Recruiters who speak robotics.

6 firms that recruit for robotics, humanoid and physical AI companies, from retained executive search to specialist engineering agencies. Listed in alphabetical order, with what each firm states about its own work.

6 firms
BS

Blue Signal Search

Phoenix, AZ (HQ)

Recruits across the robotics stack, from technicians and engineers to directors, VPs and C-suite.

  • Roles named: Robotics Research Scientist, ROS 2 Engineer, Robotics ML Engineer, Chief Robotics Officer
  • Covers warehouse, medical and industrial robotics, plus autonomous navigation
  • Listed on Forbes America's Best Recruiting Firms 2025, per the firm
All levelsEngineeringExecutive
bluesignal.com ↗
C&T

Christian & Timbers

North America and Europe

Retained executive search for embodied AI, robotics platforms and intelligent hardware, with robotics work dating to the 1980s.

  • Placed Dr. Hui Cheng to lead Physical AI and Robotics at Accenture, building robot fleets for clients
  • States more than 500 robotics engineers and leaders placed
  • Searches for CEO, CTO, Chief Robotics Officer, Head of Embodied AI, VP Robotics and board seats
C-suiteVPBoard
christianandtimbers.com ↗
DR

DeepRec.ai

Berlin, Boston, Dublin, London, Zug

Specialist recruiter for robotics and embodied AI, part of Trinnovo Group, covering humanoid, quadruped and mobile manipulation platforms.

  • Focus areas: RL and sim-to-real, VLA models, perception, foundation models for physical systems
  • Made 11 hires for MOTOR Ai, a German autonomous vehicle company, per the firm
  • Offers executive search plus permanent and contract hiring
EngineeringLeadershipContract
deeprec.ai ↗
DRI

Direct Recruiters Inc.

United States

A dedicated humanoid robotics practice within a broader robotics and automation search firm.

  • Lists 13 humanoid roles, from Motion Planning and Perception Engineers to Robotics Safety and Compliance
  • Works on retained, contingency and project-based terms
  • Practice led by Josh Olgin, Recruitment Director of Robotics
EngineeringRetainedContingency
directrecruiters.com ↗
EV

EV.Careers

United States

AI in robotics recruitment for machine learning, computer vision, ROS and motion planning, sensor fusion and robotics software architects.

  • Direct hire, contract of 3 to 12+ months, and contract-to-hire
  • States a 30 to 45 day average from engagement to accepted offer
  • States a 90-day placement guarantee
EngineeringContractDirect hire
ev.careers ↗
KI

KiTalent

International

Direct headhunting across humanoid robotics, organised by specialism from robotics AI to mechatronics and programme leadership.

  • Roles named: Head of Humanoid Robotics, Product Director Humanoids, Systems Engineering Director
  • Covers Perception Lead and Robotics Software Lead for humanoids
  • Also covers controls and mechatronics engineering
DirectorHead ofLead
kitalent.com ↗

Details come from each firm's own pages, read November 5, 2026. This site has no commercial tie to any firm listed. Firms are listed alphabetically.

How to pick a physical AI recruiter.

Robotics roles mix software, hardware and field operations. Use these 5 checks before you sign a search.

Ask for robotics placements

Names, levels and dates. Software search alone does not transfer to hardware teams.

Test their technical map

Can the recruiter separate controls, perception, manipulation and robot learning talent?

Match the model to the level

Retained search for C-suite and VP. Specialist agencies for engineering volume.

Check the market reach

Christian & Timbers estimates a few thousand executives worldwide have led physical AI programs at scale.

Agree on pay data first

Ask for current ranges by stage before the first shortlist, not after.

Which model fits.

Hiring needBest fitTypical terms
CEO, CTO, Chief Robotics OfficerRetained executive searchExclusive mandate, structured shortlist, references on record
VP Robotics, Head of Physical AIRetained or specialist executive searchExclusive mandate with technical assessment
Staff and principal engineersSpecialist robotics agencyContingency or project-based
Team build of 10+ engineersEmbedded or project-based recruitingMonthly or per-hire fee
Short-term test or field rolesContract staffing3 to 12 month contracts

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