Location: Hybrid - Boulder, ColoradoCandidates must reside within commuting distance of our Boulder, CO office. Relocation assistance is not available. Only local candidates will be considered Team: Tape Robotics Engineering
About the Role
We’re looking for a Senior Firmware Engineer to help design, build, and ship the embedded software that runs our tape library line of business. You’ll work close to the hardware—MCUs, sensors, actuators, and communication buses—owning firmware on production and field deployment. This role is ideal for someone who loves solving real-world problems where software meets motors, physics, and electrons.
What You’ll Do
Design, develop, and maintain firmware for robotic systems running on microcontrollers and embedded SoCs
Architect low-level drivers for sensors, motors, power systems, and communication interfaces (SPI, I²C, UART, CAN, Ethernet, etc.)
Implement real-time control logic, state machines, and safety-critical features
Optimize firmware for performance, reliability, memory usage, and power efficiency
Bring up new hardware, including board validation, debugging, and root-cause analysis
Collaborate closely with hardware, controls, robotics, and systems engineers to define interfaces and system behavior
Support manufacturing, calibration, and field diagnostics with robust tooling and logging
Mentor junior engineers and contribute to firmware best practices, coding standards, and design reviews
What You Bring
7+ years of experience developing firmware in C/C++ for embedded or real-time systems
Strong understanding of microcontroller architectures (ARM Cortex-M, ESP32, STM32, etc.)
Experience with RTOS environments (FreeRTOS, Zephyr, or similar)
Hands-on debugging skills using oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, JTAG/SWD, and in-circuit debuggers
Solid grasp of embedded software design patterns, memory management, and concurrency
Experience working on robotics or motion-controlled systems
Ability to work cross-functionally and communicate clearly between software and hardware teams
Proven ability to develop new solutions, as well as understand and maintain legacy code.
Nice to Have
Experience with ROS / ROS 2 at the firmware–software boundary
Motor control experience (BLDC, stepper, PID control, FOC)
Familiarity with functional safety concepts and standards (IEC, ISO)
Bootloaders, OTA updates, and secure firmware deployment
Exposure to production robotics, autonomous systems, or industrial automation
Compensation: $120k-$180k While this salary range is a good faith and reasonable estimate, a candidate’s actual salary will be competitive based on a variety of factors including the candidate’s knowledge, skills, and experience. WHY SPECTRA?Located in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains in Boulder, Colorado, Spectra is an entrepreneurial, private company with more than 40 years of proven success preserving, protecting and defending the world’s data. Spectra offers a challenging, flexible and creative work environment. Our culture is one that drives personal opportunity and advancement and rewards high performance while maintaining a high-quality work-life balance. We offer a casual, hybrid work environment with ample opportunity to learn and grow within the company. Work out on your own or with our trainer at one of the on-campus gyms; grab lunch or snacks onsite or challenge the CEO to a game of pinball; and grow your career with peers who are second to none. SPECTRA IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYERSpectra is committed to recruiting and retaining a diverse and inclusive workforce. We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer, and we never discriminate against applicants or employees on the basis of age, color, disability, gender, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, military or veteran status, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation or any other characteristics protected by applicable law
