Vehicle Controls - Technical Lead

Responsibilities

• Set the technical direction for the controls stack across 0→1 platform bring-up and production programs, from prototype through deployed fleets.
• Design and implement controllers spanning low-level actuator control and lateral and longitudinal trajectory tracking.
• Design safe, redundant control systems for safety-critical environments.
• Characterize vehicle dynamics across haul trucks, excavators, wheel loaders, dozers, and other heavy equipment.
• Build calibration and vehicle-characterization workflows that scale controls performance across fleets without per-vehicle hand-tuning.
• Lead, mentor, and grow the controls team; set priorities, unblock engineers, and raise technical standards through design reviews and collaboration.
• Evaluate and apply academic research, including nonlinear model predictive control (MPC) and MPPI control.
• Collaborate with customer engineers and manage relationships through field deployments.

Requirements

• 6+ years of experience building production software using modern software practices, including leading engineers or owning a technical area.
• Experience taking controls solutions from first prototype through deployment on production-grade vehicles.
• Ability to mentor engineers, prioritize roadmaps, and drive technical decisions across concurrent workstreams.
• Fluency in differential equations, numerical optimization, numerical analysis, and physics.
• Practical problem-solving ability in fast-paced, technically challenging environments.

Nice-to-haves

• MSc or PhD in mechanical engineering, robotics, or computer science with controls coursework or research experience.
• Experience writing safety-critical, high-performance software in modern C++.
• Experience with quadratic programming and nonlinear optimization for robust, performant controllers.
• Experience with heavy equipment or off-road platforms in construction, mining, or agriculture.
• Experience building calibration pipelines or system-identification tooling used across a fleet.

Compensation and Benefits

• Base salary, equity, and benefits, including health, dental, vision, life and disability insurance, 401(k) retirement benefits with employer match, learning and wellness stipends, and paid time off.