Senior Software Engineer

It started with a simple idea: what if surgery could be less invasive and recovery less painful? Nearly 30 years later, that question still fuels everything we do at Intuitive. As a global leader in robotic-assisted surgery and minimally invasive care, our technologies—like the da Vinci surgical system and Ion—have transformed how care is delivered for millions of patients worldwide.

We’re a team of engineers, clinicians, and innovators united by one purpose: to make surgery smarter, safer, and more human. Every day, our work helps care teams perform with greater precision and patients recover faster, improving outcomes around the world.

The problems we solve demand creativity, rigor, and collaboration. The work is challenging, but deeply meaningful—because every improvement we make has the potential to change a life.

If you’re ready to contribute to something bigger than yourself and help transform the future of healthcare, you’ll find your purpose here.

Primary Function of Position

The Interaction Software Engineering (ISE) organization is seeking a Senior Software Engineer with strong hands-on development experience to design, develop, optimize, and troubleshoot embedded software applications for the da Vinci surgical robotics systems. You will tackle complex technical challenges and build robust solutions across the full software stack - from embedded modules to platform infrastructure, and distributed data and processing frameworks, and user-facing applications. You will collaborate closely with cross-functional teams to deliver high-quality applications across all layers, ensuring seamless integration into the da Vinci systems.

Our team empowers application developers with easy-to-use APIs, tools, and reliable, performant runtime software frameworks that accelerate development. This is an opportunity to work on complex yet interesting problems at the intersection of embedded Linux software development, distributed system frameworks (data pipelines, edge inference, inter-process and inter-node communication), and hybrid compute architectures (CPU vs. GPU, edge vs. cloud), all within the da Vinci ecosystem.  The ideal candidate is a self-driven, hands-on developer who excels in a high-energy, cross-functional environment, consistently delivers high-quality products and solutions, while taking full end-to-end ownership and demonstrating a strong sense of shared responsibility.

Essential Job Duties

• Design and develop Linux software across all system layers - including OS components, platform/infrastructure services, applications, inter-layer frameworks, libraries, and tools - using modern C++, Python, and shell scripts

• Design and maintain APIs, interfaces, and abstractions for the platform service layer that bridges low-level hardware/OS services and upper-level user-facing and data-driven applications

• Develop distributed frameworks for edge data processing, ML inference pipelines, and UI data delivery - defining clean service boundaries, transport protocols, and data contracts

• Evaluate design trade-offs (e.g., CPU- vs. GPU-intensive, on-device vs. distributed, latency vs. throughput) and make architectural decisions to integrate diverse components within embedded software

• Integrate user-facing applications with software platform and infrastructure, designing extensible interfaces that decouple presentation layers from underlying compute and data services

• Analyze and optimize run-time system performance using metrics across all system layers, from the operating system and platform/infrastructure to user-facing applications

• Create high-quality technical documents capturing key design concepts and principles behind software design and architectures

• Write production-ready, high-quality, and easily testable code; improve regression detection and debugging processes

Required Skills and Experience

• Strong modern C++ skills with hands-on experience developing advanced Linux software

• Hands-on experience developing software in Python and shell scripts

• Strong understanding of systems design principles with a focus on performance, testability, scalability, and maintainability

• Experience designing and developing platform-layer APIs, SDKs, or framework interfaces that abstract hardware and OS capabilities for application developers

• Extensive hands-on experience implementing software/hardware interfaces in complex devices, including Linux-based interfaces to external devices and network communication interfaces

• Familiarity with inter-process communication patterns and distributed messaging (e.g., shared memory, pub/sub, gRPC, or similar RPC frameworks)

• Strong problem-solving and analytical skills, with the ability to analyze complex system issues and troubleshoot software and hardware problems

• Self-motivated, flexible team player to support all aspects of software development life cycle with the ability to define goals and work independently in a fast-paced environment

Required Education and Training 

• BS in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field with 7+ years of industry experience; or MS with 5+ years of industry experience

Preferred Skills and Experience 

• Knowledge and hands-on experience with GPU technologies and machine learning frameworks

• Experience with containerized deployments (Docker, Kubernetes) and scaling embedded ML systems in production

• Experience building data ingestion or streaming pipelines for edge/embedded environments (e.g., sensor data aggregation, telemetry, or real-time inference)

• Familiarity with UI framework integration patterns (e.g., data-binding layers, backend-for-frontend services) that connect platform services to front-end applications

Due to the nature of our business and the role, please note that Intuitive and/or your customer(s) may require that you show current proof of vaccination against certain diseases including COVID-19.  Details can vary by role.

Intuitive is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We provide equal employment opportunities to all qualified applicants and employees, and prohibit discrimination and harassment of any type, without regard to race, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, color, age, religion, protected veteran or disability status, genetic information or any other status protected under federal, state, or local applicable laws.

Mandatory Notices

U.S. Export Controls Disclaimer:  In accordance with the U.S. Export Administration Regulations (15 CFR §743.13(b)), some roles at Intuitive Surgical may be subject to U.S. export controls for prospective employees
who are nationals from countries currently on embargo or sanctions status.

Certain information you provide as part of the application will be used for purposes of determining whether Intuitive Surgical will need to (i) obtain an export license from the U.S. Government on your behalf (note: the government’s licensing process can take 3 to 6+ months) or (ii) implement a Technology Control Plan (“TCP”) (note: typically adds 2 weeks to the hiring process).  

For any Intuitive role subject to export controls, final offers are contingent upon obtaining an approved export license and/or an executed TCP prior to the prospective employee’s
start date, which may or may not be flexible, and within a timeframe that does not unreasonably impede the hiring need. If applicable, candidates will be notified and instructed on any requirements for these purposes. 

We will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records in accordance with fair chance laws.

Preference will be given to qualified candidates who do not reside, or plan to reside, in Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, or Tennessee.

This position may be filled at a different job level than listed here depending on
business need and/or on the selected candidate’s experience, knowledge and skills.
Compensation will be based primarily on the job level at which the role is filled and the
candidate’s qualifications, consistent with applicable law.

We provide market-competitive compensation packages, inclusive of base pay, incentives, benefits, and equity. It would not be typical for someone to be hired at the top end of range for the role, as actual pay will be determined based on several factors, including experience, skills, and qualifications. The target compensation ranges are listed.

Accommodation & Accessibility Notice:

Intuitive is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities. If you require assistance or an accommodation during any part of the application or interview process, please contact People Services at [email protected].