08/12/2026
What does a “developer octopus” actually do?
For Peter Jensen, it means having a hand in just about everything: electrical engineering, software, problem-solving, and turning some seriously complicated technology into something people can use.
In our latest Day in the Life, meet one of the minds who has helped shape TinyMobileRobots for nearly a decade, and find out why Peter believes the best technology isn’t the flashiest. It’s the technology you don’t have to think twice about using.
At first glance, Peter Jensen seems like the typical tech type. Tidy, quiet, and understated. After speaking with him, you realize pretty quickly there is a spine of steel under that.
Peter has been with TinyMobileRobots almost since its inception. He describes himself, half-jokingly, as a “developer octopus.” It’s accurate. He directs traffic at the intersection of electrical engineering, software, and real-world problem-solving. He connects systems that aren’t easy to connect, at least in theory.
With a background in both engineering and software, Peter sees robotics from both sides. He translates the mind-boggling mathematics of engineering into something anyone can use.
Early on, the team ran user tests with a stripped-down interface with a single button. The task was clear, but people still hesitated. Not because they couldn’t do it, but because they were unsure if they should. That moment stuck with him. He said, “There are two obstacles we often see. One is that companies tend to make products too complicated. That can discourage most people, even the high-tech people like me.”
He continued, “The other thing is our clients are afraid of technology, maybe because of the previous point. When we first made the app, we had a UI designer on board and ran some user tests. We gave them a picture of a field and a single button labeled ‘start’. We asked them, ‘What would you do to start that field?’ They didn’t know.”
Technology doesn’t fail because it can’t work. It fails because people don’t trust it.
His philosophy is simple. It’s a matter of function over flash; technology should get the job done and get it done well. For ten years, he’s ensured that it does.
