Sr. Systems Engineer, Autonomy

About Rivian Rivian is on a mission to keep the world adventurous forever. This goes for the emissions-free Electric Adventure Vehicles we build, and the curious, courageous souls we seek to attract. As a company, we constantly challenge what’s possible, never simply accepting what has always been done. We reframe old problems, seek new solutions and operate comfortably in areas that are unknown. Our backgrounds are diverse, but our team shares a love of the outdoors and a desire to protect it for future generations.

Summary The Autonomy Software Systems team's deliverables include owning a feature from the definition stage to the development and production stage and designing the system from system architecture to subsystem requirements. In this role, you will lead the systems engineering, architecture design, and function development of various Automated driving features as well as safety-monitoring subsystems that gate these features. Your work will have a direct impact on the daily experience and safety of our customers, which is critical to the mission at Rivian.

Define features’ operational design domain, functional, performance and safety requirements for the feature based on the vision for the feature and desired user experience. Architect solutions to meet features’ functional and performance requirements Define interfaces and identify cross functional dependencies. Collaborate within Autonomy development teams such as pose, perception, planning, motion control, software infrastructure for end-to-end feature development, integration, and testing. Define and develop metrics for feature evaluation and collaborate with logging, simulation, data analytics and cloud teams to deploy the required infrastructure/methods. Drive cross functional collaboration between chassis, vehicle dynamics, UI/UX and vehicle SW teams to satisfy feature and system requirements. Work across development, triage, integration, and test teams to identify, root cause, and resolve or mitigate feature issues. Lead process improvements to achieve First-Time-Right design. Coordinate with program teams on feasibility, development status, risks, limitations to effectively set up and meet program schedules. Participate and represent the autonomy team in the architecture and design reviews, feasibility studies, timeline reviews, FMEAs and impact analysis hosted by various stakeholders. Execute cross functional discussions by fostering consensus, even during challenging technical discussions. Own the system definition of the subsystems that detect sensor obstruction/blindness and driver attention, and how those states gate the availability, degradation, and safe hand-back of automated driving features. Define the requirements and interfaces between these subsystems and their consumers (feature-availability arbitration, driver warning/escalation and takeover, minimum-risk maneuvers) and their inputs (perception, sensor health, pose), explicitly balancing detection robustness against false-alarm / nuisance rate.

Bachelor's or Master's degree in Aerospace, Electrical, Mechatronics, Computer Science, Robotics or a related field. 4+ years (Bachelor’s)/2+ years (Master’s) professional experience in systems engineering or software development, building autonomous systems or similarly complex robotics systems. Track record of deploying software in production environments, carrying one or more of listed responsibilities or developing software for autonomy stack. Working knowledge of Automotive standards, regulations, and test protocols (ECE, USNCAP, IIHS, EUNCAP, UNECE) related to automated driving. Strong problem solving skills in a highly cross functional and fast paced environment. Moderate programming skills (C/C++, Python/SQL) for rapid prototyping, data analysis, and software development and integration. Excellent team player with strong communication and presentation skills. Preferred — Familiarity with driver