# Senior Technical Program Manager, Robotics

**Company:** [Scale AI](https://hotfix.jobs/companies/scale-ai)
**Location:** San Francisco, CA
**Role:** Technical Program Management
**Salary:** $181k – $226k/yr
**Experience:** 5+ years
**Skills:** Technical Program Management, Cross-Functional Leadership, Risk Management, Hardware-Software Integration, Robotics, Mechatronics, Autonomous Vehicles, LLMs, Vlms, Agile, Scrum, Waterfall, Architecture Reviews
**Posted:** 2026-07-07

> Technical Program Manager bridging Engineering and Operations for Physical AI and robotics programs at Scale. Own end-to-end complex multidisciplinary programs from design to production, drive cross-functional alignment, and establish processes in an ambiguous, fast-evolving environment. Requires 5+ years TPM/PM/Lead Engineer experience and strong technical foundation in HW/SW systems.

## Job Description

## Responsibilities
- Serve as the primary driver of alignment between all major stakeholder groups (Engineering, Operations, Solutions, Product, GTM, etc.), ensuring shared milestones, OKRs, and clear ownership.
- End-to-end ownership of complex programs: define program scope, build comprehensive schedules, manage dependencies, and aggressively mitigate risks to ensure on-time delivery.
- Establish a single source of truth for program status. Author clear program documentation, maintain schedules, and provide regular, high-impact updates to executive leadership.
- Thrive in a highly fluid, rapidly evolving environment. Proactively chart a path forward, make sound decisions with incomplete data, and establish structure where none exists.
- Operate with a deep, hands-on approach: manage hardware release schedules, run sprint planning meetings, or manually audit data to solve critical issues.
- Design and implement scalable frameworks, tools, and communication cadences to optimize how Eng and Ops teams collaborate.

## Requirements
- 5+ years of experience as a TPM, Product Manager, or Lead Engineer managing complex, deeply technical programs.
- Demonstrated success managing programs that span both engineering / R&D and operational environments.
- Exceptional ability to navigate ambiguity, build structure out of chaos, and influence senior stakeholders without formal authority.
- Strong technical foundation allowing active participation in architecture reviews and credibly challenge/evaluate technical trade-offs with both HW and SW engineers.
- Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Robotics, Computer Science, or a related technical field.

## Nice-to-Haves
- Proven track record delivering complex robotics, mechatronics, autonomous vehicles, or hardware-software integrated systems from concept to production.
- Experience working with large language models (LLMs) and/or vision-language models (VLMs).
- Deep familiarity with both Agile/Scrum and Waterfall methodologies, and the ability to hybridize them effectively.
- Advanced degree (MS or PhD) in Engineering, Robotics, Computer Science, or a related technical field.
- PMP certification or equivalent.

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