Software Engineer — Software Platform & Middleware - Early Career

Build the Software Platform Powering Next-Generation Mobility
Apex.AI is developing the software foundation for autonomous systems, intelligent machines, and software-defined vehicles. We are looking for an early-career Software Engineer to help advance our core software platform technologies, including Apex.Grace and Apex.Ida.
This role is ideal for recent university graduates or engineers with 1–2 years of experience who are passionate about modern C++, distributed systems, middleware, developer platforms, and systems software engineering.
You will work alongside experienced engineers on high-performance middleware, runtime systems, developer tooling, and software infrastructure used in safety-critical and real-time environments. This is an opportunity to gain hands-on experience building production-quality software for automotive, robotics, aerospace, and industrial automation applications.
We are looking for engineers who enjoy solving complex technical problems, learning deeply about software systems, and building tools and platforms that other developers rely on every day.
This role is based in our Munich office.

About Apex.AI
Apex.AI is an international software company specializing in the development of safety-certified, developer-friendly, and scalable software for mobility systems, aiming to accelerate the transition to software-defined vehicles and mobility. Founded in 2017 by Jan Becker and Dejan Pangercic, the company is headquartered in Palo Alto, California, with additional offices in Munich, Stuttgart, Gothenburg, Tokyo, and Pangyo. To date, Apex.AI has raised over $75 million USD from world-class venture, financial and strategic investors including AGCO, Airbus Ventures, Canaan, Continental AG, Daimler Truck, HELLA Ventures, Jaguar Land Rover's InMotion Ventures, LG Electronics, Lightspeed, Orillion, Toyota Ventures, Volvo Group Venture Capital and ZF.
The company's flagship product, Apex.OS, consists of two core components: Apex.Grace and Apex.Ida.
Apex.Grace is an application runtime framework in the form of a software development kit (SDK). It provides a robust framework for developing real-time, reliable, and safe applications. Core APIs are based on ROS 2 APIs with numerous extensions enabling real-time execution, reliable performance, deployment into large fleets, system state management, safety, security, and much more. It is safety-certified to ISO 26262 ASIL D.
Apex.Ida is a communication middleware delivering optimal high-performance data transport across use cases. These use cases range from fully autonomous vehicles with dozens of high-resolution cameras to small signals with ultra-high frequencies in safety-critical domains. Its core is based on a shared memory data transport with connectors into DDS, SOME/IP, MQTT, CAN, and many more protocols, all abstracted into a single application-facing API.
Additionally, Apex.AI offers:
Apex.Alan provides customers with a highly optimized and efficient software integration, development environment, build, test, and delivery process.
Apex.OS for V&V enables record and playback of very large and diverse data streams, both time- and data-deterministically, which is crucial for replay, analysis, and performance evaluation of complex autonomous systems.
Apex.AI's software solutions are utilized across a diverse range of industries, including automotive, agriculture, medical, and defense sectors. The products enable developers to efficiently create and deploy safe, reliable, and high-performance applications, thereby accelerating the adoption of software-defined mobility systems. Through its innovative software solutions and strategic partnerships, Apex.AI is at the forefront of transforming the mobility industry, facilitating the development of next-generation vehicles and systems.

What You’ll Do:
• Contribute to the development and maintenance of core software components for Apex.AI products, particularly Apex.Grace and Apex.Ida

• Help build software platform capabilities, middleware features, developer tooling, and runtime infrastructure

• Support improvements in performance, reliability, scalability, and maintainability across the platform stack

• Assist in debugging and resolving complex software and system-level issues

• Develop automated tests, CI workflows, and engineering tooling

• Collaborate closely with platform, product, and applications teams to deliver production-quality software

• Participate in code reviews, technical discussions, and software design activities

• Learn and apply engineering best practices for modern C++ and systems software development

• Contribute ideas and improvements to developer workflows and platform usability

What You Bring:
• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Mathematics, Robotics, or a related technical field

• Strong foundation in software engineering and computer science fundamentals

• Experience with modern C++ through coursework, internships, personal projects, or early professional work

• Familiarity with Python or scripting languages

• Experience developing software on Linux-based systems

• Interest in distributed systems, middleware, runtime systems, or embedded software

• Strong debugging, analytical, and problem-solving skills

• Familiarity with Git and modern software development workflows

• Strong written and verbal communication skills

• Curiosity, ownership mentality, and eagerness to learn new technologies

Nice to Have:
• Exposure to middleware or communication technologies such as ROS/ROS 2, DDS, shared memory IPC, or networking APIs

• Familiarity with TCP/IP, sockets programming, or Linux system programming

• Experience with CI/CD workflows and automated testing

• Exposure to robotics, autonomous systems, or embedded software projects

• Familiarity with build systems such as CMake or Bazel

• Understanding of distributed systems concepts or real-time systems

• Interest in automotive software, intelligent machines, or software-defined vehicles

• Internship or academic experience involving systems programming or developer platforms

Why Apex.AI:
• Build foundational platform technology used in real-world autonomous and intelligent systems

• Learn from highly experienced engineers working on technically challenging problems

• Gain hands-on experience with middleware, runtime systems, and developer infrastructure

• Engineering-driven culture with meaningful ownership, mentorship, and growth opportunities

• Competitive compensation, benefits, and professional development opportunities

• International team working at the forefront of mobility software innovation