I've been working mostly with embedded/IoT/backendCloud stuff lately, with a focus on embedded/IoT stuff and having spend about a month this year interviewing,

I've been working mostly with embedded/IoT/backendCloud stuff lately, with a focus on embedded/IoT stuff and having spend about a month this year interviewing, the quality of companies and projects out there vary VASTLY. I ended up joining a manufacturing company that's adding some specialized robotics...stuff to their product line. Cool stuff and in a product domain I know a lot about. Great people, too. I heard about these guys because my former boss worked with them all before their start up got acquired by the MfgCo a while back. Definitely not the folks you'd peg for doing quality tech work, but they are. Compensation wasn't the best offer I landed, but it's good enough and I feel like I'm working with adults who know what they're doing and that's worth a lot to me.