About the roleThe Senior V&V Engineer - Public Road & Fleet Testing bridges system development and driverless commercial deployment. This role is responsible for validating system behavior across Gatik's active B2B customer routes, assessing map release quality, tracking real-world safety metrics, and proving that autonomous trucks meet strict driverless deployment gates. You will analyze fleet data, investigate operational events, and ensure the autonomous fleet safely executes daily middle-mile freight deliveries.
This role is onsite 5 days a week at our Santa Clara, CA office!
What you'll doKey Responsibilities- Public Road Validation Strategy: Define and execute on-road structured testing and shadow fleet evaluation programs for new software builds across commercial customer corridors.
- Route & Map Validation: Validate map updates, route configurations across customer ODDs prior to driverless sign-off.
- Disengagement & Anomaly Investigation: Perform deep-dive root-cause analysis on events, dynamic anomalies, near-misses, and unexpected vehicle behaviors using log visualization tools (Foxglove, Grafana, SQL, Python).
- SPI & KPI Verification: Track Safety Performance Indicators (SPIs) and performance metrics to quantify system readiness for fully driverless operation.
- Field Deployment Support: Serve as the primary V&V technical owner for vehicle commissioning, operational readiness, and customer route expansion.
- Feedback Loop to Engineering: Translate on-road findings into structured bug reports, regression scenarios for SIL/HIL, and action items for autonomy algorithm teams.
Minimum Qualifications- Education: B.S. or M.S. in Systems Engineering, Computer Science, Automotive Engineering, or Data Analytics.
- Experience: 5+ years in field validation, fleet testing, or systems engineering for autonomous vehicles or large-scale robotic fleets.
- Data Analysis Mastery:
- Advanced proficiency in Python, SQL, and data visualization/log analysis platforms (Jupyter, Grafana, Foxglove, MCAP).
- Demonstrated experience analyzing sensor logs (LiDAR, Radar, Camera, CAN) to triage autonomy failures.
- Domain Expertise: Deep understanding of Operational Design Domains (ODDs), route mapping validation, and fleet-wide safety monitoring.
Preferred Qualifications- Experience deploying L4 driverless commercial operations in freight, trucking, or ride-hailing.
- Expertise in statistical fleet reliability modeling.
- Strong cross-functional leadership skills working directly with Operations, Safety, and Engineering teams.
Salary Range - $160,000- $260,000
