Firmware Engineer (Python / Embedded Linux)

About the Role

Embedded Systems and Firmware @ Torus

We’re building energy storage and management solutions that help: 

• Commercial and industrial businesses reduce their operating costs while increasing reliability.
• Grid operators keep the electricity grid stable and cost efficient.

Torus is hiring a Firmware Engineer to be an individual contributor on our firmware team, working in close partnership with our Firmware Architect. This is a hands-on role where you'll translate architectural direction into well-engineered, production-grade firmware.

Our Tech Stack

Our firmware application layer is Python on Embedded Linux (Yocto)—not C, not C++. This was a deliberate architectural choice: Python gives us speed-to-market, flexibility to respond to changing grid program requirements, and a clean separation between hardware and application logic. Our comms are primarily RS-485, so Python runtime overhead is seldom the limiting factor.

If you've been writing Python to control hardware over serial protocols—in energy, robotics, industrial IoT, or test & measurement—you'll feel immediately at home here. If you've spent your career in C/C++ and are looking for that, this probably isn't the right fit.

Each Torus device generates over a million data points per day and integrates with our cloud platform via MQTT/AWS IoT. Our systems also participate in Virtual Power Plant (VPP) programs, responding to real-time dispatch signals from utilities—which means our firmware decisions have direct, measurable impact on grid operations.

What You’ll Do

In this role, you will report to our Head of Embedded Systems and will be responsible for:

• Developing firmware features across our energy storage product lines: telemetry, control loops, cloud connectivity, and hardware abstraction layers.
• Owning system integration—working closely with hardware, data, and software teams to ensure seamless interoperability across the full stack.
• Driving quality through design reviews, automated testing, and documentation. (We believe engineers own their own QA.)
• Debugging and optimizing real-time embedded applications and serial communication interfaces in the field and in the lab.
• Supporting scaling operations—deployment tooling, remote monitoring, and root-cause analysis of field issues across a growing fleet.
• Participate in on-call rotation for escalated technical issues.

Who Thrives Here

• You're a systems thinker who's comfortable owning a problem end-to-end—from a register on a Modbus device to a graph in a customer dashboard. You care about code quality without letting it become a bottleneck. You're energized by the fact that the firmware you write shows up in real buildings, on real grids, doing real work.
• You don't need to be an energy domain expert on day one—but you're curious about how the grid works and motivated by the idea that good engineering here has an outsized impact on creating sustainable communities.
• You're also comfortable in a structure where a Firmware Architect sets system-level direction and you're the person who makes it real—bringing deep implementation judgment, surfacing tradeoffs, and pushing back when something won't work in practice.

Required Experience

• BS in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Embedded Systems, or equivalent practical experience.
• 2-5+ years of hands-on experience developing commercial embedded software or firmware applications.
• Strong Python proficiency and real production experience running Python on Embedded Linux (Yocto or similar).
• Solid understanding of serial communication protocols—RS-485, Modbus, I²C, CAN, Ethernet.
• Experience with real-time embedded systems: multi-threading, inter-process communication, timing constraints.
• Ability to read schematics and PCB layouts to troubleshoot hardware integration issues.

Preferred Experience

• Experience with IoT device management at scale (fleet OTA, remote diagnostics).
• Familiarity with AWS IoT, MQTT, or data telemetry pipelines.
• Exposure to energy storage systems, inverters, or grid-connected hardware.
• Knowledge of VPP programs, demand response, or utility interconnection standards (IEEE 1547, UL 1741).
• Experience with containerized embedded deployments (Docker/Balena on Linux targets).
• CI/CD practices in embedded or hardware-adjacent environments.

Additional Details

Background Check All candidates are subject to a background check.

Location + Travel Remote U.S.-based role with occasional onsite work in Salt Lake City and surrounding area locations (air-conditioned and non-air-conditioned). Must be available during MT business hours.

Compensation $135,000 - 180,000 (Note: We have the flexibility to hire at different levels, which may impact the  corresponding pay range.)

Work Authorization Applicants must already have the legal authorization to work in the US without requiring any employer sponsorship.

Physical Requirements 

• Regularly operates a computer and other peripheral office equipment such as a printer or mouse.
• Ability to read, identify, observe and recognize details, color-coding and fine print at close range on associated engineering drawings.
• Ability to communicate information so others can understand. Must be able to exchange accurate information in these situations.
• Must report to work reliably and with the ability to use full and unimpaired skills and judgment to safely execute your job.
• Proficiency in reading, writing, and speaking English required.
• When on the production floor, required to don personal protective equipment to include, but not limited to ear protection, gloves, eye protection and/or safety helmet. 
• When on the production floor, ability to observe, detect and respond to audible and visual machine malfunction warnings.

Our Perks & Benefits

Benefits eligibility is based on employment status.

Financial

• Employee Rewards Package including equity
• 401(k) Retirement Savings Plan
• Torus paid life and AD&D Insurance with options to purchase additional coverage
• Voluntary short- and long-term disability insurance

Health & Wellness

• Health Benefits Package: Choice between traditional PPO or HSA-eligible medical plans with Torus covering 50% of medical premiums; Dental insurance; and Vision insurance
• Plan participants have access to telehealth services, mental health support and coaching, and exclusive discounts on brands, dining, entertainment, and more.

Time Off

• Unlimited discretionary PTO
• 10 paid company holidays
• Waiting period-free 100% paid parental leave

Culture & Community

• Regular company-wide offsites to showcase our progress and learnings. A time to step back, think strategically, and work on the business together.
• Team members receive Torus branded gear
• Peer Recognition Program
• Fully stocked break rooms with free snacks and drinks. Because great work deserves great fuel.

Torus is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran, or disability status.

Torus participates in E-Verify. Once you accept a job offer, we will provide the Social Security Administration (SSA) and, if necessary, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) with information from your Form I-9 to confirm work authorization.

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