# Julius Hietala > Software Engineer at Nimble Robotics Location: San Francisco, California, United States Profile: https://flows.cv/juliushietala I’m a Machine Learning Software Engineer working on applied ML systems at the intersection of perception, control, and real-time inference. I focus on building ML that actually runs in production and integrates with software and control stacks. I’ve shipped production ML systems, written technical tutorials on deep learning and computer vision, and built simulation environments for embodied AI. I’ve published peer-reviewed work at IROS and in the International Journal of Robotics Research (IJRR) on visual feedback control, sim-to-real pipelines, and system-aware model integration. I’m a U.S. permanent resident (EB-1). Core areas: - Python and PyTorch ML systems - Computer vision and perception pipelines - ML integration with simulation and control - Research-to-production engineering I’m currently working on Vision-Language-Action (VLA) models with real-time controllers in the loop, targeting practical hardware rather than idealized execution. I write about applied ML and robotics, including deployment, visual control, and simulation-based learning. ## Work Experience ### Software Engineer @ Nimble Robotics Jan 2022 – Present | San Francisco Bay Area Nimble is reimagining fulfillment with intelligent robots that can pick and pack anything. I'm working on deploying state-of-the-art ML and RL algorithms in production with a world-class team of scientists and engineers. ### Co-Founder, Board Member @ Junction Jan 2015 – Present | Helsinki, Uusimaa, Finland Junction is one of the largest hackathons in the world tackling real-world challenges with innovative tech solutions. It's not just a competition; it's an immersive experience with hands-on workshops, practical mentorship, and a collaborative environment. Join us at Junction to get hands-on with cutting-edge tech, solve meaningful problems, and make a tangible impact. ### Co-Founder, CTO @ hanaa.io Jan 2022 – Jan 2022 | Helsinki, Uusimaa, Finland Easily buy and sell motorcycles through our service. Hanaa.io is designed to remove barriers between sellers and buyers. Hanaa.io is the right choice if you want to easily buy or sell a motorcycle without stress. ### Software Engineer @ Smartly.io Jan 2017 – Jan 2022 | Helsinki Metropolitan Area Led award-winning efforts to build solutions for automatic image and video generation and ad optimization. Helped some of the world's largest advertisers in scaling their social media advertising by integrating them into the Smartly.io advertising ML solutions. ### Co-Founder, CTO @ Stray Robots Jan 2021 – Jan 2022 | Helsinki, Southern Finland, Finland Tools and services for 2D and 3D computer vision ranging from labeling to custom algorithms. Technologies we mainly work with: Python, C++, PyTorch, Docker, ROS. ### Machine Learning Researcher @ Aalto University Jan 2020 – Jan 2022 | Helsinki, Southern Finland, Finland I built a system where a robot performs dynamic folding of different cloths in simulation and in the real world based on visual feedback. The main technologies used include Python, C++, PyTorch, MuJoCo, and ROS. Paper published at 2022 IEEE/RSJ International Conference on Intelligent Robots and Systems (IROS 2022). ### Software Engineer @ Meru Health Jan 2016 – Jan 2016 | Finland I was the first external hire at Meru Health and helped build the first version of the mobile app and Meru Health platform ### CTO @ Maria 0-1 Jan 2016 – Jan 2016 | Helsinki Area, Finland Launched the largest startup hub in the Nordics. ### President @ Aalto Entrepreneurship Society Jan 2015 – Jan 2015 Founded the Junction hackathon and the FallUp student entrepreneurship conference. ## Education ### Master's degree in Machine Learning, Data Science and Artificial Intelligence Aalto University ### Bachelor of Science - BS in Computer Science Aalto University ### High School Montrose High School ### Porkkalan Lukio ## Contact & Social - LinkedIn: https://linkedin.com/in/julius-hietala-8967b8a2 - Portfolio: https://juliushietala.com - GitHub: https://github.com/hietalajulius --- Source: https://flows.cv/juliushietala JSON Resume: https://flows.cv/juliushietala/resume.json Last updated: 2026-03-30