Firmware Engineer II

Tombot is a robotics startup company based in the greater Los Angeles area. Jennie, our robotic puppy, was named a Best of CES® Award winner at CES 2026, and was designed to support over 50 million seniors with dementia worldwide. We’re building a passionate team to help deliver these life-changing robotic companions to the people who need them most.

We are seeking a motivated Firmware Engineer II to join our embedded systems team. This role will focus heavily on communication, firmware update infrastructure, memory management, and embedded file handling systems. The individual will also be responsible for hardware bring-up and driver development.

You will participate in all stages of firmware development—from architecture and design through implementation, validation, production, and field support. This includes implementing secure OTA update pipelines, managing external flash memory devices, integrating wireless modules, and building robust firmware systems that support reliable field deployment.

The ideal candidate has strong experience with STM
32 microcontrollers, RTOS-based firmware designs, and has experience implementing firmware update mechanisms, integrating wireless modules, and working with external flash memory.

At Tombot, how we build is just as important as what we build. Team members receive defined success metrics during onboarding and are supported through regular feedback, coaching, and structured review cycles designed to promote growth and alignment with company goals.

• Develop and maintain embedded firmware for Tombot’s robotics platforms using STM
  32 microcontrollers and RTOS-based systems.
• Implement and maintain OTA firmware and asset update functionality, including secure delivery, file reconstruction, validation, and deployment.
• Integrate and support wireless modules, including Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, and develop reliable communication interfaces using SPI, UART, and related protocols.
• Develop and maintain firmware systems for storing, retrieving, and managing assets in external NOR flash memory.
• Develop and maintain firmware and asset update systems, including manifest handling and tooling to support packaging, validation, and deployment.
• Collaborate with hardware engineers to integrate, test, and debug microcontroller peripherals and external devices.
• Debug and resolve firmware issues across hardware, communication interfaces, memory systems, and RTOS environments.
• Optimize firmware for performance, reliability, memory usage, and production deployment.
• Participate in firmware architecture, code reviews, and system design discussions.
• Document firmware systems, tools, and development processes to support team collaboration and long-term maintainability.
• Additional duties as assigned.

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related field, or equivalent practical experience
• 3+ years of professional embedded firmware development experience

• Strong experience developing firmware in C/C++ for ARM Cortex-M microcontrollers, preferably STM
  32
• Experience working with RTOS-based systems such as FreeRTOS or ThreadX
• Experience developing firmware/drivers for communication interfaces such as SPI, UART, and I2C.
• Experience integrating external devices such as wireless modules, sensors, or external flash memory
• Experience implementing or maintaining firmware update systems, bootloaders, or related firmware infrastructure
• Experience debugging embedded systems using standard tools and techniques
• Experience using Git or similar version control systems
• Strong problem-solving, analytical, and communication skills

• Experience with robotics or electromechanical systems
• Ability to read electrical schematics and PCB layouts
• Experience working with production firmware deployed to field devices
• Experience interfacing with motor controllers or serial-controlled devices using interfaces and protocols such as RS-232, RS-485, UART, SPI, or PWM
• Experience with DSP Concepts Audio Weaver or similar embedded audio processing tools
• Experience in debugging using tools such as logic analyzers and oscilloscopes.

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

Final compensation will be determined based on experience, skills, internal equity, and market factors. The base salary for this role is expected to be between $115k and $135k per year. In addition to cash compensation, this role may be eligible for equity awards, aligning individual impact with Tombot’s long-term success. Benefits include comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees and dependents.

Tombot is currently an in-office organization. We believe that real-time, in-person collaboration supports innovation, strengthens cross-functional partnership, and enables the rapid iteration required to build complex,…