logo
AI Resume Tailoring Sign in to use this AI AI Cover Letter Sign in to use this AI

Job Description

Zoox is on an ambitious journey to develop a full-stack autonomous mobility solution for cities and safely deploy such a robotaxi solution. The System Design and Mission Assurance (SDMA) team plays a foundational role in the company's success, responsible for constructing the safety case and fail-operational design for our autonomous driving robots before public road deployment. You will be part of an organization with strong leadership and a transparent, respectful culture that enables you to reach your full potential.

We are looking for a Senior Systems Engineer to drive the technical evolution of the Fail Operations metrics, frameworks, and processes. In this role, you will lead the refinement of how Zoox categorizes, estimates, and tracks autonomous driving performance events, working closely with cross-functional partners across Data Science, SDMA, Software and Operations. You will serve as a key technical partner to SDMA’s metrics leadership, shaping the methodology that underpins Zoox’s assessment of readiness to scale.

In this role, you will:

  • Own and evolve the core Fail Operational metric framework for quantifying, severity-ranking, and systematically driving down autonomous-mission stoppage and degradation events, including category definitions, classification methodology, and triage criteria used to identify and assess mission-critical events across all driving behavior domains

  • Lead Fail Operational metric target-setting for new and existing milestones, authoring supporting documentation and consolidating inputs across metric categories to assess overall readiness for milestone closure

  • Drive the evolution of the Fail Operational metric architecture, ensuring alignment with current priorities and operational needs

  • Develop process for reviewing observed events, mapping to seen failure modes or confirming as new, and integrating those observations into estimations to drive business priorities. 

  • Partner cross-functionally with Software, Hardware, and Operations teams to escalate issues, identify mitigations, evaluate emerging risks from testing pipelines, and support delivery of features that improve performance metrics

  • Communicate complex metric concepts, data analyses, and actionable insights to diverse stakeholders and executives, translating technical findings into clear recommendations that inform decision-making

Qualifications

  • B.S. or higher degree in Systems Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Applied Mathematics, or a related field

  • 5+ years of relevant professional experience in systems engineering, data analysis, performance tracking, risk quantification, or fault management for complex and safety-critical systems

  • Demonstrated experience defining, implementing, and managing quantitative metrics and data-driven frameworks, with proficiency in probability, statistics, and Python for large-scale data analysis

  • Strong understanding of fault detection, categorization, and severity assessment methodologies, with experience developing technical frameworks, taxonomies, or classification systems

  • Excellent technical communication and documentation abilities, with a collaborative approach to influencing, driving consensus, and leading cross-functional initiatives

Bonus Qualifications

  • M.S. or Ph.D. in Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field

  • Systems engineering or system safety experience with autonomous driving, robotics, or fleet-scale vehicle operations

  • Experience with fail-operational design, fault tolerance, or fault management in safety-critical domains, including familiarity with hazard analysis methods such as STPA, FTA, FMEA, or FHA

  • Metrics ownership experience and knowledge of industry safety standards such as ISO 26262, ISO 21448, MIL-STD-882

  • Experience building processes from conception to implementation at scale

About Zoox
Zoox is developing the first ground-up, fully autonomous vehicle fleet and the supporting ecosystem required to bring this technology to market. Sitting at the intersection of robotics, machine learning, and design, Zoox aims to provide the next generation of mobility-as-a-service in urban environments. We’re looking for top talent that shares our passion and wants to be part of a fast-moving and highly execution-oriented team.


Accommodations
If you need an accommodation to participate in the application or interview process please reach out to accommodations@zoox.com or your assigned recruiter.

A Final Note:
You do not need to match every listed expectation to apply for this position. Here at Zoox, we know that diverse perspectives foster the innovation we need to be successful, and we are committed to building a team that encompasses a variety of backgrounds, experiences, and skills.
Do you match this job?

Here is what this employer asked for. Sign in and we will fill in your half.

  • Role Senior/Staff Systems Engineer, Fail Operational you: —
  • Experience 8-9 years you: —
  • Education Any you: —
  • Work type Hybrid you: —
  • Location United States you: —
Check my match
Zoox
Robotics & Autonomy · 500+ Members · Foster City, CA, United States

Zoox, an Amazon subsidiary, develops an autonomous ride-hailing service and a purpose-built electric robotaxi. Rather than adapting a conventional car, it designed a bidirectional vehicle around autonomous operation, passenger use, and dense urban mobility. The company develops the vehicle, autonomous-driving software, sensing, simulation, fleet systems, and rider experience as one integrated service. Zoox is progressing from testing toward commercial robotaxi operations with safety and controlled deployment at the center of its approach.

All jobs at Zoox
Job Overview

Approx. salary range

213K – 297K

Our estimate — this employer did not publish a salary

Our estimate, not the employer’s. Worked out from the middle half of 15 comparable roles on Neural Jobs that did publish a salary, in the same field, country and experience band. The real figure for this job may be different.

Eligibility
United States Right to work in the United States required.
Workplace
Hybrid
Job Posted:
2 months ago
Job Type
Full Time
Education
Any
Experience
8-9 years

Share This Job: