Senior Functional Safety Engineer

This is a fully remote position, open to applicants in Texas.

📋 Description

• Lead the safety analysis of systems for Bot Auto’s autonomous trucking platform, encompassing autonomy software, vehicle controls, perception, planning, prediction, localization, computing, sensors, communications, fallback behavior, and operational processes.

• Develop and maintain hazard analyses, functional safety concepts, technical safety requirements, safety cases, risk assessments, fault trees, FMEAs, STPA analyses, ODD assessments, and validation evidence.

• Convert hazards and operational risks into concise, testable safety requirements.

• Collaborate with teams in autonomy, software, hardware, vehicle integration, infrastructure, security, operations, and testing to implement and validate safety requirements.

• Take on the role of Functional Safety Manager for the autonomous vehicle platform, coordinating with suppliers and overseeing distributed safety development and safety-case deliverables.

• Define and refine the Operational Design Domain (ODD), which includes routes, environmental constraints, traffic conditions, vehicle behavior boundaries, fallback strategies, and minimum-risk maneuvers.

• Assess the safety implications of autonomy features, software updates, hardware modifications, sensor configurations, procedures, and route expansions.

• Conduct safety reviews for on-road testing, driverless readiness, commercial operations, incident response, and post-event analysis.

• Analyze logs, simulations, test outcomes, disengagements, interventions, fleet events, and edge cases to identify safety trends.

• Establish verification and validation strategies across simulation, closed-course testing, road testing, shadow mode, and operational deployment.

• Ensure traceability from hazards to requirements, implementation, test coverage, and safety-case evidence.

• Contribute to safety governance, launch readiness, change management, release approvals, and operational safety metrics.

• Assist in regulatory, customer, partner, insurer, and internal safety reviews.

• Foster a strong safety culture while facilitating disciplined engineering execution.

⛳️ Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Systems Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Robotics, Computer Science, Aerospace Engineering, Automotive Engineering, or a related technical field.

• Over 7 years of experience in systems safety, functional safety, autonomous vehicles, robotics, aerospace, automotive, heavy vehicles, safety-critical software, or complex cyber-physical systems.

• Extensive experience with HARA, FMEA, FTA, STPA, failure mode analysis, requirements decomposition, and risk assessment.

• Experience in developing or contributing to safety cases for safety-critical systems.

• Strong understanding of autonomous vehicle system architecture, including perception, prediction, planning, control, localization, mapping, vehicle actuation, compute, sensing, and fleet operations.

• Knowledge of highly redundant, fault-tolerant architectures and fail-operational ADS and vehicle health management.

• Familiarity with ISO 26262, ISO 21448/SOTIF, UL 4600 Safety Case, SAE J3016/J3018, MIL-STD-882, IEC 61508, or other similar safety-critical system standards.

• Proven experience with distributed development of safety systems and coordinating safety work products and safety cases across automotive OEMs and Tier 1 or similar integration levels.

• Familiarity with AVSC Best Practices, SAE standards, and ISO PAS 8800.

• Ability to translate ambiguous technical and operational risks into structured engineering requirements and actionable mitigations.

• Experience collaborating with verification and validation teams to identify evidence required to support safety claims.

• Strong technical communication skills, including the ability to present risk decisions, trade-offs, and safety arguments.

• Comfort in a fast-paced startup environment.

• Nice-to-have: Experience with autonomous trucks, commercial vehicles, robotics, AV operations, fleet operations, or on-road testing.

• Nice-to-have: Experience in ISO 26262 audits and assessments.

• Nice-to-have: Experience with driverless launch readiness, route readiness, ODD expansion, or commercial AV deployment.

• Nice-to-have: Experience analyzing vehicle logs, simulation results, scenario databases, disengagements, incidents, or safety-driver intervention.

• Nice-to-have: Familiarity with trucking operations, FMCSA/DOT regulations, commercial vehicle safety, or heavy-duty vehicle systems.

• Nice-to-have: Experience with requirements management tools such as JAMA, Polarion, DOORS, Confluence/JIRA, or similar.

• Nice-to-have: Skills in Python, SQL, data analysis, log analysis, or scripting.

• Nice-to-have: Experience in cybersecurity risk assessment, operational safety, incident response, emergency response planning, ISO 21434, and UN ECE R155.

• An advanced degree is a plus.

🏝️ Benefits

• Competitive salary and performance-based bonuses.

• Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance.

• Flexible work hours and remote work options.

• Opportunities for professional development and growth.

• A dynamic and collaborative work environment.