AI Futures are partnered exclusively with the most exciting AI startup in Germany on a Search for a Senior AI / Robotics Engineer.
This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to create a new industry by building the operating system for physical-world intelligence. Funded by Tier 1 VCs, the company are developing a new category of autonomous systems capable of delivering low-signature, persistent intelligence at scale, creating a programmable layer that connects the physical world to organisations and turns deployments into real insight. With initial applications in defence and long-term applications across security, infrastructure and industry, the company is scaling from 50 to 200 people in 2026.
The Role
* Developing and integrating multi-modal perception systems - with a strong emphasis on audio-based perception and inertial ego-motion estimation - to enable robust situational awareness in constrained microrobotic platforms
* Designing and implementing event detection algorithms suited to tiny, resource-constrained robots operating in unstructured environments, prioritising real-world reliability over simulation-centric approaches
* Collaborating closely with hardware, firmware and autonomy teams, bridging the gap between physical systems and intelligent behaviour
* Owning end-to-end technical challenges - from hardware-close sensor integration to high-level autonomy - and moving fast across domains to solve hard problems
* Shipping real robots that work in the field
The Candidate
* 5–7+ years of hands-on engineering experience without a PhD, or 2+ years with a PhD, in robotics, autonomous systems or a closely adjacent field
* Strong academic background in Robotics, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering or a related discipline
* Demonstrable full-stack engineering capability - comfortable moving between hardware constraints, firmware, perception and autonomy layers
* Proven experience in microrobotics or miniaturised robotic systems, with a deep understanding of the unique constraints of tiny platforms (power, weight, compute, cost)
* Strong background in sensor integration and multi-modal state estimation, including inertial / ego-motion systems
* Experience with path planning algorithms for autonomous systems operating in real, unstructured environments
Nice to Have
* Audio-based perception experience — using acoustic or seismic sensing for event detection in small robots
* Experience with inertial ego-motion estimation using MEMS sensors, IMUs or other miniaturised sensing modalities
* Technically deep, solution-focused and mission-driven mindset, comfortable moving fast in ambiguous, frontier territory
Ability to be on-site in Germany full-time required
If you'd like to explore this opportunity, please send your CV to will.childs@aifutures.group
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