About 1XWe're building humanoid robots that work in home - doing the chores, handling the tasks, and giving people their time back. Simple, but it's not.To do this right, we have to solve robotics, AI, manufacturing - at the same time, at scale, in a form factor that has to be safe enough to live with your family. If you're inspired by this, you'll thrive here. We've been at this since 2014 and we're at the point where the hard problems are behind us and the hard work is in front of us.NEO is our flagship - a home robot designed to move, learn, and operate in the real world alongside real people.
We're not demoing it - we're shipping it. We're excited to meet you, if this excites you.If you've spent your career working on problems that matter and want to see them actually reach the world - this is that moment. We're scaling, we're hiring with intention, and we need people who want to build something that will genuinely change how humans spend their time - safely creating abundance for all.About the TeamThe Foundations team builds and owns the core C++ infrastructure that NEO's entire stack runs on—sensor pipelines, motor control interfaces, inter-process communication, and the foundational libraries that ship on every robot. Our code executes thousands of times per second on hardware moving through the real world, and its correctness and performance directly determines what every other team can build and ship.
If you want to work on the systems layer that makes physical AI possible at scale, this is that team.Your CharterOwn the foundational C++ infrastructure that NEO's brain and nervous system depend on ensuring it is fast, deterministic, and reliable as we scale from prototypes to thousands of robots in homes and warehouses. This is critical-path work: the latency, correctness, and maintainability of sensor pipelines, motor control loops, and IPC layers directly determines what the perception, planning, and controls teams can ship. Every clean interface introduced, every regression caught, and every millisecond saved here multiplies across every robot we deploy.Key OutcomesOwn and continuously improve real-time C++ infrastructure: sensor pipelines, motor control interfaces, deterministic scheduling such that dependent teams can build on it without hitting foundational performance or reliability blockersEstablish performance as a measurable standard: deliver benchmarking, flamegraph tooling, and regression tracking that catches latency or throughput drift before it reaches productionBuild the IPC and serialization layer connecting perception, planning, and actuation: lock-free queues, memory pools, shared-memory buffers with clean interfaces that other engineers trust and build onShip foundational libraries that run reliably on thousands of robots in homes and warehouses, not just prototypes in the labKey CompetenciesThinks in cycles, cache lines, and budgets designing systems around latency, memory, and bandwidth constraints and can explain exactly where time and memory go under loadDeep Linux and systems fluency debugging across toolchain, ABI, kernel interfaces, and cross-compilation; uses profiling, tracing, and assembly inspection as everyday tools, not last resortsInterface-first thinker writing code with clear contracts, minimal dependencies, and obvious correctness that other engineers reach for when building higher-level systemsReliability-oriented under pressure shipping real-time systems where failure has physical consequences, and treats deterministic behavior and clean failure modes as engineering requirements, not afterthoughtsMinimum Requirements5+ years shipping production C++ in performance-critical systems: robotics, autonomous vehicles, HFT, game engines, OS/runtime, compilers, or HPCDemonstrated ability to profile, benchmark, and debug at the systems level: flamegraphs, perf counters, assembly inspection, and Linux kernel interfacesProven track record of writing systems code other engineers build on clean interfaces, minimal dependencies, deterministic behavior under loadPreferred SkillsExperience with real-time or safety-critical systems where latency guarantees and failure modes have physical consequencesFamiliarity with lock-free data structures, memory pools, and shared-memory IPC patternsExperience with cross-compilation toolchains and embedded Linux targetsBackground in robotics, autonomous vehicles, or other physical systemsWhat does a successful 1X Team Member look likeTeam members at 1X who thrive here are builders. They move fast, own their work completely, and treat time like it's the one thing you can't get back - because it is.
They say what they mean, finish what they start, and hold themselves to a standard before anyone has to ask. We push each other to be better, and we do it with honesty and respect.Compensation Range$200,000 – $280,000 + EquityBenefitsComprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverageGenerous paid time off, company holidays, and parental leave401(k) plan with company match (100% on the first 3% of contributions, 50% on the next 2%)Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA) and Health Savings Accounts (HSA) optionsCommuter benefits (transit and parking)Short-term and long-term disability, and life insuranceEmployee Assistance Program (EAP) for mental health, financial, and personal supportOnsite snacks and catered lunchesEqual Opportunity Employer1X is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, age, marital status, medical condition, genetic information, disability, military or veteran status, justice system impact, or any other characteristic protected under applicable federal, state, or local law.