Courses / Live bootcamps
Physical AI and Robotics Bootcamp
Perception, control and simulation for machines that move.
- weeks, live on Zoom
- 12
- hours a week
- 15
- deployed projects
- 6
- minutes 1-1, every week
- 30
Who it is for, and what you receive.
Engineers with Python and some linear algebra who want to build perception, control and learning for machines that move. The ML toolkit helps; a real platform is named at enrolment.
Before you start
Python and some linear algebra; the ML toolkit helps.
Skills
- Python
- ROS
- simulation
- computer vision
- control
- reinforcement learning
- edge deployment
A week, about 15 hours
- Live on Zoom
- 4h
- Recorded lessons and exercises
- 6h
- The project
- 5h
- 1
Six deployed projects
Each graded by Nova against a published rubric and signed off by the instructor at the gate.
- 2
The recorded lessons
The track's lessons and exercises, graded line by line, open for twelve months after the cohort ends.
- 3
Live on Zoom every week
A 90-minute live code review, a 60-minute squad lab, 60 minutes of office hours, and a 30-minute 1-1 with your instructor.
- 4
Your hiring plan
Opened in week 1 and reviewed in every 1-1: target roles, the gap map, the proof list, weekly actions, an interview log, the outcome.
- 5
The record
Every grade and every project with its repository at square1ai.com/u/{handle}, and the recording of your viva, verifiable by any employer.
- 6
The certificate
A credential ID that resolves at square1ai.com/verify to the real completion.
- 7
The hiring sprint
Weeks 11 and 12: CV and portfolio from graded work, applications, mock interviews scored against the role, demo day.
- 8
Nova for twelve weeks
A tutor with every submission of yours in its memory, at 2am as well as in class.
Twelve weeks in six blocks.
Each block teaches for a week, then you build and deploy a project, then a gate checks it before the next block opens. The project and its gate are the block's record entry.
Live time each week on Zoom: a 90-minute class where the instructor reviews real submissions, a 60-minute squad lab, 60 minutes of office hours, and your own 30-minute 1-1. Nothing is lectured live; the recorded lessons do that.
- 1
Simulation first
Weeks 1 to 2Week 1
Simulation first
- Robot simulators
- Kinematics and control basics
- Sensors as data
You build: A simulated task
Week 2
Project 1: in simulation
- Repeatability
- Task definitions
You build: A simulated robot completing a task ten times in a row
Project 1, the gate at week 2
In simulation
A simulated robot picks and places an object reliably.
You hand in
- Simulation
- Task code
- Repeat runs
The gate
The task succeeds in simulation ten times in a row.
- 2
Perception
Weeks 3 to 4Week 3
Perception
- Vision for robots
- Depth, point clouds, SLAM
- Object detection for grasping
You build: A perception pipeline
Week 4
Project 2: perception
- Recorded sensor data
- Accuracy reporting
You build: Perception pipeline on recorded data, deployed
Project 2, the gate at week 4
Perception
See well enough to grasp.
You hand in
- Perception pipeline
- SLAM
- Detection
- Accuracy report
The gate
Detection accuracy reported on the recording.
- 3
Control
Weeks 5 to 6Week 5
Control
- Classical control
- Learning-based control
- Safety limits
You build: A controller; squads form
Week 6
Project 3: control
- Disturbances
- Limits
You build: A controller that follows a path under disturbance
Project 3, the gate at week 6
Control
Follow a path while being pushed.
You hand in
- Controller
- Disturbance tests
- Safety limits
The gate
The controller stays within safety limits under disturbance.
- 4
Learning
Weeks 7 to 8Week 7
Learning
- Imitation and reinforcement learning
- Sim-to-real
- Evaluating policies
You build: A learned policy
Week 8
Project 4: the policy
- Beating the classical baseline
- Evaluation
You build: A learned policy evaluated in simulation
Project 4, the gate at week 8
The policy
Learn a policy that beats the classical controller.
You hand in
- Training
- Policy
- Evaluation
The gate
The policy beats the classical controller on the task.
- 5
Hardware
Weeks 9 to 10Week 9
Hardware
- The real platform
- Deploying on an edge device
- Field testing
You build: Hardware bring-up
Week 10
Project 5 and the viva
- On real hardware
- Defending failure modes
You build: The pipeline on real hardware with a field-test report; the viva
Project 5, the gate at week 10
Hardware
Run it on the real platform and report what happened.
You hand in
- Edge deployment
- Field-test report
- Failure log
The gate
The viva: defend the system and its failure modes.
- 6
Employer brief and hiring sprint
Weeks 11 to 12Week 11
Employer brief
- A real problem from a hiring partner, in squads
- A partner's robotics problem
- Working to someone else's definition of done
You build: The employer brief in progress
Week 12
Hiring sprint
- CV and portfolio built from graded work
- Applications and follow-ups in the hiring plan
- Mock interviews scored against the role
- Demo day
You build: Project 6 delivered; demo day
Project 6, the gate at week 12
Employer brief
A partner's robotics problem.
You hand in
- The brief delivered
- Demo day
The gate
The brief's owner accepts the result.
What you can do by week 12.
Six deployed perception, control and learning projects ending on real hardware, with the field-test report that separates a robotics engineer from a simulation enthusiast.
- 1
Simulate a robot completing a task with basic kinematics and control.
- 2
Build a perception pipeline from camera and depth data with SLAM and detection for grasping.
- 3
Build classical and learning-based controllers that stay within safety limits.
- 4
Train and evaluate policies with imitation and reinforcement learning, sim to real.
- 5
Deploy on real hardware and an edge device, and field-test it.
- 6
Defend a robotic system and its failure modes.
Roles this prepares you for
- Robotics engineer
- Perception engineer
- Controls engineer
- Embodied AI engineer
No placement rate is shown, because there are no graduates to count yet. The roles above are what the projects are built for.
Your record at week 12.
Every exercise and project is graded by Nova against a rubric you can read, and every grade is kept on one page an employer can open and run. This is what the programme writes to it.
- Graded, line by line
- Nova reads every submission against the brief and the rubric and returns a score, what you did well and what to fix.
- Six gates
- A block does not open until the previous project passes its gate. You always know where you are and what is next.
- A weekly 1-1
- Thirty minutes with your instructor, who has already read your code before the call.
- One page an employer can run
- Every grade, project and the viva recording at /verify. An employer opens it, runs the code and watches you defend it.
Record, Physical AI and Robotics Bootcamp
Example
- Week 2Graded, gate signed
In simulation
The task succeeds in simulation ten times in a row
- Week 4Graded, gate signed
Perception
Detection accuracy reported on the recording
- Week 6Graded, gate signed
Control
The controller stays within safety limits under disturbance
- Week 8Graded, gate signed
The policy
The policy beats the classical controller on the task
- Week 10Graded, gate signed
Hardware
A viva: defend the system and its failure modes
- Week 12Graded, gate signed
Employer brief
The brief's owner accepts the result
- Weeks 1 to 12Kept
Twelve 1-1 notes
What your instructor saw in your work each week, and what you agreed to do next.
- Week 12Kept
Your hiring plan and its outcome
Target roles, the gap map, applications, interviews and where you landed.
The entries, not the grades: those are yours to earn. The page lives at /verify and an employer needs no account to open it.
8 entries, twelve weeks. One email when applications open.
How we help you find a job.
The last block is not curriculum. It is the hiring sprint, and the proof you built in the ten weeks before it.
- 1
Your hiring plan, from week 1
Six parts you and your instructor keep: target roles, the gap map from real postings, the proof to send, weekly actions, an interview log, the outcome. Read before every 1-1.
- 2
The hiring sprint
Weeks 11 and 12: CV, portfolio, applications, mock interviews, and demo day in front of hiring partners.
- 3
A record an employer can run
Your six deployed projects and the recorded viva on /verify. An employer opens it, runs the code and watches you defend it.
- 4
The career agent
Paste a real job posting at /career and it maps the role to your graded work and what to do next.
- 5
The roles directory
Every role we prepare people for, what it pays and what it asks, at /roles.
One email when applications open.
Fifty seats, one instructor, twelve weeks. The waitlist hears the date and the price first, and nothing is charged before the cohort exists.