--- title: 'Robot Learning Engineer at Lightspeed' canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/robot-learning-engineer-lightspeed-northbrook-ham4vyk6erde' type: 'job' last_seen: '2026-10-15' --- # Robot Learning Engineer at Lightspeed - **Company:** Lightspeed - **Location:** Northbrook, IL - **Employment:** full-time - **Work type:** onsite - **Posted:** 2026-09-30 - **Last confirmed live:** 2026-10-15 - **Apply:** https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/lightspeed/6115c0d7-1bf7-4fc1-98ea-6f97f65fa87c ## Job description ## About LightSpeed LightSpeed Build Technologies is revolutionizing the construction industry through AI-powered robotics. Our flagship systems—BRUTE for automated wall panel manufacturing and DEX for on-site collaborative construction—are addressing the global housing crisis by delivering unprecedented speed, precision, and affordability in homebuilding. Position Overview As a Robot Learning Engineer, you will teach our robots to perform complex manipulation tasks from human demonstration. You will own the path from demonstration to deployed behavior: building the teleoperation systems that capture how skilled people do the work, turning that data into trained policies, and proving those policies on real robots with dexterous hands and custom tooling. You'll also shape how we learn from video of people doing the work itself. This role is hands-on, fast-moving, and measured by one thing: robots that reliably do the job. ## What you'll work on Teleoperation & Demonstration Data - Build and improve teleoperation pipelines using leader arms for bulk arm motion and VR hand tracking for fine, finger-level interaction - Retarget human hand motion to a dexterous robot hand, developing in simulation first and validating on hardware - Design data collection protocols so demonstrations are consistent, well-structured, and train well - Define what data is worth collecting and how much, and guide technicians who run collection sessions Policy Learning - Train and fine-tune manipulation policies using imitation learning and vision-language-action (VLA) models - Choose policy architectures and action representations suited to multi-step, contact-rich tasks - Combine teleoperation data with human demonstration video to improve policies - Iterate quickly from data to trained policy to real-robot trial Evaluation & Deployment - Define and run evaluation protocols on real robots, measuring success rate per task step - Diagnose failures across data, model, and hardware, and fix the right one - Deploy policies on robots with ROS2-based control and optimize inference for real-time performance - Work with integration engineers to run policies across a full task sequence Data Pipeline & Vendor Oversight - Define dataset formats and data quality standards for training - Supervise external partners who build data pipeline infrastructure and label human demonstration video, and set specs and accept deliveries - Prototype extraction of useful training signals from egocentric (head-mounted camera) video in-house before scaling it out Required Qualifications Robot Learning - 3+ years of hands-on experience in robot learning, ML for robotics, or closely related production ML - Experience training policies from demonstrations on physical robots using imitation learning (e.g., ACT, Diffusion Policy, or similar) - Experience collecting teleoperation or demonstration data for robot learning - Strong PyTorch skills and experience running training, evaluation, and debugging end to end - Track record of evaluating models in the real world and diagnosing failures Robotics & Software - Strong Python; working C++ - Experience with ROS or ROS2 and real robot hardware - Understanding of manipulator kinematics and control fundamentals - Proficiency with Linux, Docker, and Git ## Preferred Qualifications - MS or PhD in Robotics, Machine Learning, Computer Science, or a related field - Experience fine-tuning VLA or foundation models for robot control - Experience with dexterous hands, VR hand tracking, or motion retargeting - Experience building or using leader-follower teleoperation systems - Experience learning from human video or egocentric data - Experience building and maintaining large-scale robotics datasets - Robotics simulation experience with MuJoCo, Isaac Sim, or similar - Experience with robot learning datasets and tooling (e.g., LeRobot, rosbag, MCAP) - Experience managing data vendors or labeling workflows - Background in manufacturing, industrial automation, or construction technology ## Why Join LightSpeed - Teach real robots to do skilled work that addresses the housing crisis - Own the full loop from human demonstration to deployed robot behavior - Work with dexterous hands, custom tooling, and human demonstration data at scale - Hands-on culture with direct access to robots, sensors, and manufacturing environments - Competitive compensation and comprehensive benefits Employment Relationship This position is at-will, meaning either you or the Company may terminate employment at any time, with or without cause or notice. ## Equal Opportunity LightSpeed Build Technologies is an equal opportunity employer committed to building a diverse and inclusive workplace. We welcome candidates from all backgrounds and experiences. ## About Lightspeed ## Company Overview - **One-liner**: Lightspeed uses robotics and AI to manufacture precision-engineered panels and components for residential construction, aiming to build homes faster, smarter, and more affordably. - **Entity Type**: Private (Startup) - **Headquarters**: Northbrook, Illinois, United States - **Founded**: Not publicly available (likely 2023-2024 based on current operations) - **Founders**: Biju Kulathakal (serial entrepreneur behind Redbox and Halo Investing) ## Core Business - **Primary industry**: Construction Technology (Contech), Robotics, AI-Powered Manufacturing - **Target customers**: Homebuilders, real estate developers, construction firms (B2B) - **Mission or purpose statement**: "Housing for All" — building homes smarter, faster, and more affordable with robotics and AI. ## Products & Services - **BRUTE Robotic System**: A robotic system designed for heavy-duty construction tasks, targeting a 50% reduction in build time versus traditional methods. - **DEX Robotic System**: A precision robotic system for detailed assembly and finishing work. - **AI-Powered Design & Engineering**: Proprietary AI algorithms that analyze architectural drawings to automatically generate optimized construction sequences, material lists, and robotic instructions. - **Precision-Engineered Panels**: Prefabricated wall and floor panels manufactured to tight tolerances, enabling faster on-site assembly and reduced errors. ## Market Standing - **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not disclosed - **Key Metric**: Not publicly available (likely pre-revenue or early-stage; funding status unknown) - **Notable Investors/Partners**: Founder Biju Kulathakal previously founded Redbox and Halo Investing, suggesting strong investor connections, but no specific investors are named for Lightspeed. - **Growth Signals**: The company is actively hiring (careers page on Ashby), signaling growth. They claim to target 70% reduction in construction errors, 20-30% labor cost savings, and 25% reduction in material waste. ## Competitive Advantages - **Robotic Precision**: Claims tolerances "impossible with manual framing" — a significant differentiator in an industry where quality varies widely. - **Founder Credibility**: Biju Kulathakal has a proven track record building Redbox (a massive kiosk network) and Halo Investing (a fintech platform), suggesting ability to scale. - **Integrated AI-to-Robotics Pipeline**: Full vertical integration from architectural drawing analysis to robotic manufacturing, reducing human error and rework. - **Sustainability Angle**: Precision manufacturing reduces construction waste by ~25%, aligning with ESG trends in real estate. ## Strategic Focus - **Offsite Construction**: The company is riding the McKinsey-predicted trend that 20% of homes will be built offsite in the US by 2030. - **Speed & Labor Reduction**: Core value prop is cutting build time in half and reducing labor dependency — critical as construction labor shortages worsen. - **Scaling Manufacturing**: Likely focused on expanding production capacity at their Northbrook facility and proving the technology with initial clients. ## Why Work Here - **Mission-Driven**: "Housing for All" offers a tangible social impact — helping solve the housing affordability crisis through technology. - **Founder Led**: Working directly with a serial entrepreneur who has scaled companies to national prominence. - **Cutting-Edge Tech**: Hands-on work with robotics, computer vision, AI, and advanced manufacturing — appealing for engineers and operators. - **Early-Stage Impact**: As a likely early-stage company, employees can wear multiple hats and shape the product and culture from the ground up. - **Location**: Northbrook, IL (northern suburb of Chicago) offers a suburban office environment with access to Chicago's talent pool. - **Work Policy**: Not explicitly stated, but the nature of robotics manufacturing suggests a strong on-site presence for hardware roles. **Note**: There is a separate, publicly traded company called Lightspeed Commerce (NYSE: LSPD, TSX: LSPD) that provides POS and e-commerce software. This profile is for Lightspeed (lightspeed.build), the robotics construction startup. Do not confuse the two. ## Sources 1. [lightspeed.build](https://lightspeed.build/) 2. [lightspeed.build/about-us](https://lightspeed.build/about-us) 3. [lightspeed.build/contact-us](https://lightspeed.build/contact-us) 4. [jobs.ashbyhq.com/lightspeed](https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/lightspeed) ## Other roles at Lightspeed - [Residential Design & Preconstruction Specialist](https://feeny.ai/job/residential-design-preconstruction-specialist-lightspeed-northbrook-a8sy1bxmccqz) — Northbrook, IL - [Mechanical Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/mechanical-engineer-lightspeed-northbrook-yqf4rprszy0s) — Northbrook, IL - [Perception Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/perception-engineer-lightspeed-northbrook-eq8c65rv5zn9) — Northbrook, IL - [Robotics Technician](https://feeny.ai/job/robotics-technician-lightspeed-northbrook-5wf4e39h7kre) — Northbrook, IL - [Robot Learning Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/robot-learning-engineer-rohlik-prague-3a1e0rb30rqm) — Prague, Czech Republic - [Robot Learning Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/robot-learning-engineer-rohlik-munchen-tzx6nbrs2b1c) — München, Germany - [Robot Learning Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/robot-learning-engineer-rohlik-prague-a0sv2xp5f55a) — Prague, Czech Republic - [Robot Learning Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/robot-learning-engineer-dexmate-singapore-tffhfs6wmx3b) — Singapore - [Robot Learning Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/robot-learning-engineer-humanoid-london-7fgkkmdqae2x) — London, United Kingdom - [Robot Learning Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/robot-learning-engineer-dexmate-fremont-79zhvhfnzp3q) — Fremont, CA