Principal Engineer - Virtual Driver

Meet the team:   

The Virtual Driver division of engineering develops safety critical software applications to enable autonomous hub-to-hub driving. We develop state of the art algorithms and models to perform tasks such as object and environment recognition, motion estimation, localization, scene modeling, actor prediction, behavioral policy, and trajectory generation.  

What you’ll do: 

Torc is looking for an experienced principal engineer to foster and grow the technical solution of our virtual driver software stack and its integration into the full ecosystem. This role will play a pivotal role in the success of the organization, and comes with high visibility, responsibility, and technical impact.  This person should be a self-starter, who is curious, creative, pragmatic, and solution oriented. A strong technical foundation in perception, machine learning, control theory, robotics, and planning is essential. This individual will need to collaborate with individual contributors and teams of various backgrounds, across all levels of the organization, to solve problems both in the Virtual Driver Division and across the overall technical product.   

• Drive and grow the technical vision and architecture for the Virtual Driver Division, considering various technologies, sensors, control algorithms, and integration with other vehicle systems 
• Work within Torc’s Principal Community to mature our technical vision and drive the technical direction across the organization 
• Collaborate with stakeholders to understand requirements and design scalable and maintainable software solutions for the Virtual Driver Division and the broader CTO organization 
• Act as a role-model and set the standards of highest-level technical excellence and rigor within the Virtual Driver Division 
• Work with engineering leaders to drive standards of excellence into meaningful ways of working and best-practices of engineering 
• Provide technical leadership and guidance to engineering teams in the division by promoting best practices and ensuring adherence to standards and architectural principles 
• Participate in design and code reviews, providing constructive feedback to ensure high-quality solutions that adhere to established standards and practices 
• Mentor and guide division engineers, assisting in their technical growth and fostering a culture of learning and development within the division 
• Troubleshoot and debug the most critical issues related to the virtual driver, determining the root causes, implementing appropriate solutions, and setting up safeguards against reoccurrences 
• Analyze, and mentor others to analyze, software performance to implement necessary optimizations to enhance speed, efficiency, and scalability 
• Participate in project planning and collaborate with technical product managers on the priorities and customer expectations of the proposed software solutions 
• Stays up to date with the latest industry trends, technologies and best practices for potential integration with existing solutions 

What you’ll need to succeed:   

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Robotics, or related field.  Master’s or Ph.D. degree preferred 
• Minimum 15 years of experience in engineering or related field with preference for real world machine learning projects, classical robotics applications, automotive applications, and safety critical systems 
• Able to optimize algorithms for real-time processing in dynamic environments 
• Strong technical communication skills, written and verbal, that scale to a diverse workforce 
• Strong problem-solving skills with the ability to analyze and debug complex software system issues 
• Strong proficiency in C++ and Python 
• Strong ability to align technical objectives to business values and articulate the associated business value of technical work 
• Strong time management and organization skills to plan, develop, prioritize effectively, and maintain competing demands simultaneously with frequent interruptions and in fast-paced environment 
• Ability to build collaborative environments with teams both in person and virtually 
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment with evolving software/hardware infrastructure 
• Working understanding of vehicle dynamics and control theory is preferred 
• Requires continuous technical education and training with a passion for knowledge in the field of study to maintain the highest level of knowledge, ingenuity, and creative thinking 
• Willing to travel up to 25% to US or EU locations. Ability to obtain a passport and appropriate documents are required 
• Ability to be flexible and may work extra hours when project demands 

Bonus Points! 

• Experience with PyTorch and CUDA is preferred 
• History of working across large teams and engineering organizations in a technical capacity is preferred 
• Working knowledge of software verification and validation is preferred
• Experience in writing safety certified code is preferred 

Perks of Being a Full-time Torc’r 

Torc cares about our team members and we strive to provide benefits and resources to support their health, work/life balance, and future. Our culture is collaborative, energetic, and team focused. Torc offers:    

• A competitive compensation package that includes a bonus component and stock options  
• 100% paid medical, dental, and vision premiums for full-time employees    
• 401K plan with a 6% employer match  
• Flexibility in schedule and generous paid vacation (available immediately after start date) 
• Company-wide holiday office closures  
• AD+D and Life Insurance