Embedded Software Engineer - Drive Systems

Zoox is looking for an embedded software engineer to join our Firmware Drive Systems team. Drive Systems owns the critical path from autonomous trajectory to vehicle motion - taking a trajectory from our AI stack and translating it into drive control actuator commands (motor torques, brake torques, steering angles, and more), arbitrating between control sources (our nominal AI stack, in-house remote controller, and test sources like drive-by-wire and trajectory spoofing), and continuously monitoring the safety of trajectory execution and drive control ECUs. We are looking for people who are passionate about working with hardware and developing production-quality, safety-critical code for complex dynamic systems.

Drive Systems engineers literally make the robot move. Whether a Zoox robot is in service carrying riders, staging at a depot, undergoing critical testing on test tracks, or freshly off the assembly line, this team ensures it drives safely and reliably.

In this role, you will:

• Build and contribute to simulation, emulation, SIL, and HIL infrastructure to validate drive control software

• Design, develop, and test embedded software for autonomous trajectory execution, translating planned trajectories into drive control actuator commands (motor torque, brake torque, steering angle, and more)

• Contribute to control source arbitration and safety monitoring across trajectory execution and drive control ECUs

• Integrate supplier sub-systems (steering, motoring, braking, active suspension, and more) into the Zoox software stack

• Work cross-functionally with Motion & Controls, Vehicle Dynamics, Safety Systems, Validation, and other partner teams to deliver a seamless, highly-automated driving experience

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Electrical/Computer Engineering, Robotics, or equivalent experience

• 1-3 years of experience developing real-time embedded software for distributed electro-mechanical systems and the simulation and test infrastructure for such systems

• Strong embedded C/C++ programming experience and experience with Python for test

• Experience with QNX, SafeRTOS, FreeRTOS, or similar embedded operating systems

• Understanding of automotive communication protocols (CAN, LIN) and sensor/actuator integration

Bonus Qualifications

• Experience with CAN/LIN analysis and debugging tools (PCAN, CANalyzer, CANape, etc.)

• Familiarity with high-assurance development practices and tools (Polarion, ISO-26262, MISRA C/C++, etc.)

• Hands-on experience with hardware bring-up, system debugging, or SIL/HIL test infrastructure