Fulfil · 4 weeks ago
Staff / Principal Firmware Engineer
Mountain View, CA
Full-time
Onsite
Lead/Staff
$180K/yr - $215K/yr
8+ years expFulfil is a well-funded, rapidly growing company focused on developing automation robotics systems for the food supply chain. The Staff / Principal Firmware Engineer will lead the architecture and development of embedded firmware systems, ensuring robust integration with hardware and collaboration across teams.
Artificial Intelligence (AI)Food and BeverageIndustrial AutomationMachine LearningRoboticsSupply Chain Management
Responsibilities
Lead architecture and development of embedded firmware systems from concept through production
Drive system design across multiple communication layers: from physical protocols (CAN, I2C) to high-level RPC interfaces
Mentor and coach engineers on best practices, code quality, and architectural decisions
Implement robust, portable firmware using C/C++ for ARM-based microcontrollers and SBCs (e.g., STM32, NXP, Raspberry Pi-class devices)
Develop and maintain protocol implementations for CAN bus, Modbus, I2C, UART, and SPI
Design and maintain gRPC and Protocol Buffer interfaces to expose hardware services cleanly and safely to higher-level systems (e.g., orchestration, cloud, or local UIs)
Integrate Linux-based SBC firmware modules with hardware abstraction layers
Implement motor control algorithms, including tuning, sequencing, encoder-based positioning, and jerk limiting
Use real-world feedback (encoders, sensors, timing feedback) to optimize motion sequences and avoid unnecessary re-homing
Design and maintain unit testing and HIL (Hardware-in-the-Loop) environments
Debug systems at all layers — from firmware logic to sensor integration to timing drift
Use oscilloscopes, multimeters, logic analyzers, and related tools to bring up and validate hardware interfaces
Work with systems, hardware, software, and operations teams to align on firmware behaviors and API contracts
Own interface boundaries between hardware components, middleware, and application layers
Participate in bring-up, debugging, and integration of custom hardware
Ensure detailed documentation of firmware APIs, hardware mappings, and integration guides
Promote best practices for version control, CI/CD for firmware, and structured release processes
Qualification
Required
Located within commuting distance to Mountain View Ca
8+ years of experience in embedded systems firmware development and architecture
Deep understanding of embedded communication protocols: CAN bus, Modbus, I2C, SPI, UART
Experience with motion control, motor tuning, encoder feedback, and trajectory optimization (e.g., jerk limiting)
Strong C and C++ skills; familiarity with embedded Linux, shell scripting, and build systems (Bazel, CMake, etc.)
Experience designing gRPC + Protobuf interfaces between firmware modules and external software
Proven ability to lead unit testing strategy and build HIL testing environments
Experience interfacing with electrical engineering teams and hardware bring-up
Skilled with hardware debugging tools (oscilloscope, logic analyzer, multimeter, etc.)
Familiarity with Linux-based SBCs (e.g., NXP i.MX, Raspberry Pi, etc.)
Preferred
Experience with CanOpen protocol
Familiarity with PLCs, ladder logic, or industrial automation frameworks
Background in industrial automation, robotics, or distributed systems
Experience with firmware bootloaders, OTA update strategies, and secure firmware deployment
Understanding of network protocols (Ethernet, MQTT, TCP/IP) in embedded contexts
Exposure to DevOps practices for firmware (artifact management, CI/CD pipelines)
A maker/tinkerer mindset — whether from robotics competitions, hobby projects, or hardware hacking
Benefits
Competitive medical, dental, and vision coverage
401K
Life and disability coverage
A PTO policy where we encourage and expect all employees to take time to enjoy life outside of work
Company
Fulfil
Fulfil has reimagined and reinvented online grocery automation with a completely unique, fully automated fulfillment system that enables customer-centric, sustainable and profitable online grocery at scale.
51-200 employees
H1B Sponsorship
Fulfil has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships. Please note that this does not
guarantee sponsorship for this specific role. Below presents additional info for your
reference. (Data Powered by US Department of Labor)
Distribution of Different Job Fields Receiving Sponsorship
Represents job field similar to this job
Trends of Total Sponsorships
2025 (4)
2024 (4)
2023 (2)
2022 (2)
Funding
Current Stage
Growth StageTotal Funding
$60MKey Investors
Eclipse Ventures
2023-02-27Series B· $60M
2019-01-01Series A
Leadership Team
Mir Aamir
President and CEO
Matthew Coady
CTO, VP Engineering
Recent News
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