---
title: 'Firmware Engineering Lead at Skip'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/firmware-engineering-lead-skip-san-francisco-zq25ysz3q2zn'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-05'
---

# Firmware Engineering Lead at Skip

- **Company:** Skip
- **Location:** San Francisco, CA
- **Employment:** full-time
- **Work type:** hybrid
- **Posted:** 2026-04-07
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-05
- **Apply:** https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/skip/1cb2807f-2c67-4ad9-b2d6-8a70b0044c1d

## Job description

## ABOUT US:

Skip is on a mission to make life joyful through powered movement.

Movement is a powerful way to build physical, mental and social health. Yet it is elusive for 2 billion people due to age, injury, or disability. We are building products that will restore mobility for millions and enable a new frontier of joyful movement experiences. We want to build a future where a grandparent can easily outrun their grandkids and no one is left behind at the trailhead.

Skip is a 22-person early-stage start-up that spun out of Google X in 2023. With deep cross-disciplinary expertise and key partnerships (e.g. with Arc’teryx) we are uniquely positioned to launch the first commercially successful wearable robotic device, the MO/GO, develop a platform to launch future Movewear products and transform millions of lives in the coming years.

The Role:

We're building powered wearable robots for everyday life — devices that sit at the intersection of motor control, real-time embedded systems, and edge compute. We're 22 people, all senior, all contributing directly to product. This role leads a small firmware team while staying hands-on with the systems that matter most.

You'll set the technical bar for how we build firmware at Skip, and develop the engineers around you while doing it.

What you'll own:

- Leading and growing a small firmware engineering team, including hiring, mentorship, and technical direction
- End-to-end embedded C/C++ across our stack, including FreeRTOS, interrupt handling, JTAG/SWD debugging, and chip bring-up
- Data communication between peripherals and microcontrollers (ESP32, STM32 and their successors), including Wi-Fi and BLE
- Secure OTA pipelines and bootloader implementation
- AWS IoT Core infrastructure: mTLS, MQTT, fleet provisioning, IoT Jobs OTA
- Firmware for motor control across a range of actuators including BLDCs, custom PMSM and axial flux motors, cycloid gearboxes, and series elastic actuators (currently on c2000, evolving)
- Technical direction for chip selection, actuator firmware requirements, and future system architecture
- Adjacent product development including our Parkinson's device and future clinical and research platforms requiring edge compute
- Wearing prototypes several hours a week for on-body testing and data collection
- Bringing joy to the team, participating in embarrassing team events, and tolerating KZ's terrible music

What we're looking for:

- 8+ years in firmware development, with at least 2 leading or mentoring a team
- Deep expertise in embedded C/C++ for high-performance, real-time applications including FreeRTOS
- Proven experience with ESP32, STM32, or comparable chipsets
- Strong background in AWS IoT Core, fleet management, and OTA systems
- Solid Linux, Python, and command-line fluency
- Experience with low-level hardware and OS internals at a kernel level
- Rigorous debugging instincts across JTAG, SWD, oscilloscopes, and logic analyzers
- The kind of technical credibility that makes people want to follow your lead, not just your title
- Ability to work from our Bay Area office 3 days a week
- Attention to detail, even in the middle of overly-long lists
- Sense of humour. Tolerant of Aussie and Canadian spelling.

Bonus points:

- Experience with PMSM control on TI or STM chipsets
- Background in robotics, powered consumer electronics, drones, or anything that moves
- Familiarity with TFLite Micro or X-Cube-AI
- Startup experience and comfort using AI coding tools to punch above your weight
- Personal motivation to improve human movement

This is a full time hybrid position working at the Skip office in the Dogpatch neighborhood of San Francisco.

Skip is an equal opportunity employer. Our hiring decisions are based on need and competence to satisfy said need. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, marital status, veteran status, disability status, or any other legally protected status.

Any and all offers of employment extended by Skip are conditional on candidates’ ability to provide satisfactory proof of eligibility to maintain full-time employment in the United States.

## About Skip

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Skip develops powered movewear (wearable exoskeleton pants) that supports human movement, making walking, hiking, and daily mobility easier for people experiencing age‑related decline, injury, or disability.
- **Entity Type**: Private (seed‑stage; raised $6 M in total funding)
- **Headquarters**: San Francisco, California, United States
- **Founded**: 2023
- **Founders**: Kathryn Zealand (CEO & Co‑Founder), Anna Roumiantseva (Co‑Founder & CPO)

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: Wearable robotics / consumer health & wellness / mobility technology
- **Target customers**: B2C (active older adults, hikers, people with knee pain or mobility challenges) – “the missing middle” that is neither fully disabled nor fully able
- **Mission**: “Make life joyful through powered movement” — aiming to restore mobility for millions and enable a future where no one is left behind at the trailhead

## Products & Services
- **[MO/GO™](https://www.skipwithjoy.com/)**: The company’s first movewear product — lightweight, apparel‑integrated exoskeleton “powered pants” that provide assistance on inclines and descents, reducing strain on muscles and joints. Built from learnings in exoskeleton force transfer, AI/ML movement interpretation, comfortable wearable design, and consumer‑tech UX. Released in partnership with Arc’teryx for testing/co‑branding (2024).

## Market Standing
- **Valuation**: Not publicly available
- **Key Metric (Funding)**: $6 M total funding — a $3 M Seed Round and a $3 M Grant, both closed in July 2024 ([LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/company/skipwithjoy)).  
  *Note: Tracxn lists the company as “unfunded” but is likely outdated or misclassifying grants; the LinkedIn data is more recent.*
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Spun out of **X, The Moonshot Factory** (Google’s moonshot lab). Partnership with **Arc’teryx** for the MO/GO launch. Founding team includes alumni of Google X.
- **Growth Signals**: Headcount grew +62.9 % year‑over‑year to 16 employees (as of mid‑2026). Three open roles posted (Software Engineer, Test; Firmware Engineer; Founding Marketing Lead). Company featured in National Geographic (CEO Kathryn Zealand named a National Geographic 33 honoree). Active in academic research — published a study on hip exoskeleton assistance for people with Parkinson’s disease in *Frontiers in Robotics and AI*.

## Competitive Advantages
- **Deep tech heritage**: Founders and many team members came from Google X, giving access to years of exoskeleton and force‑transfer research.
- **New product category (“Movewear”)**: First mover in blending robotic exoskeleton technology with stylish, consumer‑friendly wearables — not just medical devices.
- **Strong brand storytelling**: The mission resonates emotionally (“Help a grandparent outrun their grandkids”) and has earned media coverage in NatGeo, CES spotlights, and AARP’s AgeTech Collaborative.
- **Focus on the “missing middle”**: Addresses a large underserved market (billions with age‑related or mild mobility issues) that is ignored by both medical exoskeletons and fitness trackers.

## Strategic Focus
- **Scale manufacturing and distribution**: Moving from prototype/limited runs to broader consumer availability for MO/GO.
- **Build a world‑class engineering team**: Actively hiring firmware, test, and marketing leads to expand the 16‑person team.
- **Clinical validation & partnerships**: Continued publication of studies (e.g., Parkinson’s) and collaboration with organizations like the Michael J. Fox Foundation to establish credibility and open healthcare channels.
- **Expand product line**: Use the Movewear platform to create models for different activities and levels of support.

## Why Work Here
- **High‑impact, mission‑driven work**: Engineers directly improve physical mobility for millions of people.
- **Small, high‑density team**: 16 employees with a strong ratio of technical staff (9 in technical roles). Offers the chance to own large areas of the stack.
- **Culture rooted in moonshot thinking**: Spun out of Google X; employees have backgrounds from X, Harvard, Stanford, and top robotics firms.
- **Hybrid/Office presence**: HQ in San Francisco, California. Recent job posts specify location in San Francisco Bay Area, suggesting an on‑site or hybrid expectation.
- **Perks and environment**: Working on a tangible hardware + software product that users wear and love. The team is described as passionate about movement, joy, and inclusion — events like SF Design Week “Build Your Superpowers” highlight a fun, community‑focused culture.

## Sources
1. [Skip Official Website – About](https://www.skipwithjoy.com/aboutus)
2. [Skip Careers Page](https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/skip) (via LinkedIn)
3. [Skip LinkedIn Company Profile](https://www.linkedin.com/company/skipwithjoy)
4. [Skip on DayOne.fm](https://dayone.fm/company/skip)
5. [Tracxn Company Profile](https://tracxn.com/d/companies/skip/__d5pUuD-03STihX3ls-azp7_yxK90CKdZqKMe_5V_ybk)

## Other roles at Skip

- [Mechatronics / Power Train Lead](https://feeny.ai/job/mechatronics-power-train-lead-skip-san-francisco-xhwqnn9yfnk4) — San Francisco, CA
- [Product Design Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/product-design-engineer-skip-san-francisco-wz4q1js4r7f0) — San Francisco, CA
- [Infrastructure Security Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/infrastructure-security-engineer-skip-san-francisco-3mj34y9pndec) — San Francisco, CA
- [Hardware Reliability Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/hardware-reliability-engineer-skip-san-francisco-f77vrymrgqpp) — San Francisco, CA
- [Robotics Generalist](https://feeny.ai/job/robotics-generalist-skip-san-francisco-sbhgas1my2n5) — San Francisco, CA
- [Soft Goods Designer](https://feeny.ai/job/soft-goods-designer-skip-san-francisco-txkrz0fb18r6) — San Francisco, CA
- [Backend Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/backend-engineer-skip-san-francisco-ss58qjf9g74s) — San Francisco, CA
- [Engineering Program Manager](https://feeny.ai/job/engineering-program-manager-skip-san-francisco-0tzvkvdtzqsn) — San Francisco, CA
- [Software Engineer, Test](https://feeny.ai/job/software-engineer-test-skip-san-francisco-hbhweafhbqbj) — San Francisco, CA
- [Motor Control Firmware Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/motor-control-firmware-engineer-skip-san-francisco-y1ha2rnpa2bq) — San Francisco, CA