Full-Time

Machine Learning Engineer

Deft AI

Deft AI

1-10 employees

Systems integrator of wheeled humanoid robots

Compensation Overview

$150k - $200k/yr

+ Cash awards + Stock awards + Daily meals stipend

San Francisco, CA, USA

In Person

Master's, PhD

Category
AI & Machine Learning (1)
Required Skills
TensorFlow
PyTorch
Machine Learning
Robotics
Reinforcement Learning

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Requirements
  • PhD or Master of Science degree in Computer Science, Machine Learning, Robotics, or an equivalent technical discipline.
  • Deep expertise in machine learning fundamentals, reinforcement learning, and associated frameworks such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, and Ray.
  • At least 3 years of proven experience developing and deploying machine learning systems from research through production implementation.
  • Hands-on experience with model lifecycle management, including training, deployment, and maintenance in production settings.
Responsibilities
  • Design and develop a modular robot autonomy stack that composes Vision-Language-Action models with purpose-built modules to enable grasping and dexterous behaviors in unstructured environments.
  • Develop action refinement and safety layers that post-process Vision-Language-Action outputs, including constraint satisfaction, collision and force guards, smoothing, and runtime monitors for safety-critical deployment.
  • Architect clean interfaces and abstractions around base Vision-Language-Action models so they can be swapped, benchmarked, and upgraded as the state of the art evolves while keeping the stack model-agnostic.
  • Design and maintain robust data collection and curation pipelines for production robot fleets.
  • Build a reliable, high-speed robot autonomy software stack optimized for inference performance.
  • Advance state-of-the-art dexterous manipulation architecture through novel methodologies while bridging theory and practice through real customer use cases with clear success criteria.
Desired Qualifications
  • Authored or co-authored peer-reviewed publications in robotics or related fields.
  • Hands-on experience designing and implementing bimanual manipulation technology stacks with imitation learning or reinforcement learning-based methods.
  • Background in real-time machine learning inference systems, simulation-to-reality transfer, or advanced reinforcement learning implementations.

Deft AI designs and integrates wheeled humanoid robot systems for automotive, appliance, and electronics manufacturers. It combines robots with software, controllers, sensors, and factory equipment and wires them into a manufacturer’s existing processes to perform tasks like picking parts, moving materials, or assisting workers. Unlike others who sell standalone robots, Deft AI focuses on end-to-end integration and on-site support across multiple industries. Its goal is to help manufacturers automate more tasks to improve efficiency and consistency on the factory floor.

Company Size

1-10

Company Stage

N/A

Total Funding

N/A

Headquarters

San Francisco, California

Founded

2025

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Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • Rainfall Ventures and SpringCamp backed Deft AI's February 2026 seed round.
  • The company claims six-to-nine-month ROI, attractive for factory buyers.
  • July 2026 hiring for autonomy, controls, and mechanical roles signals active product buildout.

What critics are saying

  • Seed-funded in February 2026, Deft AI lacks proof of scaled deployments.
  • A ten-role hiring slate suggests heavy technical execution risk and thin organizational depth.
  • Figure, Agility, and Tesla-backed robotics teams can outspend Deft AI before 2027.

What makes Deft AI unique

  • Deft AI targets manufacturing's last 20% with wheeled humanoid workcells.
  • The company sells systems integration, not standalone robots, fitting existing factory equipment.
  • Its pitch promises 75%-95% human speed, 24-hour operation, and 99.9% success.

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Benefits

Health Insurance

Dental Insurance

Vision Insurance

Meal Benefits

Company News

Wow Partners, Inc.
Feb 3rd, 2026
SF-based Deft Robotics raises seed funding from Rainfall Ventures and Springcamp

San Francisco-based Deft Robotics has raised an undisclosed seed round from Rainfall Ventures and Springcamp. The startup develops AI-powered humanoid robots for manufacturing automation, targeting the challenging "last 20%" of production processes. Co-founded by CEO Shin-hee Lee and CTO Jeong-won Shin, Deft Robotics focuses on drop-in automation workcells for automotive and electronics manufacturers. The company's robots use AI-based perception and learning to handle non-routine tasks requiring human judgement, such as cable insertion and flexible assembly. The technology employs teleoperation for initial training, with humans controlling robots remotely whilst the system learns from accumulated data. Lee previously worked at Tesla in hardware engineering, whilst Shin developed autonomous driving systems at Hyundai and Motional. The company is currently conducting pilot projects with global automotive and electronics manufacturers.