Member of Technical Staff, Microsoft Robotics (Software Systems)

Job title: Member of Technical Staff, Microsoft Robotics (Software Systems)

United States, Washington, Redmond

Job description

Company and benefits

Job number

200038457

Date posted

Oct 13, 2026

Work site

4 days / week in-office

Travel

Less than 25%

Profession

Software Engineering

Discipline

Software Engineering

Role type

Individual Contributor

Employment type

Full-Time

Overview

Microsoft's Discovery and Quantum (MDQ) division develops and delivers advanced artificial intelligence (AI), cloud-enabled capabilities, and strategic technologies to help solve the world's major challenges. From accelerating scientific discovery with advanced AI tools, to pioneering breakthroughs in quantum computing, to advancing robotics and AI capabilities that drive real-world impact, joining MDQ means building the future, partnering with fast-moving innovators, and operating in a high-impact, mission-driven environment.

At Microsoft Robotics within MDQ, we build and deploy technologies that enable people, robots, and AI agents to collaborate and achieve more.

We are building Microsoft's platform for physical intelligence—an integrated robotics software and AI platform that brings together humans, robots, and agents through robotics AI models, innovative teaming solutions and experiences, physically grounded agentic AI workflows, trustworthy test and evaluation, and real-world customer-focused validation. Built on Microsoft's core platforms and delivered through and with a global ecosystem of partners and customers, this platform accelerates AI for the physical world and helps robotics solutions move from experimentation to reliable, scaled deployment.

We are hiring a Member of Technical Staff, Microsoft Robotics (Software Systems) at the Principal level to design and build core infrastructure components of the Microsoft Robotics platform, including the Software Development Kits (SDKs), cloud services, edge runtimes, developer tooling, and agent orchestration layers that enable people, AI agents, and robots to operate together across end-to-end mission workflows. This is an engineering role where you will make foundational architectural decisions that shape how the entire platform scales, how partners integrate, and how autonomy capabilities are composed and deployed.

Microsoft's mission is to empower every person and every organization on the planet to achieve more. As employees we come together with a growth mindset, innovate to empower others, and collaborate to realize our shared goals. Each day we build on our values of respect, integrity, and accountability to create a culture of inclusion where everyone can thrive at work and beyond.

Responsibilities

• Architect and implement core platform components, including robotics SDKs, cloud-hosted Application Programming Interfaces (APIs), edge runtimes, and agent orchestration frameworks that enable developers and partners to compose interoperable autonomy capabilities (perception, planning, control, multi-agent coordination) into deployable mission workflows.
• Design the platform's extensibility and integration architecture, defining how first-party autonomy capabilities, first- and third-party models, partner hardware systems, and customer-specific logic are composed, versioned, tested, and deployed across cloud and edge environments.
• Build production-grade data infrastructure spanning the full robotics lifecycle including instrumentation libraries, data acquisition services, human-in-the-loop components, and data governance features.
• Partner with product managers, researchers, and customers to translate business and technical requirements into scalable software systems.
• Lead the design and implementation of scalable, robust, and secure architectures that enable operating complex robotics workflows in real-world environments.
• Mentor and collaborate with junior engineers, contribute to code reviews, and help grow the Robotics Software Systems team.

Qualifications

• PhD or MS in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Robotics, or a closely related field, or equivalent practical experience.
• Deep experience delivering large software systems including SDKs, APIs, cloud services, edge runtimes, developer tooling, and orchestration layers.
• Demonstrated impact in designing and delivering distributed systems with reliability, scalability, and security in mind.
• Strong programming skills in languages commonly used in robotics and cloud environments (e.g., C++, Python, C#, Java) and experience with modern dev/CI pipelines.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills; ability to influence across teams and with external partners.

Benefits

• Competitive compensation and benefits package.

• Opportunities to work on cutting-edge robotics and AI hardware/software integration.

• A culture that values inclusion, learning, and growth.

• Additional details

• Location: Redmond, WA (In-office 4 days per week; hybrid work arrangement)

• Travel: Minimal to moderate depending on program needs

• Security clearance: Applicants selected for this role may be required to obtain and maintain a background investigation.