Senior Systems Engineer, Fault Management

Location: San Francisco Bay Area

Department: Systems Engineering

The Systems and Safety Engineering team at Kodiak is seeking an experienced Systems Engineer to own the design and execution of Kodiak’s next-generation Autonomy Fault Management System. This individual will lead the effort end-to-end: from product and system requirement definition, through architecture and implementation, to verification and validation, and safety case integration. This leader will ensure that the Kodiak Driver handles onboard system faults with the desired, correct, safe response. This role is central to progressing towards achieving a scalable driverless deployment and will work closely with autonomy hardware, software, and system safety teams.

This role directly shapes Kodiak’s ability to operate sustainably at commercial scale. Fault management is not only a safety system—it is a primary lever of fleet availability, utilization, and cost per mile. You will own the technical strategies that determine when the system can continue operating safely, when it must degrade, and when it must exit service

In this role, you will:

• Contribute to the end-to-end development of the next generation of Autonomy Fault Management System, leading the collaborative effort across hardware, software, system safety, and operations teams.
• Execute systems and safety engineering execution for fault management across the full V-model lifecycle.
• Develop and maintain systems engineering artifacts, including requirements, traceability, V&V plans, V&V evidence.
• Support the definition of fault management architecture and concept of operations (detection, isolation, response, safe-state behavior).
• Contribute to generating evidence supporting the Fault Management System within the Driverless Safety Case.
• Perform analyses to support detection thresholds, hazard prioritization, and risk evaluation.
• Support system trade studies related to fault coverage, safety, and operational performance.
• Assist in defining strategies for degraded operation and system availability.
• Collaborate cross-functionally to align implementation with system requirements.

What you’ll bring:

• B.S., M.S., or PhD in engineering or related technical field.
• 2+ years experience within real-time safety-critical applications, preferably in highly automated or autonomous systems (autonomous vehicles, aerospace, nuclear, medical, etc).
• Experience with fault management, diagnostics, and safe-state behaviors
• Experience collaborating with cross-functional engineering teams.
• Ability to read C/C++ code.
• Experienced in Systems Engineering V-model and application within product life cycle.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Ability to collaborate effectively with technical stakeholders spanning multiple technical disciplines.

What we offer:

• Competitive compensation package including equity and annual bonuses
• Excellent Medical, Dental, and Vision plans through Kaiser Permanente, Cigna, and MetLife (including a medical plan with infertility benefits)
• MetLife Legal Services, Identity & Fraud Protection, Hospital Indemnity Insurance, Accident Insurance, & Critical Illness Insurance
• Flexible PTO, 10 paid holidays, and generous parental leave policies
• Our office is centrally located in Mountain View, CA
• Office perks: dog-friendly, free catered lunch, a fully stocked kitchen, and free EV charging
• Long Term Disability, Short Term Disability, Life Insurance
• Wellbeing Benefits - Headspace through Cigna, Calm through Kaiser, One Medical, Gympass, Spring Health through Cigna, Rula (mental health navigation) 
• Fidelity 401(k)
• Commuter, FSA, Dependent Care FSA, HSA
• Various incentive programs (referral bonuses, patent bonuses, etc.)