Director of Product - Platform

Job description

**About 1X** We’re building humanoid robots that work in any space humans exist with the mission to create an abundance of labor. Simple, but it’s not. To do this right, we have to solve robotics, AI, software, hardware, manufacturing and operations at the same time, at scale, in a form factor that has to be safe. If you’re inspired by this, you’ll thrive here. We’ve been at this since 2014 and we’re at the point where the hard problems are behind us and the *hard work* is in front of us. NEO is our flagship - a general purpose robot designed to move, learn, and operate in the real world alongside real people. We’re not demoing it, we're shipping it. We’re excited to meet you, if this excites you. If you’ve spent your career working on problems that matter and want to see them actually reach the world - this is that moment. We’re scaling, we’re hiring with intention, and we need people who want to build something that will genuinely change how humans spend their time safely creating abundance for all. **About the Team:** The 1X Developer Platform opens up 1X robot software so developers can build their own apps, integrations, and fine-tuned world models for 1X robots and eventually others. Software built on the 1X Developer Platform will be shipped in a 1X app store that verifies safety, security, and privacy. This will be the first robot developer platform launched at scale that provides more than a low-level SDK. This project involves the entire software engineering org at 1X. **Your Charter:** The mission of this role is to own the 1X developer platform experience end to end, so customers trust and adopt the platform as we roll out APIs and services incrementally. You are inheriting technical debt, in-development APIs, and more competing priorities than any one team can carry. Your charter is to understand our customers deeply (both commercial & consumer), prioritize needs against hard engineering constraints, ship them exceptionally well, and build the flywheel that creates an ecosystem on top of a single product. This sits on 1X’s critical path because our customers need to use software to customize & extend 1X robot capabilities and create new businesses of their own. **Key Outcomes:** - Own platform product strategy and deliver a clear, prioritized roadmap that answers why a thing matters, not just what ships next - Drive measurable gains in customer confidence and platform adoption, so customers succeed on the platform rather than working around it - Work closely with our partnerships team to understand customers, both commercial and consumer, and anticipate customer needs in long-term roadmaps - Lead API improvement while customers actively depend on the product, designing platform APIs that stay reliable for the long term without versioning or breaking customer software - Simplify the platform experience by making complex technology feel obvious, reducing friction, and creating secure, intuitive paths through the product - Build and develop the product management team, mentoring product managers and raising the standard for product documentation and written communication - Drive focus across competing priorities, resolving tradeoffs inside the team rather than escalating them to the executive team **Key Competencies:** - Translate complex technical systems into simple product experiences that delight our customers - Set product strategy grounded in the why, and hold a prioritized roadmap against constant pressure to do more - Lead and develop product managers, improving both the quality of their thinking and the clarity of their writing - Balance customer expectations against real technical constraints, and make that tradeoff legible to both sides - Write with precision. Documentation and product communication are how decisions travel across a large engineering organization - Operate with focus when everything is urgent, choosing the few things that matter and finishing them **Minimum Requirements:** - 10+ years in product management, including time owning a platform product end to end - Proven track record of building developer or infrastructure platforms used by external customers, not internal-only tools - Demonstrated ability to lead and develop product managers, as a Group Product Manager, Director, or product lead running a pod - Experience improving APIs while customers actively depend on the product - Demonstrated ability to set and defend a prioritized roadmap grounded in customer outcomes **Preferred Skills:** - Experience in engineering or design before moving into product management - Exposure to hardware and software products shipped together - Familiarity with products serving small and medium businesses - Experience founding or building a company from early stage **What does a successful 1X Team Member look like:** Team members at 1X who thrive here are builders. They move fast, own their work completely, and treat time like it’s the one thing you can’t get back - because it is. They say what they mean, finish what they start, and hold themselves to a standard before anyone has to ask. We push each other to be better, and we do it with honesty and respect. **Compensation Range:** **$225,000 - $275,000** **Benefits:** - Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage - Generous paid time off, company holidays, and parental leave - 401(k) plan with company match (100% on the first 3% of contributions, 50% on the next 2%) - Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA) and Health Savings Accounts (HSA) options - Commuter benefits (transit and parking) - Short-term and long-term disability, and life insurance - Employee Assistance Program (EAP) for mental health, financial, and personal support - Onsite snacks and catered lunches **Equal Opportunity Employer** 1X is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, age, marital status, medical condition, genetic information, disability, military or veteran status, justice system impact, or any other characteristic protected under applicable federal, state, or local law.