Software Engineer - Human Motion Data

JOB SUMMARY

As a Software Engineer- Human Motion Data you will leverage your background in robotics to build the crucial link between human-data and our reinforcement learning pipelines. This role is dedicated to architecting robust motion data pipelines—integrating diverse sources like mocap game engines (like Unreal or Unity) teleoperation and generative AI motion models to generate thousands of rich physically accurate human motion trajectories. You will apply your deep expertise in kinematics and rigid body dynamics to translate raw human movement into actionable dynamically feasible data for whole-body reinforcement learning. As a core member of the Motion Control and Planning team you will work closely with Controls stakeholders to play a key role in maintaining a high-velocity ego-free engineering culture while ensuring our humanoid robots move with unprecedented fluidity.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES or KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

• Design build and maintain end-to-end motion data pipelines integrating diverse sources such as motion capture (mocap) teleoperation and synthetic generation using diffusion models animation and gaming engines to support humanoid robot development.
• Implement and optimize kinematic and dynamic retargeting pipelines to accurately map human demonstrations onto the robot's specific physical constraints mass distributions and joint limits.
• Develop tools and scripts to process and clean raw human demonstration data and apply state-of-the-art retargeting libraries (e.g. GMR Omni-retarget) to synthesize and filter new behaviors.
• Leverage game engines (Unreal Engine or Unity) and physics simulators to build simulated environments for procedural motion generation and data augmentation.
• Generate high-volume high-quality trajectory datasets required for training whole-body reinforcement learning policies.
• Write robust automated pipelines to streamline data flow between human demonstration sources generative motion models game engines and the RL training infrastructure.
• Collaborate closely with the Reinforcement Learning and Controls teams to iterate on data requirements understand failure modes and ensure the generated trajectories are physically viable on hardware.

SKILLS AND REQUIREMENTS

• Strong theoretical and practical understanding of robot kinematics (FK/IK) coordinate transformations and rigid body dynamics.
• Experience building or maintaining pipelines for spatial data including motion capture teleoperation tracking or AI-driven motion generation.
• Expertise in Python for scripting data processing and pipeline automation.
• A results-oriented mindset with an eagerness to bridge the gap between human motion data and real-world robotic control algorithms.
• High adaptability and a willingness to explore new tools moving seamlessly across different layers of the robotics software stack as project needs evolve.NICE TO HAVE (BONUS QUALIFICATIONS)
  • Hands-on experience with state-of-the-art motion generation models and open-source retargeting libraries (e.g. GMR Omni-retarget).
  • Proficiency in C++ is highly valued to help integrate with our broader robotics software stack.
  • Familiarity and hands-on experience utilizing 3D game engines (Unreal Engine or Unity) or advanced physics simulators for robotics data generation or simulation.
  • Hardware (HW) experience particularly working directly with physical robotic platforms.
  • A strong portfolio showcasing relevant robotics sim-to-real or motion generation projects.

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE

• A BS or MS degree in Robotics Mechanical Engineering Computer Science or a related highly technical field.
• 2+ years of industry or applied research experience in robotics motion planning sim-to-real pipelines or technical animation data generation.
• A proven track record of processing large amounts of spatial or motion data to drive robotic or simulated systems.

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

• Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer
• Must be able to lift 15 pounds at times
• Vision to read printed materials and a computer screen
• Hearing and speech to communicate

What We Do

Apptronik is building robots for the real world to improve human quality of life and to help solve the ever-increasing labor shortage problem. Our team has been building some of the most advanced robots on the planet for years dating back to the DARPA Robotics Challenge. We apply our expertise across the full robotics stack to some of the most important and impactful problems our society faces and expect our products and technology to change the world for the better. We value passion creativity and collaboration to help us overcome existing technological barriers in the industry to create truly innovative products.

Why Work With Us

At Apptronik we don't see a future where man competes against machine. Instead we envision a harmonious world where man and machine coexist. Our mission statement "It is not Man vs. Machine but Man + Machine" encapsulates our belief that the synergy between humans and robots will pave the way for a brighter more advanced future.

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