PRINCIPAL EMBEDDED SYSTEMS ENGINEERWe are looking for a
Principal Embedded Systems Engineer to own the platform that our camera-based products run on - from the Linux user-space stack, to the C++ peripherals layer that talks to motors and sensors, to the OTA system that keeps thousands of devices in the field healthy.
Based in Boston (hybrid), you will lead and player-coach a small team within the embedded systems domain, reporting to a Senior Director of Engineering. You'll be the technical owner of our on-device system supporting the movement tracking functionality of the product.
This is a role for someone who thrives on breadth. In any given week, you might be making an architecture decision in the on-device system runtime, tuning a motor control loop, reviewing a schematic with an EE before a board respin, or adding new robustness to the OTA system. You needn't be a roboticist or an EE, but excited to branch into those domains when the problems call for it.
If you've owned an embedded product end-to-end - software architecture, hardware bring-up, the unglamorous parts of shipping at scale - this is your kind of problem.
WHAT YOU'LL DO - Own the technical direction of our on-device platform: the Linux application stack, the C++ peripherals layer (camera driver, IMU estimation, motor control, I2C/SPI/GPIO peripherals), OTA, and the deployment to the device fleet.
- Lead and mentor a small team, setting priorities, reviewing designs, and driving execution while remaining deeply hands-on in the codebase.
- Make and defend architectural decisions across a multi-language system (Python, C++, containerized services on ARM Linux).
- Stretch into adjacent domains as the work demands - motor control, sensor filtering, hardware debugging, board bring-up support, manufacturing/assembly-line QA tooling.
- Partner with electrical engineers on hardware design changes and new product introductions: reading schematics, debugging boards with DMM/scope/logic analyzer, and feeding hardware learnings back into firmware and software.
WHAT YOU'LL NEED- 8+ years of software engineering experience, with significant time spent on embedded Linux systems or otherwise close to hardware.
- Strong proficiency in C/C++ and Python - you're comfortable across the stack from real-time C++ peripherals code to Python application services.
- Demonstrated experience shipping and operating embedded products at scale: OTA, fleet observability, manufacturing provisioning, and the operational realities of devices you can't easily reach.
- The ability to own ambiguous problems end-to-end: scoping, prototyping, shipping, and measuring - across software, hardware, and the seams between them.
- Comfort with leadership: you've mentored engineers, led technical direction, or driven cross-team initiatives, even if your title didn't say "lead."
- Baseline hardware fluency - reading a schematic, debugging with a scope or logic analyzer, and collaborating with EEs.
Nice to have - and what would make you exceptional:
- Experience with motor control, sensor fusion, or other robotics-adjacent problems (Kalman filtering, control loops, IMU integration).
- Experience with edge AI accelerators, depth cameras, or video pipelines on embedded hardware.
- Microcontroller firmware experience - not required for our current platform, but useful for future work.
- Experience with containerized deployment on ARM, systemd, udev, device tree, or kernel modules.
WHAT YOUR SUCCESS WILL LOOK LIKE- In 6 months time... You're productive across the on-device stack, have shipped meaningful improvements to either the platform's reliability or its development velocity, and have a clear picture of where the biggest architectural opportunities are.
- In 12 months time... You're the technical owner of the on-device platform and the OTA system, and the team is running well underneath you. You've driven architectural improvements to support new functionality, supported manufacturing, and are the go-to person across the company for anything that touches how our hardware and on-device software actually work in the field.
Compensation & BenefitsThe target Total Compensation range for this position is $133,594 - $267,188 per year. This range is inclusive of base salary and a target incentive plan (which may include equity, commission, or other bonus structures). Your specific compensation within this range will be determined by factors such as your geographic location, relevant experience, and job-related skills.
In addition to this compensation, Catapult also offers generous paid leave and recognized company holidays, and the opportunity to participate in our comprehensive benefits package, including Health, Dental, and Vision insurance, and 401(k) retirement plan with company match.
All offers of employment are subject to Catapult's positive prehire check. To find out more, please contact the Talent Partner for this role.
