Embedded Software Engineer
Workstream · Menlo Park, CA
$130,000–$180,000from the description
Jul 7, 2026
Menlo Park, CA
Jul 21, 2026
What this job asks for AI summary
An embedded firmware engineering role on a small robotics team building connected hardware devices that capture and record egocentric video for AI training datasets. The work spans on-device software for recording, sensors, storage, and power management, as well as board bring-up, driver development, and internal tooling. It suits someone with hands-on experience shipping embedded software — across bare-metal, RTOS, and embedded Linux — on hardware that reached end users.
Mid level · 2+ years · San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA · Full-time
“or” means any one of them counts — you don't need all of them.
We read this from the posting text with AI. Skim the description below before ruling yourself out.
How this req sits in the market our data
Roughly 370 people in the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA area plausibly meet what this posting asks for (software developers). range 280–480
Applicant volume Moderate — A normal amount of company. The rare requirements below are what will separate a shortlisted application from the rest.
Rare in this occupation — lead with these, and say what you built with them.
Most people in this occupation already list these. Still required — just not what gets you shortlisted.
What the occupation pays Median $217,796 (middle half $177,469–$231,052). This posting is about at that midpoint.
Estimated from BLS employment for this occupation and area, per-skill prevalence across our listing corpus, and published wage benchmarks — as of Jul 28, 2026. It is a model, not a headcount.
Why we read it this way (7)
The role is embedded firmware/systems engineering — it sits at the intersection of software and hardware. 15-1252 (Software Developers) is the best available fit; 15-1299 (Computer Occupations, All Other) is a reasonable runner-up given the heavy hardware-boundary work.
The JD states '2-5 years shipping embedded software,' which sets the minimum at 2 years. The scope (owning on-device software, board bring-up, API/SDK ownership for a small team) is consistent with a Mid-level role despite the breadth of responsibilities.
C and C++ are listed together as a single proficiency requirement ('Proficiency in C/C++'); they are emitted as separate skills with each as the other's alternative, since they are distinct languages that may be used independently.
Embedded Linux and RTOS/bare-metal are listed with 'and/or' — both are included as required since the JD frames them as the core technical profile ('moves easily between embedded Linux, RTOS, and bare-metal MCU code').
The B.S. degree requirement is listed as 'B.S. in EE, CE, CS, or equivalent experience,' so no formal degree is hard-gated.
All 'Nice To Have' items (MIPI CSI-2, DSP/ISP, Zephyr/FreeRTOS, BLE, Wi-Fi, USB, OTA, CI/CD) are listed under an explicit 'Nice To Have' heading and are marked preferred accordingly.
The posted salary range ($130,000–$180,000) is stated as applicable to Menlo Park, CA, which falls within the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara CBSA.
Read the full posting
The employer publishes the full description on their own site — read it there ↗. Or sign in to read it here — it's free, and it also lets you track this application.