--- title: 'Staff Software Engineer - Robotics Platform at Gravis Robotics' canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/staff-software-engineer-robotics-platform-gravis-robotics-zurich-mz9bxcy5n3h3' type: 'job' last_seen: '2026-11-02' --- # Staff Software Engineer - Robotics Platform at Gravis Robotics - **Company:** Gravis Robotics - **Location:** Zurich, Switzerland - **Work type:** hybrid - **Posted:** 2026-10-23 - **Last confirmed live:** 2026-11-02 - **Apply:** https://jobs.lever.co/gravisrobotics/90a1b015-38cb-47a0-857a-da82861578a7 ## Job description Gravis Robotics is a high-growth Series A start-up backed by SoftBank, bringing Physical AI to the construction industry, turning heavy construction machines into autonomous robots. Gravis began as an ETH Zurich spin-out, and our unique combination of learning-based automation and augmented remote control lets one operator safely conduct a fleet of earthmoving machines in a gamified environment. Backed by deep robotics research and now deployed across multiple countries with leading construction and equipment partners, our team is rapidly growing to bring this technology to a trillion-dollar industry. The Gravis RACK is a machine-agnostic retrofit kit that adds autonomy to excavators and wheel loaders from 10 to 100+ tonnes: LiDAR and camera sensing, GNSS RTK, networking hardware and rugged edge compute that works offline. Paired with the Slate tablet and our Copilot software, it lets an operator run a machine manually, with AI assistance, or fully autonomously. ## About the Job At Gravis, we build high tech systems that give machine operators superhuman capabilities. To adapt in real time to changes in the environment the Gravis Rack fuses data from LiDAR, cameras, GNSS, and hydraulics into an autonomous control system. The robotics platform team builds the software foundation for our robots to enable non stop operation in the harshest environments. We ensure all algorithms execute correctly, based on a rock solid communication layer and world class introspection capabilities. We provide all the tools to deploy, develop and debug the most powerful robots on earth. As a robotics platform staff software engineer, you will help shape and implement our vision of a scalable, safe and high performing robotics platform. You will  gather requirements from internal customers, architect the communication layer, node orchestration and lifecycle management as well as APIs to off-machine systems. The main focus will be on the design, implementation and maintenance of essential parts of the on-robot platform, contributing to open source projects where feasible. With your outstanding skills, you will be a role model for other developers in our organisation and guide them on their professional journey. ## What you'll do - Collaborate closely with engineers from other teams  to derive requirements and help shape the vision of our robotics platform - Derive roadmaps towards our vision, incorporating business needs and handling conflicting timelines and requirements - Design, build and maintain parts of the robotics platform, e.g. health monitoring and machine configuration management. Guide junior team members to support your endeavors - Monitor external dependencies and alternatives to assess potential issues or improvements - Influence, nurture and grow our engineering culture - Contribute upstream to open source software projects to close gaps in required functionality - Engage in the robotics scene to stay up to date with ongoing developments and share knowledge in and outside of our company ## What we're looking for - Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or a related field - 7+ years of hands-on experience in Software Engineering, Robotics Development or similar roles - Strong Software Engineering skills and solid experience with related tooling (e.g. clangd, cargo, pyrefly) - Strong programming skills in a systems language like C++ or Rust, Python is nice to have - Track record of leading high impact projects across teams - Experience with middleware (iceoryx2, DDS, AUTOSAR Adaptive) and IDLs (FlatBuffers, Protobuf) Bonus Qualifications Don't meet every requirement? We still want to hear from you. These are nice-to-haves, not dealbreakers: - Experience working on safety-critical systems and the respective software development processes - Experience in developing a production grade robotics system - Track record of open source contributions - ## Experience using Rust in a production environment Gravis is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to building an inclusive and diverse team, and do not discriminate based on race, colour, ancestry, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, gender identity, gender expression, disability, veteran status, or other legally protected characteristics. ## About Gravis Robotics ## Company Overview - **One-liner**: Gravis Robotics retrofits earthmoving machines with plug-and-play autonomy to enable safer, more productive, and predictable construction sites. - **Entity Type**: Private – Series A-II - **Headquarters**: Zurich, Switzerland (also offices in Austin, Texas, USA and Oxford, UK) - **Founded**: 2022 - **Founders**: Ryan Luke Johns, Hanspeter Fässler, Simon Kerscher, Burak Çizmeci, Marco Hutter ## Core Business - **Primary industry**: Automation Machinery Manufacturing / Construction Robotics - **Target customers**: B2B – heavy civil construction firms, earthwork contractors, and equipment rental companies - **Mission**: To turn any earthmoving machine into a robot, augmenting human crews with superhuman productivity, safety, and predictability. ## Products & Services - **[Gravis RACK]**: A hardware-and-software retrofit kit (sensors, control unit, intuitive touchscreen) that transforms standard excavators into autonomous or teleoperated machines. Includes features like terrain-aware excavation (30% throughput improvement), autonomous maneuvers, self-stabilization, and augmented vision. (Type: Hardware + SaaS) - **[Teleoperation Tools]**: Advanced remote control capabilities enabling operators to manage machines from outside the cab, reducing exposure to hazards. - **[Deployment & Integration]**: Full support for integrating the Gravis RACK onto existing fleet machines, with site‑setup and task management via a simple interface. ## Market Standing - **Valuation / Funding**: Total funding of **$227.58M** as of August 2026, including a recent **$200M Series A** led by SoftBank Investment Advisers (announced August 20, 2026). Prior rounds included a seed round led by IQ Capital and Zacua Ventures. *Note: Some earlier profiles list $23M total funding – this appears to be outdated data before the Series A.* - **Key Metric**: Annual Revenue not publicly disclosed; headcount of **57 employees** (51-200 range) with **+43.5% YoY growth**. - **Notable Investors / Partners**: SoftBank Group, Armada Investment Group, Sunna Ventures, Imad Ventures, IQ Capital, Zacua Ventures. Deployment partnerships include DEVELON Europe, AG für Baumaschinen Schmerikon, and KIBAG. - **Growth Signals**: Handed over first commercial autonomous excavator to KIBAG in April 2026; expanding from Zurich hub into Austin and Oxford; active jobsite deployments; Inc. Magazine feature on Series A. ## Competitive Advantages - **Deep tech moat**: Core technology spun out from ETH Zurich’s Robotic Systems Lab, with over a decade of research in legged and autonomous systems applied to heavy machinery. - **Plug‑and‑play retrofit**: Works on existing machine brands (e.g., Develon) without requiring OEM redesign, enabling rapid fleet conversion. - **Field‑proven reliability**: Operates in extreme, unstructured outdoor environments (dirt, mud, slopes) where other autonomous systems struggle. - **Full‑stack approach**: Integrates hardware (RACK), perception, planning, teleoperation, and fleet management into a single cohesive product. ## Strategic Focus - **Scale deployment**: Use the $200M Series A to accelerate production of the Gravis RACK, expand into new geographic markets (US, UK), and grow the engineering and field operations teams. - **Product roadmap**: Improve autonomy level (e.g., full excavation without human input), expand to other earthmoving machine types (dozers, loaders), and deepen machine learning for terrain modeling. - **Talent acquisition**: Aggressively hiring across autonomy, SLAM, systems engineering, field robotics, and infrastructure roles (8 open positions as of September 2026). ## Why Work Here - **Culture**: Rated **4.6/5.0** on employer reviews (5 reviews) with strong scores in Work-Life Balance (4.3), Culture (4.5), and Career Growth (4.5). Described as a team of “great engineers, creative minds, and awesome people.” - **Work Policy**: Hybrid and on-site roles depending on location: Zurich (mostly on-site/hybrid), Austin (on-site), Oxford (hybrid). Internships are on-site in Zurich. - **Engineering culture**: Heavy emphasis on robotics, simulation, ML, and real‑world systems. Tech stack includes ROS, PyTorch, TensorFlow, Unreal Engine, SolidWorks, C++, Python, and more. Team includes alumni from ETH Zurich, NASA JPL, ANYbotics, and other top robotics groups. - **Perks**: Work on physical AI that has a tangible impact on global infrastructure; see your code move dirt on real construction sites; small, fast‑moving team with direct access to founders. ## Sources 1. [gravisrobotics.com](https://www.gravisrobotics.com/) 2. [jobs.lever.co/gravisrobotics](https://jobs.lever.co/gravisrobotics) 3. [linkedin.com/company/gravisrobotics](https://linkedin.com/company/gravisrobotics) 4. [cbinsights.com/company/gravis-robotics](https://www.cbinsights.com/company/gravis-robotics) ## Other roles at Gravis Robotics - [Field Robotics Team Lead - UK](https://feeny.ai/job/field-robotics-team-lead-uk-gravis-robotics-oxford-yr7t24atgmj1) — Oxford, United Kingdom - [General Application Inquiry](https://feeny.ai/job/general-application-inquiry-gravis-robotics-zurich-zkm9ns5bj6na) — Zurich, Switzerland - [Senior Reinforcement Learning Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-reinforcement-learning-engineer-gravis-robotics-zurich-dg38zww2vz24) — Zurich, Switzerland - [Systems Engineer (Excavator Automation)](https://feeny.ai/job/systems-engineer-excavator-automation-gravis-robotics-zurich-qnk5z12ysf9f) — Zurich, Switzerland - [Field Robotics Engineer - US](https://feeny.ai/job/field-robotics-engineer-us-gravis-robotics-austin-t1m3yv52dsgj) — Austin, TX