
Deploy to the field to support field testing and iterative product development
Collaborate with a larger team to design a unified hardware and software architecture
Required Qualifications
3–5+ years of professional software development or robotics engineering experience
Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or similar software or engineering background.
Programming experience in C++, Python, Rust, or similar systems-oriented languages
Strong familiarity with Linux-based systems and command-line tools
Experience integrating hardware, sensors, and embedded devices into production systems
Experience with vehicle and embedded communications protocols such as CAN, NMEA 2000, J1939, MAVLink, serial, or Ethernet
Familiarity with robotics frameworks such as ROS, ROS 2, MOOS-IvP, ArduPilot, or similar
Comfortable working across software, electrical, mechanical, and operational disciplines
Experience using Git and modern software development workflows
Preferred Qualifications
Experience with maritime robotics or autonomous vehicle systems
Experience deploying robotic systems in field environments
Experience with embedded Linux, RTOS-based systems, or firmware development
Experience integrating navigation, perception, or mission sensors
Experience with simulation, automated testing, or hardware-in-the-loop testing
Familiarity with Docker, CI/CD, and deployment workflows
Ability to read electrical schematics and troubleshoot hardware systems
Basic CAD or mechanical design experience
Comfortable supporting field operations and testing on a boat; able and willing to travel