Data Systems Engineer
Apple
Software Engineering
Sunnyvale, CA, USA
USD 147,400-272,100 / year + Equity
Posted on Dec 23, 2025
Apple is where individual imaginations gather together, committing to the values that lead to great work. Every new product we build, service we create, or Apple Store experience we deliver is the result of us making each other's ideas stronger. That happens because every one of us shares a belief that we can make something wonderful and share it with the world, changing lives for the better. It's the diversity of our people and their thinking that inspires the innovation that runs through everything we do. When we bring everybody in, we can do the best work of our lives. Here, you'll do more than join something — you'll add something. In SSP Data, our mission is to power the technological and design aspirations of the best products in the world through Data, while championing quality, privacy, safety, and an ethical experience. We are seeking a highly-motivated Data Systems Engineer to design and build custom data collection rigs serving a variety of core Apple technologies. You'll work at the intersection of hardware, software, and data collection operations. Your ground-up platforms will address future data needs and modalities. This role demands strong engineering fundamentals: first-principles problem solving, the ability to move from concept to working prototype, and an understanding of your final customer.
A successful Data Systems Engineer will have strong analytical and problem-solving skills grounded in engineering fundamentals and hardware/software integration experience. You will build custom engineering rigs and optimize end-to-end system performance across our data infrastructure. This role requires technical depth across multiple disciplines, comfort working from first principles, and judgment about when to build custom solutions versus leveraging existing systems.
- Designing and developing custom hardware/software systems for data collection (e.g., mobile ground truth rigs, multi-sensor capture platforms, time synchronization systems)
- Integrating sensors, synchronization systems, and custom instrumentation
- Debugging and resolving end-to-end issues spanning frontend software, data collection operations, and backend integration
- Partnering with hardware, software engineering, and operations teams to optimize system performance
- Contributing to hardware, software, and backend architecture decisions for data collection reliability
- Translating current issues and gaps into prioritized improvement roadmaps
- Evaluating sensor technologies and data architectures
- Documenting end-to-end systems for operational handoff and knowledge sharing
- Bachelor's degree in Computer, Electrical, Mechanical Engineering, Computer Science, Physics, Data Science, or similar and 3+ years of industry experience in hardware/software integration, sensor systems, or data platforms
- Strong programming skills (in Python, C++, or similar) to control hardware
- Experience debugging complex systems across hardware, software, and network layers
- Systems thinking: ability to trace problems from sensor to database and identify root causes
- Proven ability to work cross-functionally with hardware, software, and operations teams
- Track record of taking projects from prototype to production handoff
- Comfortable with ambiguity — defining problems while solving them
- Experience with sensor integration/synchronization, timing systems, or custom instrumentation
- Strong communication skills with both technical and non-technical stakeholders
- Adaptable, with precise attention to detail and a strong work ethic
- Understanding of networking fundamentals (troubleshooting packet loss, latency, reliability)
- Background in computer vision, robotics, or metrology systems
- Familiarity with embedded systems, thermal management, or power systems
- Experience with controlled testing environments or lab instrumentation
- Understanding of data quality metrics and validation frameworks
- Background in data collection for ML/algorithm development
Apple is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to inclusion and diversity. We seek to promote equal opportunity for all applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, Veteran status, or other legally protected characteristics. Learn more about your EEO rights as an applicant.