Principal Autonomy Validation Engineer, Tech Lead

We’re Blue River, a team of innovators driven to create intelligent machinery that solves monumental problems for our customers. We empower our customers – farmers, construction crews, and foresters - to implement safer and more sustainable solutions, driving increased profitability with less reliance on scarce labor. We believe that focusing on the small stuff – pixel-by-pixel and task-by-task - leads to big gains. 

Blue River Technology aligns with John Deere’s vision to “innovate on behalf of humanity” by quickly identifying and solving high-value, high-uncertainty challenges in AI, machine learning, computer vision, and robotics. BRT acts as a research and development flywheel, building not only new products but also new platforms that reliably create value for both Deere and its customers. From fully autonomous machines to highly precise farming equipment, BRT and Deere are partnering to create technical breakthroughs in industries like agriculture and construction. 

Our people are at the heart of what we do. Through cross-disciplinary collaboration, this mission-driven team is eager to define the new frontier of robotics. We are always asking hard questions, rapidly iterating, and getting our boots in the field to figure it out. We won’t give up until we’ve made a tangible and positive impact on the planet!

This position is eligible to be fully remote in the US. Blue River Technology is based in Santa Clara, CA.

Summary

Our team has been on a path to providing operator-free autonomy to John Deere vehicles since 2018. Today, we are scaling our initial offering in large agricultural tractors and looking for a strong validation Lead to own our autonomy test process. This role is responsible for authoring and reviewing test plans, establishing requirements for automated test tooling, and providing leadership to individuals executing system-level testing. As a small team, you will have the opportunity to both contribute directly through developing and executing tests as well as establishing test strategy and long-term road mapping. Collaborate with software engineers, data scientists, and field engineers to validate and verify sensor data and perception outputs. Our team is empowered to figure out how to overcome challenges, plan and prioritize work – everyone is a key contributor.

Job Responsibilities

The main job responsibilities are noted below. 

• Work with Product and Engineering to develop and implement QA strategies and plans for testing perception algorithms and autonomous systems.
• Integrate safety requirements into test plans, review automated test coverage for requirement fulfillment, and provide automation team roadmapping input.
• Execute or enable others to execute test plans, reviewing results, and ranking issues found.
• Provide leadership to field test engineers and weekly software delivery input.
• Own software quality, reviewing customer defects, and create tactical short and long term plans to reduce defect escapes; track and report progress.

Required Experience and Skills

• 7 or more years of software development or testing experience, preferably on embedded systems.
• 5 or more years of experience in developing and executing test plans, test cases, and test scripts for complex systems.
• Proven experience in systems engineering, including the integration and testing of complex systems, preferably in the autonomy or automation domain.
• Proven ability to lead QA teams and collaborate effectively with cross-functional teams, including software engineers, data scientists, and field engineers.
• Strong problem-solving skills with the ability to identify issues, analyze data, and provide actionable insights. 
• Familiarity with agile methodologies and tools (e.g., JIRA, Confluence).
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related technical field.

Preferred Experience and Skills

• Prior autonomy development or testing experience.
• Prior work with start-ups or agile organizations. 
• Work on safety safety-critical projects.

At Blue River, we’re passionate about creating an inclusive workplace that promotes and values diversity.  While we have more work to do to advance diversity and inclusion, we’re investing in our programs, including recruiting, mentorship, career development, and learning & development to ensure they support our Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion goals. We support each employee in living a full life, enabling a thriving career, and accomplishing a meaningful, challenging mission while collaborating with incredible people. We are dedicated to building a diverse and inclusive workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your experience doesn’t align completely with the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway.

We are an equal-opportunity employer and do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, sex, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, perform essential job functions, and receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request an accommodation. 

The US annual base salary range for this position is $166,000 - $293,000, along with eligibility for Blue River’s bonus and benefit programs. Our salary ranges are determined by role, level, and location. Within the range, individual pay is determined by work location and additional factors, including job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your location during the hiring process. During the recruitment process, we may identify an alternative role or level to which you are more suited. If your ideal role at Blue River differs from the advertised position, we will provide an updated pay range as soon as possible during the hiring process.

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