I think the issue is that there are a lack of companies that are competing for talent. Basically the job market consists of Apple, Lab126 and perhaps Logitech

I think the issue is that there are a lack of companies that are competing for talent. Basically the job market consists of Apple, Lab126 and perhaps Logitech in the US. The rest of the job market is either in Asia or in niche industrial markets or early stage robotics companies. That said - I do think having an embedded background - particularly embedded Linux - can actually improve your systems level knowledge - since you have to get into Linux drivers, the networking stack, package managers, etc.