An automated technique for robot gripper fingertip design. A workpiece design and a bin shape are provided as inputs, along with a parameterized gripper design. The gripper parameters define the lengths of segments of the fingertips, and the bend angle between fingertip segments. A fingertip shape, defined by selecting parameter values, is used in a simulated picking of parts from many different randomly defined piles of workpieces in the bin. Grasps for the simulated bin picking are pre-defined and provided as input. A score is assigned to the particular fingertip shape based on the average number of leftovers from the many simulated bin picking operations. A new fingertip shape is then defined by selecting new values for the parameters, and the simulations are repeated to assign a score for the new fingertip shape. This process is repeated to suitably sample the parameter range, and a best-performing fingertip shape is identified.