Senior Software Engineer, Device OS

About the Role

Apkudo's Device OS team is the engineering backbone that makes our custom hardware appliances and software platforms work reliably at scale from Outpost integrations at partner sites to storage cell orchestration and SLA reporting for field-deployed units. We are looking for a Senior Software Engineer who is equally comfortable writing elegant Python, wiring up a hardware prototype, and designing robust state machines that keep complex workflows predictable under pressure. You will own technically demanding problems end-to-end, mentor engineers on your team, and help set the architectural direction for the systems that power Apkudo's device lifecycle platform.

What You Own

We are agile, and so our days and duties can vary. In this role you own and are responsible for delivering to your colleagues:

• Design, build, and maintain Python-based software systems that interface directly with custom hardware platforms and third-party devices.

• Author and own hardware drivers and communication layers across a range of protocols (serial, USB, Ethernet, GPIO, and others as needed).

• Architect and implement comprehensive, maintainable state machines that govern device workflows, ensuring correctness, observability, and graceful failure handling.

• Write asynchronous, event-driven code that keeps hardware interactions responsive and non-blocking across concurrent device pipelines.

• Build and maintain RESTful APIs that expose device data and control surfaces to internal services and partner integrations.

• Work with SQL databases to persist device state, telemetry, and operational metrics reliably.

• Contribute computer vision capabilities where they intersect with device inspection, identification, or automation workflows.

• Collaborate cross-functionally with hardware engineers, firmware teams, product managers, and field operations to deliver complete, field-ready features.

• Conduct thorough code reviews, write technical design documents, and raise the engineering bar across the team.

What You Bring

We know there are many paths to performing well. We will expect you to come up to speed fast and deliver great work. We think it would be hard to do that in this job without the following specialized education or proven experience:

• Fluency in software engineering fundamentals — clean code, testability, version control, and code review — demonstrated through a track record of shipping production systems.

• Strong, hands-on Python experience (5+ years) as a primary production language.

• Proven experience writing hardware drivers and interfacing over communication protocols (e.g., serial/UART, USB, I2C, SPI, Modbus, or similar).

• Demonstrable ability to design and implement maintainable, comprehensive state machines for complex device or workflow control.

• Solid familiarity with async programming patterns (asyncio, event loops, coroutines) in Python or equivalent environments.

• Backend/RESTful API design and implementation experience — you have built APIs others depend on.

• Working knowledge of SQL; the ability to design sensible schemas, write efficient queries, and reason about data integrity.

• Some exposure to computer vision — whether through OpenCV, ML-based pipelines, or image processing workflows.

• A demonstrable appetite for working with hardware: hands-on electronics or embedded experience, a relevant university project, or equivalent self-directed work that shows you understand the basics of electronics, signal flow, and hardware constraints.

• BS in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or a related field — relevant experience may substitute for or augment formal education.

• Strong technical communication skills and the ability to translate between hardware realities and software abstractions.

Nice to Have

• Experience with warehouse or logistics automation environments.

• Familiarity with Linux system administration, systemd services, or embedded Linux.

• Exposure to AWS IoT, Greengrass, or similar edge-cloud frameworks.

• Prior experience contributing to a platform product serving multiple enterprise customers.