HRI / UX Designer

📍 Job Overview

Job Title: Senior Human–Robot Interaction (HRI) Designer

Company: Humanoid

Location: London, England, United Kingdom

Job Type: FULL_TIME

Category: User Experience (UX) Design / Human-Robot Interaction (HRI)

Date Posted: May 27, 2026

Experience Level: 7-10 years

Remote Status: On-site

🚀 Role Summary

• Define and craft intuitive interaction patterns for human collaboration with advanced humanoid robots, focusing on natural communication and trust.

• Lead the end-to-end design of human-robot interaction behaviors, from conceptualization to implementation on physical robot hardware.

• Develop and standardize critical elements such as gestures, motion cues, and user safety protocols to ensure seamless and secure human-robot collaboration.

• Translate complex academic research and user insights into actionable HRI design criteria, driving innovation in embodied AI interactions.

• Collaborate closely with robotics and software engineering teams to bridge the gap between design vision and functional implementation, ensuring fidelity and impact.

📝 Enhancement Note: This role is positioned as a Senior HRI Designer, indicating a need for significant experience in shaping complex interactive systems, particularly those involving embodied agents and AI. The emphasis on "prototyping directly on real robot hardware" and "translating research findings into actionable HRI design criteria" suggests a hands-on, research-informed approach crucial for advancing the field of human-robot collaboration.

📈 Primary Responsibilities

• End-to-End Interaction Design: Conceptualize, design, and refine human–robot interaction behaviors, ensuring a cohesive and intuitive user experience across all touchpoints.

• Hardware Prototyping & Testing: Directly prototype user interactions on physical humanoid robot hardware, iterating based on real-world performance and user feedback.

• Behavioral Standards Definition: Establish and document design standards for robot gestures, motion cues, communication modalities, and critical user safety protocols.

• Cross-Functional Design Translation: Work collaboratively with robotics engineers and software developers to translate UX designs into implemented behaviors and system functionalities.

• UI & Conversation Flow Development: Design user interfaces, conversational agents, and supporting tools that facilitate effective human-robot collaboration in industrial pilot settings.

• User Research & Validation: Plan and conduct user research studies, including usability testing and field trials, to validate design approaches and gather insights for continuous improvement.

• Academic Research Integration: Critically analyze and synthesize findings from academic papers on Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and HRI to inform design decisions and establish best practices, avoiding reliance on AI-generated summaries.

• Design System Management: Contribute to and maintain a robust Design System for HRI, ensuring consistency and scalability of interaction elements across the robot platform.

• Technical Specification Documentation: Create detailed technical design specifications for interaction behaviors, motion sequences, and UI components.

📝 Enhancement Note: The responsibilities highlight a blend of creative design, technical implementation, and research integration. The emphasis on "standards for gestures, motion, communication cues, and user safety" and the requirement to "read academic papers and translate research findings" points towards a role that requires deep expertise in HRI principles and a proactive approach to establishing foundational design practices for a novel technology.

🎓 Skills & Qualifications

Education: While no specific degree is listed, a strong academic foundation in Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Human-Robot Interaction (HRI), Computer Science, Psychology, Cognitive Science, or a related field is highly implied by the experience and responsibilities.

Experience: 7–10 years of progressive experience in interaction design, UX for robotics, HRI, or comparable fields focused on complex interactive systems.

Required Skills:

• Interaction Design: Proven expertise in designing intuitive and effective interactions for users.

• Human-Robot Interaction (HRI): Deep understanding of principles and best practices for designing interactions between humans and robots.

• UX Design for Embodied Agents: Significant experience designing for physical, AI-driven entities.

• Prototyping: Strong hands-on skills in creating interactive prototypes, ideally including hardware integration.

• Figma: Proficiency in using Figma for design asset creation, prototyping, and maintenance.

• Motion Design: Experience with motion design principles and tools like After Effects for defining robot movements and cues.

• Hardware Interaction: Comfort and experience working hands-on with physical hardware in lab or real-world environments.

• User Research: Experience planning and conducting user research, usability testing, and field studies.

• Design Systems: Demonstrated ability to document, maintain, and leverage design systems for consistency and scalability.

• Technical Design Specifications: Skill in writing clear and precise technical documentation for design implementation.

• HCI Principles: Comprehensive knowledge of fundamental Human-Computer Interaction principles.

• User Safety: Deep understanding of user safety considerations in interactive system design, particularly in robotic contexts.

• Independent Work & Collaboration: Ability to operate autonomously, manage priorities, and effectively bridge design and engineering workflows.

• Communication: Excellent communication and collaboration skills for working within multi-disciplinary teams.

Preferred Skills:

• Microcontroller Prototyping: Experience with microcontroller-based prototyping for interactive systems.

• AI Product Design: Track record designing for AI-powered products, complementing embodied agent experience.

• Academic Research Synthesis: Proven ability to read, interpret, and apply academic research to practical design challenges.

📝 Enhancement Note: The preferred skills, such as microcontroller prototyping and experience with AI products, suggest a leaning towards candidates who can bridge the gap between theoretical concepts and practical, embedded system design. The emphasis on "reading academic papers and translate research findings into actionable HRI design criteria, not relying on AI summaries" is a critical differentiator, pointing to a need for deep critical thinking and domain expertise.

📊 Process & Systems Portfolio Requirements

Portfolio Essentials:

• Case Studies in HRI/UX: Demonstrate end-to-end design projects, showcasing problem definition, user research, ideation, interaction design, prototyping (including hardware interaction if applicable), and outcome analysis.

• Prototyping Examples: Showcase interactive prototypes, ideally with examples of motion design, gesture definition, or conversational flow design.

• Design System Contributions: Include examples of design system components, documentation, or contributions that illustrate an understanding of consistency and scalability.

• User Safety Design: Highlight instances where user safety was a primary design consideration and how it was addressed in the solution.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Provide evidence of successful collaboration with engineering or research teams, illustrating how designs were translated into implemented features.

Process Documentation:

• Workflow Design & Optimization: Present examples of how you've mapped out user workflows, identified pain points, and designed optimized interaction sequences for complex systems.

• Research-to-Design Translation: Detail a process for taking user research findings or academic insights and translating them into concrete design requirements and prototypes.

• Iteration & Validation: Showcase your process for iterating on designs based on testing and feedback, including how you measure success and ensure continuous improvement.

📝 Enhancement Note: For this role, a portfolio is paramount. It should not only demonstrate design artifacts but also the underlying processes and methodologies used. Emphasis should be placed on how the candidate has translated complex requirements (especially from research) into tangible, functional designs for interactive systems, ideally involving physical embodiment.

💵 Compensation & Benefits

Salary Range:

Given the Senior level (7-10 years experience), specialized domain (HRI/Robotics UX), and London location, a competitive salary is expected. Based on industry benchmarks for Senior UX Designers and HRI specialists in London, the estimated salary range is £75,000 - £100,000 per annum. This estimate considers the 6-month contract duration, which may influence the hourly/daily rate structure, potentially leading to a higher equivalent annual rate for a permanent role.

Benefits:

• Annual Leave: 23 days (accrued)

• Paid Sick Leave: 15 days

• Paid Company Holidays: Standard UK public holidays

• Private Healthcare: Fully funded for UK employees, comprehensive coverage including virtual/in-person care and mental health support.

• Equity: Inclusion in the company's equity program, reflecting belief in shared success.

• Pension Scheme: 8% total contribution (5% employee, 3% employer) on full earnings.

• On-site Perks: Free daily breakfast, catered lunch, and snacks.

• Professional Development: Collaboration with top-tier AI and robotics experts, freedom to influence product direction and own key initiatives.

Working Hours:

The role is full-time, typically expected to be around 40 hours per week. While on-site, the company culture appears to value impactful work, suggesting flexibility may exist within the standard working day, balanced with the need for collaboration and hands-on hardware work. The initial contract is for 6 months.

📝 Enhancement Note: The salary estimate is based on publicly available data for Senior UX/HRI roles in London, considering the specialized nature of robotics and AI interaction design. The benefits package is comprehensive, reflecting a well-resourced startup aiming to attract top talent. The 6-month contract duration is a key factor; candidates should clarify potential for extension or conversion to permanent employment if that is of interest.

🎯 Team & Company Context

🏢 Company Culture

Industry: Robotics, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Humanoid Robotics, Industrial Automation. Humanoid is at the forefront of developing commercially scalable, safe, and capable humanoid robots.

Company Size: The provided company data is limited, but the description suggests a growing startup environment. The number of employees is not explicitly stated, but the focus on "top-tier engineers, researchers, and product experts" and "rapidly developed" platforms implies a structured yet agile team, likely exceeding 50 employees but not yet a large enterprise.

Founded: Founded with a mission to build advanced humanoid robots. The exact founding year is not provided, but the mention of "HMND-01 Alpha" and "industrial pilots" indicates a company that has moved beyond the initial research phase into product development and early commercialization.

Team Structure:

• Expert Multidisciplinary Teams: Composed of highly skilled professionals in robotics, AI, software engineering, and design.

• Collaborative Reporting: While a formal hierarchy exists, the emphasis on "collaboration with top-tier engineers, researchers, and product experts" and "freedom to influence the product" suggests a flat or matrixed structure where ideas are valued across disciplines.

• Cross-Functional Integration: The HRI Designer will work closely with robotics hardware engineers, AI/ML engineers, software developers, and product managers to integrate interaction designs into the physical robot platform and its software systems.

Methodology:

• Data-Driven Design: User research, testing, and academic insights are key inputs for design decisions.

• Agile Development & Prototyping: Rapid iteration through hands-on prototyping on real hardware, integrating feedback quickly.

• Human-Centric Robotics: A core philosophy focused on ensuring robots amplify human potential and collaborate intuitively and safely.

• Research-Informed Innovation: Actively leveraging and contributing to the latest advancements in HRI and AI research.

Company Website: https://thehumanoid.ai/

📝 Enhancement Note: Humanoid appears to be a forward-thinking company operating in a cutting-edge field. The culture is likely fast-paced, innovative, and collaborative, attracting individuals passionate about the future of robotics. The emphasis on "safety" and "amplifying human potential" hints at a responsible and user-focused approach to developing powerful technology.

📈 Career & Growth Analysis

Operations Career Level: This role is defined as a Senior Human–Robot Interaction (HRI) Designer. This signifies a mid-to-senior level position within the UX/Design discipline, requiring substantial experience and the ability to operate independently, lead design initiatives, and mentor where appropriate. It's a specialized track focused on the unique challenges of designing for embodied AI.

Reporting Structure: The HRI Designer will likely report to a Head of Design, Director of Product, or a similar senior leadership role overseeing UX and product development. They will operate within a highly collaborative environment, working directly with engineering leads and product managers.

Operations Impact: The HRI Designer's impact is critical to the success of Humanoid's robots in industrial pilots and future commercial deployments. By defining intuitive and safe interactions, they directly influence:

• User Adoption & Usability: Making the robots easy and efficient for humans to work with.

• Trust & Acceptance: Building confidence in the robot's capabilities and intentions.

• Safety & Risk Mitigation: Preventing accidents and ensuring human well-being.

• Operational Efficiency: Enabling smoother human-robot collaboration to boost productivity.

• Product Differentiation: Creating a superior user experience that sets Humanoid's robots apart.

Growth Opportunities:

• Specialization Advancement: Deepen expertise in HRI, embodied AI, and robotics UX, becoming a recognized leader in the field.

• Leadership Development: Potential to lead design efforts for new robot features, platforms, or even manage a growing design team as the company scales.

• Cross-Disciplinary Learning: Gain deep insights into robotics engineering, AI, and machine learning through close collaboration.

• Product Influence: Directly shape the user experience and functionality of groundbreaking humanoid robots, influencing the future of human-robot collaboration.

• Research Contribution: Opportunity to contribute to industry research through work on cutting-edge technology and potentially publishing findings.

📝 Enhancement Note: The "Senior" title, coupled with the responsibility for defining foundational interaction standards, suggests this role is pivotal. Growth paths likely involve increasing ownership, leading more complex projects, and potentially moving into management or principal-level individual contributor roles within the specialized domain of HRI design.

🌐 Work Environment

Office Type: The company offers an on-site work environment in London, suggesting a collaborative office space designed to foster interaction and innovation. Given the nature of robotics development, this likely includes dedicated lab spaces for hardware prototyping and testing.

Office Location(s): London, England, United Kingdom. Specific details regarding office accessibility or amenities beyond those listed in benefits are not provided but can be assumed to be typical of a modern London tech office.

Workspace Context:

• Collaborative Hub: The office environment is designed to facilitate seamless interaction between design, engineering, and research teams.

• State-of-the-Art Facilities: Access to real robot hardware, lab equipment, and necessary prototyping tools is a given.

• Innovation Ecosystem: A space where ideas are shared freely, encouraging experimentation and problem-solving at the intersection of AI, robotics, and human interaction.

• On-site Resources: Benefits like catered meals and snacks encourage employees to spend more time in the office, fostering a strong team presence and informal collaboration.

Work Schedule: Standard full-time working hours (approximately 40 per week) are expected. The emphasis on "priority management" and "meeting delivery milestones" indicates a results-oriented culture, potentially with some flexibility in daily schedules, but requiring consistent presence for hardware interaction and team collaboration. The initial contract is for 6 months.

📝 Enhancement Note: The on-site requirement is critical given the hands-on nature of prototyping on physical robot hardware. The London location suggests a vibrant tech hub environment. The benefits provided, such as catered meals, aim to enhance the on-site experience and encourage team cohesion.

📄 Application & Portfolio Review Process

Interview Process:

• Initial Screening: A review of your resume and portfolio to assess relevant experience in HRI, UX design, and robotics.

• Portfolio Presentation & Discussion: A dedicated session where you'll present your portfolio, focusing on key projects that demonstrate your HRI design process, prototyping skills, and ability to translate research into actionable designs. Expect to discuss your approach to user safety and hardware interaction.

• Technical Deep Dive: Interviews with engineering and design team members to assess your understanding of HCI principles, your experience with tools like Figma and After Effects, and your ability to work hands-on with hardware.

• Problem-Solving/Design Challenge: You may be given a specific HRI design challenge to solve, potentially involving a hypothetical scenario with the humanoid robot. This will assess your design thinking, problem-solving skills, and ability to articulate your rationale.

• Culture & Collaboration Fit: Interviews to gauge your ability to collaborate effectively within a multidisciplinary team and your alignment with Humanoid's mission and values.

• Final Interview: With senior leadership to discuss your overall fit, long-term potential, and alignment with the company's strategic goals.

Portfolio Review Tips:

• Curate for Relevance: Select 3-4 projects that best showcase your HRI, embodied agent, or complex interactive system design experience. Prioritize projects involving hardware interaction, motion design, or critical safety considerations.

• Show, Don't Just Tell: Use videos, interactive prototypes, and clear visuals to demonstrate your designs in action.

• Detail Your Process: For each project, clearly outline the problem, your role, the research methods used, design decisions made, prototyping tools, engineering collaboration, and the final impact or learnings.

• Highlight Research Integration: Explicitly show how you incorporated user research or academic findings into your design process.

• Address Hardware & Safety: If possible, include examples of designing for physical constraints or critical safety features.

• Be Prepared to Discuss: Anticipate questions about your design rationale, trade-offs made, and how you would approach specific challenges on the Humanoid robot.

Challenge Preparation:

• Understand the HRI Context: Familiarize yourself with common HRI challenges, such as non-verbal communication, trust-building, error handling, and human-robot teaming in industrial settings.

• Think Holistically: Consider not just the UI, but also the robot's physical behavior, motion, and environmental context.

• Prioritize Safety: Always consider safety implications in your proposed solutions.

• Articulate Your Process: Be ready to explain your design steps, assumptions, and decision-making criteria clearly and concisely.

• Focus on Actionable Insights: Demonstrate how your design would lead to tangible improvements in usability, safety, or efficiency.

📝 Enhancement Note: The interview process is designed to be rigorous, assessing not only design skills but also technical aptitude, research capabilities, and team fit. The portfolio is a critical component, and candidates should tailor its presentation to highlight their specific experience with embodied agents and hardware interaction.

🛠 Tools & Technology Stack

Primary Tools:

• Figma: The primary tool for UI design, prototyping, and design asset creation/maintenance.

• After Effects: Essential for motion design, defining robot gestures, and visualizing dynamic interactions.

• Prototyping Tools (General): Experience with other prototyping software may be beneficial, but Figma is highlighted.

• Microcontroller Prototyping Tools: For hands-on hardware interaction and low-level prototyping.

Analytics & Reporting:

• While not explicitly listed, expect to utilize tools for user research data analysis, usability testing feedback aggregation, and potentially performance metrics related to interaction effectiveness. This could include standard qualitative analysis tools or integrated analytics within prototyping platforms. CRM & Automation:

• Not directly applicable to this HRI/UX role, but understanding how user feedback and interaction data might feed into broader product analytics or CRM systems could be a plus.

📝 Enhancement Note: The emphasis on Figma and After Effects points to a need for strong visual and motion design skills. The mention of microcontroller prototyping indicates a hands-on hardware component to the role, requiring familiarity with tools and processes for embedded systems interaction design.

👥 Team Culture & Values

Operations Values:

• Human Amplification: A core belief that robots should enhance, not replace, human capabilities, driving a user-centric design philosophy.

• Safety First: Paramount importance placed on ensuring the safety of humans interacting with the robots, influencing all design decisions.

• Innovation & Discovery: A culture that encourages pushing boundaries, exploring new interaction paradigms, and staying at the forefront of AI and robotics.

• Collaboration & Transparency: Open communication and close teamwork across disciplines are vital for success in this complex field.

• Excellence & Craftsmanship: A commitment to delivering high-quality, well-crafted designs and robust engineering solutions.

Collaboration Style:

• Integrated Design-Engineering: Close working relationships between designers and engineers to ensure seamless implementation of complex interactive behaviors.

• Cross-Functional Partnerships: Designers will work with researchers, product managers, and other stakeholders to align on product vision and user needs.

• Feedback-Driven Iteration: A culture that values constructive feedback and uses it to continuously refine designs and prototypes.

• Knowledge Sharing: Encouragement of sharing insights from research, user testing, and academic literature to elevate the entire team's understanding.

📝 Enhancement Note: The company's values underscore a commitment to responsible innovation and human-centric design. The collaboration style is likely highly integrated, given the intricate nature of robotics development, requiring designers to be adept at working with technical teams.

⚡ Challenges & Growth Opportunities

Challenges:

• Novelty of Embodied AI Interaction: Designing for humanoid robots presents unique challenges not found in traditional screen-based UX, requiring the creation of new interaction paradigms.

• Balancing Research and Pragmatism: Translating cutting-edge academic HRI research into practical, implementable designs for industrial robots.

• Hardware Integration Complexity: Ensuring designs work seamlessly with the physical constraints and capabilities of real-world robot hardware.

• Building Trust and Safety: Establishing user trust and ensuring robust safety protocols in interactions with powerful autonomous machines.

• Pace of Development: Working within a fast-paced startup environment with ambitious product roadmaps and tight deadlines.

Learning & Development Opportunities:

• Deep Domain Expertise: Becoming a specialist in the rapidly evolving field of HRI and embodied AI design.

• Cutting-Edge Technology Exposure: Working with advanced robotics and AI technologies before they become mainstream.

• Influence on Future Products: Directly shaping the user experience of next-generation humanoid robots.

• Cross-Disciplinary Skill Acquisition: Gaining significant knowledge in robotics engineering, AI, and machine learning.

• Potential for Leadership: Opportunities to grow into design leadership roles as the company expands.

📝 Enhancement Note: The challenges are inherent to working at the frontier of robotics. The growth opportunities are significant for individuals eager to specialize and innovate in a high-impact, emerging field.

💡 Interview Preparation

Strategy Questions:

• Design Philosophy: "Describe your approach to designing interactions for embodied agents and how it differs from traditional UX design." (Prepare to discuss HRI principles, affordances, embodiment, and anthropomorphism).

• Research Integration: "How would you approach translating a complex academic paper on robot proxemics into actionable design guidelines for our HMND-01 Alpha robot?" (Be ready to outline specific steps for analysis, synthesis, and design application).

• Problem-Solving Scenario: "Imagine our robot needs to communicate to a human operator that it has detected a potential safety hazard in its path. How would you design this interaction, considering both visual and auditory cues, and what safety considerations would you prioritize?" (Focus on clarity, urgency, non-ambiguity, and user control).

Company & Culture Questions:

• Mission Alignment: "What excites you most about Humanoid's mission to build capable, safe, and commercially-scalable humanoid robots?" (Connect your passion for HRI/UX with their specific goals).

• Collaboration Style: "Describe a time you successfully collaborated with engineers to implement a complex interactive feature. What were the challenges, and how did you overcome them?" (Highlight your ability to bridge design and engineering).

• Design Impact: "How do you measure the success of an HRI interaction design? What metrics would you propose for evaluating the usability and trustworthiness of our robots?" (Think about task completion rates, error reduction, user satisfaction, trust scores).

Portfolio Presentation Strategy:

• Structure for Impact: Begin with a brief overview of Humanoid and the role, then dive into 2-3 key projects. For each project, clearly state the problem, your role, the specific HRI/UX challenges, your process (research, design, prototyping, testing), the solution, and the outcome/learnings.

• Highlight Key Skills: Ensure your presentation explicitly demonstrates your experience with Figma, After Effects, hardware interaction, motion design, and user safety considerations.

• Showcase Hardware Interaction: If possible, include videos or detailed descriptions of how your designs were implemented and tested on physical hardware.

• Explain Your "Why": Be articulate about the rationale behind your design decisions, referencing HCI/HRI principles and user research.

• Engage and Discuss: Be prepared for in-depth questions. Treat it as a collaborative discussion rather than a one-way presentation.

📝 Enhancement Note: Interview preparation should focus on demonstrating a deep understanding of HRI principles, a practical approach to design and prototyping (especially with hardware), and the ability to translate complex research into user-friendly, safe interactions. Tailor your portfolio to directly address the requirements and challenges outlined in the job description.

📌 Application Steps

To apply for this Senior Human–Robot Interaction (HRI) Designer position:

• Submit your application through the provided link on Ashby.

• Portfolio Customization: Tailor your resume and portfolio to prominently feature your experience in Human-Robot Interaction (HRI), designing for embodied agents, hardware prototyping, and motion design. Showcase specific projects that align with the responsibilities of defining behaviors, cues, and safety standards.

• Resume Optimization: Ensure your resume clearly highlights your 7-10 years of experience, specific tool proficiencies (Figma, After Effects), and any experience with robotics, AI, or complex interactive systems. Quantify achievements where possible (e.g., "Reduced task completion time by X% through improved interaction design").

• Interview Preparation: Practice articulating your design process, especially concerning user safety and hardware integration. Prepare specific examples for behavioral questions about collaboration with engineering teams and how you translate research into design. Rehearse your portfolio walkthrough.

• Company Research: Thoroughly review Humanoid's website and any available materials to understand their mission, technology (HMND-01 Alpha), and the industrial pilot contexts. Prepare thoughtful questions about their vision for human-robot collaboration and the specific challenges they are addressing.

⚠️ Important Notice: This enhanced job description includes AI-generated insights and operations industry-standard assumptions. All details should be verified directly with the hiring organization before making application decisions.