Senior/Staff System Engineer - Fail Operational
Job Summary
Job Description
Zoox's Platform Safety Engineering and Analysis team defines system requirements for autonomous vehicle operation, focusing on hardware and firmware. This role is crucial for achieving fail-operational capabilities, ensuring vehicles remain functional despite faults. Responsibilities include designing fault response strategies, developing recovery solutions, building a framework for assessing fault handling effectiveness, and collaborating with software, hardware, and controls engineers. The goal is to maintain vehicle safety and operation, mitigate risks, and scale the autonomous driving fleet.
Must have:
- B.S. or higher in relevant fields with 5+ years of experience
- Strong systems engineering background
- Proficiency in quantitative analysis and modeling
- Deep understanding of fault detection, isolation, and recovery techniques
- Proven ability to develop and integrate fault monitoring tools
- Strong analytical skills in performance metrics
- Excellent technical communication and documentation
- Experience working with cross-functional teams
Good to have:
- Advanced degree (MS or PhD)
- Experience with autonomous vehicle development
- Knowledge of automotive-grade hardware
- Familiarity with requirements management tools
- Experience with system safety analysis
- Background in performance modeling
- Understanding of ML/AI systems
- Familiarity with ISO 26262, ISO 21448
Perks:
- Paid time off
- Zoox Stock Appreciation Rights
- Amazon Restricted Stock Units
- Health insurance
- Long-term care insurance
- Long-term and short-term disability insurance
- Life insurance
6 skills required
Job Details
The Platform Safety Engineering and Analysis team at Zoox defines system requirements for Zoox’s robot platform to ensure safe and reliable autonomous vehicle operation, including hardware and associated firmware. This team works at the intersection of hardware and software to establish the technical framework that connects component-level requirements to system-level and product level requirements.
Achieving fail-operational capabilities is critical for the safe and scalable deployment of autonomous driving vehicles. In complex environments, vehicles must remain operational even in the presence of faults. This necessitates robust strategies for fault handling, management, and recovery. Developing these capabilities allows the company to ensure continuous operation, mitigate safety risks, and ultimately scale its autonomous driving fleet effectively.
In this role, you will:
- Design fault response strategies to maintain vehicle safety and operation during malfunctions. This includes creating decision-making algorithms to determine the best action based on the fault's nature and severity.
- Develop solutions for recovering from faults and restoring normal vehicle operation, such as performance degradation strategies, system component reconfiguration, or safe shutdown and recovery protocols.
- Build a comprehensive framework for assessing the effectiveness of fault handling and recovery. Define key metrics for system resilience and safety, and use data analysis to improve system performance. Automate processes for continuous improvement of results.
- Work closely with other engineering teams, including software, hardware, and controls engineers, to ensure a holistic approach to system safety and fault tolerance. This requires strong communication and interpersonal skills, and the ability to translate complex technical concepts to diverse audiences.
- B.S. or higher degree in Systems Engineering, Robotics, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Applied Mathematics or related fields with 5+ years of relevant experience
- Strong systems engineering background with experience in requirements management and system architecture
- Proficiency in quantitative analysis and modeling tools
- Deep understanding of fault detection, isolation, and recovery techniques, including redundancy, failover, and graceful degradation strategies.
- Proven ability to develop and integrate fault monitoring and diagnostics tools to proactively identify and address potential system failures.
- Familiarity with industry standards and best practices for fault management and system reliability.
- Strong analytical skills in performance metrics definition and system-level trade-off analysis.
- Excellent technical communication and documentation abilities.
- Demonstrated successful experience working with cross-functional teams in complex technical environments.
- Advanced degree (MS or PhD) in a relevant field
- Experience with autonomous vehicle development or similar complex robotics systems
- Knowledge of automotive-grade hardware systems and integration requirements
- Familiarity with requirements management tools (e.g., Polarion, DOORS)
- Experience with system safety analysis and requirements validation
- Background in performance modeling and system architecture design
- Understanding of ML/AI systems and their requirements
- Familiarity with ISO 26262, ISO 21448, and other industry safety standards.
$176,000 - $242,000 a year
Base Salary Range
There are three major components to compensation for this position: salary, Amazon Restricted Stock Units (RSUs), and Zoox Stock Appreciation Rights. A sign-on bonus may be offered as part of the compensation package. The listed range applies only to the base salary. Compensation will vary based on geographic location and level. Leveling, as well as positioning within a level, is determined by a range of factors, including, but not limited to, a candidate's relevant years of experience, domain knowledge, and interview performance. The salary range listed in this posting is representative of the range of levels Zoox is considering for this position.
Zoox also offers a comprehensive package of benefits, including paid time off (e.g. sick leave, vacation, bereavement), unpaid time off, Zoox Stock Appreciation Rights, Amazon RSUs, health insurance, long-term care insurance, long-term and short-term disability insurance, and life insurance.
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About The Company
Zoox is transforming mobility-as-a-service by developing a fully autonomous, purpose-built fleet designed for AI to drive and humans to enjoy.
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