Lead Software Engineer, Robotics Simulation - San Jose, United States
$119,000 - $221,000 USD yearly
Originally posted 21 October 2026 by the employer.
About the role
Cadence is seeking a Lead Software Engineer to develop simulation technology for physical AI and robotics applications in San Jose. The role focuses on developing simulation algorithms spanning many-body dynamics and finite element analysis, with an emphasis on contact algorithms validated on robotics hardware.
What you'll do
- Develop simulation algorithms for physical AI and robotics applications, including many-body dynamics and finite element analysis. - Develop and refine contact algorithms to model physical interactions in robotics scenarios. - Validate simulation algorithms on robotics hardware and use experimental results to guide improvements. - Evaluate simulation behavior against real-world deployment scenarios to identify and address differences between simulated and hardware results. - Apply control theory and controller optimization and tuning methods to support simulation and hardware validation.
What you'll need
- Degree in mechanical engineering, computer science, or a related discipline.
Nice to have
- PhD in mechanical engineering, computer science, or a related discipline. - Expertise spanning both numerical methods or simulation and practical robotics deployment scenarios. - Experience with many-body dynamics, finite element analysis, and contact algorithms. - Experience validating simulation algorithms on robotics hardware. - Expertise in control theory and controller optimization and tuning.
Skills: many-body dynamics, finite element analysis, contact algorithms, robotics, numerical methods
This role has been open 0 days — well below the 72-day median for EDA/CAD Engineering roles.
EDA/CAD Engineering · EDA Tools
|
Open roles in category
674
|
Median days open
72 d
|
Median salary
$195k
|
See the full market breakdown ▾Category comparison, skills in demand, and who else is hiring
| Metric | Cadence Design Systems | All employers we track in this specialty (674 roles · 75 employers) |
|---|---|---|
| Open roles in this specialty | 155 | 674 |
| Open roles in the wider Physical Implementation family | 180 | 1464 · 110 employers |
| Median days open | 148 d | 72 d (+76 d vs this employer) |
| Median salary (USD postings) | — | $195k |
Skills observed across this category: many-body dynamics, finite element analysis, contact algorithms, robotics, numerical methods
Who's hiring in this category
- Cadence Design Systems (this employer) · 154 open roles · median 152 d
- Synopsys · 61 open roles · median 39 d
- Micron Technology · 45 open roles · median 49 d
- Qualcomm · 36 open roles · median 78 d
- GlobalFoundries · 34 open roles · median 37 d
- Keysight Technologies · 32 open roles · median 75 d
How we counted: 674 open EDA/CAD Engineering (EDA Tools) roles from 75 employers tracked in the SemiconductorJobs index, counted 21 Oct 2026. Specialty figures count only roles carrying this exact specialty label, so an employer's related work in neighbouring specialties is not included there — it is counted in the wider Physical Implementation family row. Figures refresh nightly.