Lex Roller

Founding Engineer @ Nori Robotics (YC S26)

About

I’m a Robotics M.S. student at Oregon State University with a background in Electrical and Computer Engineering and Computer Science, focused on building intelligent robotic systems from the ground up.My work spans the full robotics stack—from embedded hardware, electronics, and actuator integration to perception, autonomy, planning, and control. I’m especially interested in robotic manipulation, humanoids, robot learning, and developing systems that can operate reliably in real-world environments.I founded and lead HIRO, Oregon State’s Humanoid and Intelligent Robotics Organization, where we work on projects involving humanoid robotics, manipulation, teleoperation, reinforcement learning, and modern robot learning. I’ve also worked on autonomous mobile robots in industry, developing systems around ROS 2, navigation, perception, and embedded compute.I enjoy working at the intersection of hardware and software: designing the system, building it, debugging it, and figuring out what it takes to turn an ambitious idea into a machine that actually works.Long term, I’m interested in making capable general-purpose robots more accessible and bringing intelligent machines into real-world applications.

Country

United States

City

Corvallis

Industry

Information Technology & Services

Skill

Robotics, Robot Operating System (ROS), Embedded Systems, Rapid Prototyping, Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Design, Sensors, Microcontrollers, Linux, Python (Programming Language), C++, Navigation, KiCAD, SLAM, Autonomous Vehicles, Scuba Diving, Stress Management

Experience

Founding Engineer

Nori Robotics (YC S26)

2026-6 - Present · 4 mos

San Francisco, CA

Undergraduate Robotics Researcher

Oregon State University

2025-9 - 2026-6 · 10 mos

Corvallis, OR

- Wrote firmware and contributed to the build and integration of an improved bi-stable tape manipulator platform based on previously published work. - Worked across embedded control, hardware bring-up, and system implementation to support reliable operation. - Currently focused on completing demos and improving system performance and presentation readiness.

Robotics & Automation Intern

Hampton Lumber

2024-6 - 2025-9 · 1 yr 4 mos

Willamina, OR

Summer 2025 - Designed and built Sucky, a high-powered industrial autonomous vacuum robot using a custom chassis, Arduino, RealSense D455, and SICK TIM781 LiDAR. - Developed the autonomy stack using ROS 2, Nav2, VSLAM, and NVBlox for 3D mapping and navigation. - Integrated hardware and software across sensing, control, and robot operation for real-world industrial deployment. Summer 2024 - Built Sweepy, an autonomous mobile robot by retrofitting an industrial push sweeper for autonomous navigation. - Used ROS 2, Nav2, SICK TIM781 LiDAR, and an NVIDIA Jetson Orin Nano to enable mapping, navigation, and field testing. - Contributed to the full robot integration process across embedded hardware, software, and platform bring-up.

Co-Founder

Dam Storage Company

2022-5 - 2024-9 · 2 yrs 5 mos

Corvallis, OR

- Co-founded and operated a student-focused storage company serving Oregon State University. - Led operations, marketing, logistics, and customer experience for seasonal student storage services. - Built campus partnerships and helped scale a convenient storage offering tailored to OSU students.

Education

Oregon State University

Robotics

2026-1 - 2027-6 · 1 yr 6 mos

Accelerated MS in Robotics. Advised by Professor Brian Do

Oregon State University

Electrical and Computer Engineering

2022-9 - 2026-6 · 3 yrs 10 mos

Minor in Computer Science. Coursework in embedded systems, computing systems, and electrical engineering, with hands-on work in robotics, autonomy, and intelligent machines.