# Dani Lerner > Robotics Software Engineer Location: Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States Profile: https://flows.cv/danilerner In robotics, the spotlight tends to fall on the science: the computer vision, the machine learning, the control systems. And yet, top-talent companies like Boston Dynamics can master all of that but still struggle to turn it into a scalable, sellable product. The real challenge is something less glamorous: how do you tailor a robot system to each client facility without reinventing the wheel every time? I got my start at a then-5, now-60 person robotics company, where "wearing many hats" was an understatement. Hardware design, system robustification, robotic software, computer networking, DevOps, customer engagement, operations... I've had a hand in all of it. Each one has taught me something different about what it takes to build products that actually survive contact with the real world. The problems I want to keep solving are the ones that don't have clean answers: - How do you grow a robotics customer base without new deployments quietly breaking the ones that came before? - How do you work with customers who don't fully (or often, fully don't) understand the product but still expect zero downtime? - How do you keep them bought in through the inevitable rough patches: the edge cases, the bug fixes, the not-quite-ready releases? - How do you do all of this, over and over, without ever losing their trust? These are hard, unglamorous, and critically important. They're also where I thrive. ## Work Experience ### Senior Automation Engineer @ MKS Inc. Jan 2026 – Present | Boston, MA Automating semiconductor manufacturing equipment ### Software Engineer II, Robotics Simulation @ Product Insight, Inc. Jan 2024 – Jan 2025 | Boxborough, Massachusetts, United States • Architected a physics-based robotic simulation framework to support rapid development and testing of robotic control software. • Led project planning, including requirements gathering, prioritization, and cross-functional coordination with engineering teams. • Created high-fidelity robotic system models exported from SolidWorks, optimizing simulation accuracy and runtime performance. • Automated processing of URDF files, including mesh decimation, metadata extraction, and convex decomposition (V-HACD). • Mocked real-world hardware interfaces including motor controllers, sensors, CAN bus, and Redis-based IPC—to streamline code portability between simulation and physical systems ### Robotics Application Engineer @ Tutor Intelligence Jan 2022 – Jan 2024 | Boston, Massachusetts, United States Customer Engagement: o Collaborated with clients post-sale to prepare facility environments and networking for seamless robot integration. o Ensured peak performance at client sites through regular on-site visits. o Provided hands-on training on optimal robot usage and maintenance practices, while identifying and triaging robot issues to engineers for continuous improvement. o Proactively communicated with customers to ensure adherence to SLAs, maintaining high levels of customer satisfaction. o Participated in on-call rotations and manned customer hotline to monitor and uphold SLOs, promptly addressing issues to maintain continuous robot performance. o Directed preparation and quality inspection of robots, ensuring compliance with QA standards and customer specifications. Networking: o Devised and implemented network topology (TCP/IP) for ultra high-bandwidth edge-cloud hybrid system architecture. o Ensured scalability and adaptability of robot network infrastructure in evolving environments. o Implemented robust security measures to safeguard systems from internal and external threats. Hardware: o Developed visual representations of customer applications to showcase robotic capabilities to pre-sale clients and investors. o Crafted detailed digital 3D mock-ups and simulations, enabling engineers to refine and optimize system designs with greater precision and efficiency without the need for physical environments. o Innovated end-of-arm tooling, strain relief mechanisms, camera mounts, and other robotic components. o Tracked and maintained BOM for robot systems, optimizing procurement and inventory management processes. Devops: o Implemented and refined internal tooling platforms for robot observability, reliability, debugging, and logging. o Created documentation and tools for efficient incident identification and resolution, ensuring minimal downtime. o Enhanced user experience of terminal interfaces for readability, ease of use, and development efficiency. ### Robotics Software Engineering Intern @ Tutor Intelligence Jan 2021 – Jan 2022 | Boston, Massachusetts, United States ### Research Assistant @ University of Maryland Jan 2020 – Jan 2020 | College Park, Maryland, United States • Researched and published the design of an autonomous magnetic needle for hernia repair. • Optimized computer vision algorithm to detect a needle’s coordinates using the Python OpenCV package. Increased frame rate from 9 fps to 500 fps without sacrificing accuracy. • Wrote code to test accuracy and frame rate of the computer vision algorithm. • Designed and 3D printed light mount to improve the camera’s effectiveness. ### Teaching Assistant @ University of Maryland Jan 2018 – Jan 2020 | College Park, MD TA for Computing Fundamentals course. ### Mechanical Engineering Intern @ Robotic Research LLC Jan 2019 – Jan 2019 | Clarksburg, MD • Constructed testing apparatus for drone motor and propeller configurations. • Collected rotational speed, force, and power measurements using two Arduino microcontrollers. • Created a user interface in the Processing IDE to automatically display data, output graphs, and convert to CSV files. • Assisted engineers to assemble drones and run tests on equipment. ### Fabrication Lab Intern @ Dassault Systèmes Jan 2018 – Jan 2018 | Waltham, MA • Created SolidWorks tutorials for students participating in the Formula SAE competition. Topics included 3D sketching, weldments, thermal simulations, static simulations, air flow simulations and molding. • Maintained lab equipment (including laser cutter/engravers, 3D printers, CNC Mills, etc.). • Conducted lab tours and assisted other Dassault Systemes employees with the equipment. ### Construction Intern @ Best Residential Services Jan 2017 – Jan 2017 | Sharon, MA • Participated in broad range of construction projects involving demolition, site maintenance and clean up, materials transport, and general support of all phases of construction. • Assisted teams to prepare building sites and support needs of project managers, supervisors, framers, plumbers, electricians, roofers, and finish carpenters throughout all phases of building and remodeling projects. • Expertise working with a wide range of construction materials and equipment; familiarity with building processes, from project initiation through completion. ## Education ### Bachelor of Engineering - BE in Mechanical Engineering University of Maryland ### Master of Engineering - MEng in Mechatronics, Robotics, and Automation Engineering University of Maryland ## Contact & Social - LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/dani-lerner --- Source: https://flows.cv/danilerner JSON Resume: https://flows.cv/danilerner/resume.json Last updated: 2026-03-31