Senior Software Engineer Navigation

Company Description

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.

Job Description

Primary Function of Position:

As a Senior Software Engineer on the Future Forward Navigation team, you will develop innovative digital solutions to extend Intuitive’s robotic product lines. Collaborating with experts in robotics, imaging, and software, you will build medical image analysis and computer vision systems for novel robotic platforms. This role spans the entire development cycle—from prototyping approximate requirements to delivering high-quality production code. The ideal candidate is an independent problem-solver with a broad technical scope (robotics, ML, graphics) who learns quickly and thrives in a collaborative environment.

Essential Job Duties

• Lead the end-to-end development of advanced computer vision and ML algorithms (segmentation, 3D reconstruction, object tracking) from proof-of-concept to deployment on resource-constrained embedded platforms

• Architect low-latency, real-time inference pipelines using C++ and CUDA, ensuring algorithms meet strict timing and accuracy budgets for surgical assistance

• Collaborate with designers, clinical engineers, and other software developers to translate approximate clinical needs into concrete technical requirements and verifiable software specifications

• Drive safety-critical software engineering practices, including failure mode analysis, hazard mitigation, and validation strategies for AI models

• Mentor junior engineers and define best practices for code quality and architectural patterns within a distributed robotic system

Qualifications

Required Skills and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Biomedical Engineering, or a related field

• Minimum of 8 years of industry experience; or Master’s degree and 6 years of experience; or a PhD and 3 years of experience, with a proven track record of shipping production-quality computer vision features to products

• Strong C++ (11/14/17+) and Python skills, with experience in system-level programming, memory management, and multi-threading for real-time applications

• Strong foundation in both geometric computer vision (camera calibration, SLAM, registration, multi-view geometry) and deep learning (classification, tracking, mapping, transformers/CNNs)

Experience optimizing models for edge inference using TensorRT or similar hardware acceleration frameworks

Excellent communication skills and ability to convey technical content to a broader audience

Preferred Skills and Experience

• Experience with validating computer vision models tailored to medical applications

• Robotics exposure and familiarity with sensor data, kinematics, and coordinate frame transformations

• Knowledge of medical device software standards (IEC 62304, ISO 14971) and experience supporting FDA regulatory submissions for AI/ML-enabled devices

• Experience constructing large-scale data pipelines, including learning strategies, synthetic data generation, and ground-truth labeling

• Demonstrated ability to work with medical imaging modalities (Endoscopic video, Ultrasound, CT) or similar sensor data

• Experience in profiling and optimizing algorithm performance on CPU and GPU

Additional Information

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.

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.

Client-provided location(s): Sunnyvale, CA

Job ID: 0a63562a-c882-4e63-aa0e-d1c10ffa3acc

Employment Type: OTHER

Posted: 2026-01-27T21:42:53