Staff Systems Engineer - Operational Readiness and Field Safety

At the heart of our mission is an unwavering commitment to safety. We are seeking a practical and decisive systems engineer to bridge the gap between our AI development and trucking operations. You will lead the definition of operational procedures, deep-dive investigations into field events, and inform when and where our autonomy is ready to deploy.

You will...

- Lead Field Safety at Waabi by proactively establishing processes to escalate issues, reacting to any fleet issues in the field and owning Waabi's incident response.

- Define and conduct operational readiness testing for Waabi's autonomous vehicle operations and create the necessary evidence in the readiness framework.

- Work with operations and software teams to define protocols for nominal and off-nominal situations (e.g., severe weather response, sensor degradation, connectivity outages, and trip interruptions).

- Create processes for ongoing field safety monitoring and support the establishment of leading and lagging safety indicators and tooling needed.

- Analyze operational trends and past field events to drive systemic safety enhancements across both development and operations.

- Support the Operations team in developing and executing incident response training and operational preparedness activities.

- Interface with regulatory bodies and contribute to industry standards discussions around AV operational safety validation approaches.

Qualifications:

- Undergrad in Robotics, Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related technical field; advanced degree preferred.

- 7+ years of experience in safety-critical system development, validation, or operations.

- Strong understanding of systems engineering principles including requirements decomposition, V&V processes, and hazard analysis techniques (HAZOP, FMEA, FTA, STPA, etc.).

- Familiarity with relevant safety standards (ISO 26262, ISO 21448/SOTIF, UL 4600).

- Experience monitoring safety metrics and designing/executing test plans for complex autonomous or robotic systems.

Excellent technical communication skills with ability to present complex safety arguments to diverse stakeholders.

- Strong project management skills and ability to coordinate across multiple technical teams.

- Track record of driving high-stakes engineering decisions with incomplete information.

Bonus:

- Direct experience with autonomous vehicle safety validation or deployment.

- Previous work in trucking, logistics, or commercial vehicle operations.

- Experience with operational safety management systems.

- Knowledge of regulatory frameworks for autonomous vehicles (FMVSS, SAE standards, state/provincial regulations).