Staff Hardware Reliability Engineer, Aurora
Sensors
$181-262k
+ Equity + Bonus
3+ days a week in office (Mountain View, CA)
Self-driving technology company
Job no longer available
Self-driving technology company
1001+ employees
Job no longer available
$181-262k
+ Equity + Bonus
3+ days a week in office (Mountain View, CA)
1001+ employees
Company mission
To deliver the benefits of self-driving technology safely, quickly, and broadly.
Role
Who you are
- Extensive Experience in Sensor Validation: Proven track record in developing and validating optomechanical products, including cameras, lidars, or other optical instruments
- Expertise in Physics of Failure: Deep understanding of the physics of failure for electronic and optoelectronic components as applied to sensor systems
- Reliability Test Design: Strong ability to design and execute reliability test flows (shock, vibration, thermal) suitable for contract manufacturing environments
- Technical Data Analysis: Proficiency in analyzing sensor performance data to generate actionable insights
- Mass Production Background: Direct experience improving the reliability of mass-produced optomechanical assemblies and managing feedback loops with external vendors
Desirable
- Industry Experience: Prior experience at leading R&D at automotive companies
- Standards Knowledge: Familiarity with AEC-Q, ISO-16750, and other relevant automotive reliability standards
- Manufacturing Experience: Experience evaluating the reliability of manufacturing and assembly processes as a product moves toward large-scale production
- Hardware-Firmware Interaction: Working knowledge of the interactions between hardware and firmware critical to sensor performance
- Breadth of Technical Skills: Conceptual understanding of material science, PCBAs (BGA structural integrity), and conformal coating impacts on humidity exposure
What the job involves
- We’re searching for a Staff Hardware Reliability Engineer who will join the Hardware Reliability team to ensure the robustness of the Aurora Driver by leading reliability efforts for our next-generation sensor systems (Lidar, Camera, Radar, IMU)
- This is a high-impact opportunity to work at the forefront of autonomous vehicle technology, collaborating with world-class partners like Volvo, PACCAR, and Aumovio (formerly Continental) to bring a robust, scaled product to market
- Lead Sensor Reliability Assessments: Conduct rigorous reliability evaluations and design test campaigns for both internal and external sensor designs to ensure they meet our rigorous automotive standards
- Drive Failure Analysis (FA): Take ownership of complex reliability failures, and shepherd corrective actions in the form of near term mitigations and longer term design or process fixes
- Facilitate Proactive Risk Mitigation: Lead Design Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (DFMEA) sessions and implement corrective action plans based on prior experience and testing
- Develop Predictive Reliability Models: Create models to predict failure rates for integrated modules and individual sensors across diverse climates and road conditions
- Collaborate Cross-Functionally: Work with Hardware Design, Systems Engineering, Hardware Safety, Field Operations, Emedded Software, and contract manufacturers to integrate reliability findings into the design and manufacturing processes
Our take
The trucking industry is facing growing pressure from driver shortages, rising delivery demand, and the need for safer, more efficient freight transport. Long highway routes are expensive and tiring for drivers, especially on repetitive trips so companies are looking for new ways to move goods faster and more reliably while keeping costs low and improving safety.
Aurora Innovations is developing self-driving technology for long-haul trucks through its "Aurora Driver" system. Already, the company is operating autonomous freight routes across Texas and nearby states, often handling the highway portion of deliveries while human drivers complete local drop-offs. On top of this, the company is partnering with major companies like McLane, Volvo Autonomous Solutions, and Hirschbach to bring autonomous trucking into real commercial use.
In an exciting move, Aurora is now going beyond testing and into large-scale operations. McLane has approved driverless freight runs between Dallas and Houston, while Volvo and Aurora have expanded autonomous deliveries into Oklahoma City. With plans to scale routes across the US and agreements for hundreds of future autonomous trucks, Aurora is gearing up to play a very powerful position in autonomous freight transport.
Steph
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Insights
8% employee growth in 12 months
Company
Funding (last 2 of 3 rounds)
Dec 2020
$400m
GROWTH EQUITY VC
Feb 2019
$600m
SERIES B
Total funding: $1.1bn
Company HQ
Strip District, Pittsburgh, PA
Leadership
Chris Urmson
(Co-Founder & CEO)Chris graduated from Carnegie Mellon University with a PhD in Robotics. Prior to co-founding Aurora in 2017, they were the CTO of Self-Driving Cars at Google.
Drew Bagnell
(Co-Founder & Chief Scientist)Drew is a Consulting Professor at Carnegie Mellon University, where they received their PhD in Robotics. Previously, they were an Autonomy Architect & Perception Lead at Uber Advanced Technology Center.
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