Motional is at the forefront of the driverless revolution. We are looking for a Director of Onboard Core Software to lead the teams that deliver the software foundation Motional's products are built on: embedded firmware, the operating system, the runtime, and middleware on the vehicle's various computing platforms. You will own the onboard software infrastructure end to end and lead the teams responsible for it.
The ideal candidate has hands-on experience with systems software on physical hardware and has led engineering organizations with several levels of management. You should be comfortable owning a large area that spans many teams, taking on problems that aren't well defined yet, and working out boundaries directly with other organizations.
Mission Summary:
As the Director of Onboard Core Software, you will lead the strategic vision and execution for the software foundation of Motional's autonomous vehicles, from embedded firmware through the operating system, runtime, and middleware. This leadership role is centered on establishing a single roadmap, intake process, and escalation path for the onboard stack, and serving as the primary engineering counterpart to Vehicle Platform Engineering, Autonomy, and Safety for everything that runs on the vehicle's compute platform. You will keep the current-generation platform healthy in production while building the next-generation platform program. You will own cross-cutting system behaviors such as startup sequencing, storage lifecycle, compute, ECU bring-up, and cross-layer latency to ensure the platform performs safely and reliably, and that the entire product is a delight for our customers, from the autonomy features that drive the vehicle to the customer-facing features riders experience in our cars.
What You'll Be Doing:
- Stack Ownership: Own the onboard software stack from firmware through middleware. That includes software on embedded platforms including SoCs, safety MCUs, and GPU compute; the operating systems, drivers, and interfaces to the physical world; task runtime and compute resource management; system health monitoring; and safety and diagnostics software.
- Organizational Leadership: Lead and develop a team of engineering managers and technical leaders. You own hiring, leveling, performance, and career growth for the group, and you will build leaders who can run their teams autonomously.
- Cross-Functional Accountability: Be the main contact for onboard software for stakeholder and partner teams. You will settle boundary questions between organizations, run intake and prioritization, and handle escalations when your teams’ software is on the critical path.
- Delivering Quality: Define what "done" means for onboard software at each release, including quality metrics to ensure delivery of a safe and reliable product.
What We're Looking For:
- Education: BS or MS in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or equivalent knowledge and work experience.
- Experience: 12+ years of software engineering experience, including 5+ years leading organizations of 40 or more engineers as a manager of managers. This should be in a field where software runs on physical hardware, such as automotive, robotics, aerospace, or consumer devices.
- Systems Software Depth: Hands-on experience building, or leading teams that built, embedded firmware, Linux kernel or BSP software, real-time middleware, or high-performance runtimes. You can talk through boot sequencing, IPC latency, or resource scheduling with Principal Engineers.
- Production Operations: Experience running software in production on a fleet or in the field, including keeping a current platform healthy while bringing up the next one.
- Technical Leadership: Experience hiring, developing, and retaining talent as an organization grows.
- Cross-Organizational Ownership: Experience owning a large area that spans many teams. You build trust with peer organizations, work out boundaries directly, and make decisions people follow.
- Communication: Clear writing and speaking. You can explain technical tradeoffs to executives, peers, and engineers across your team and others.
- Inclusive Leadership: Experience building inclusive teams and making room for people with different working styles, ideas, and backgrounds.
- Engineering Rigor: Ability to set and hold the team to high standards for engineering quality.
Bonus Points (Not Required):
- Experience with functional safety in automotive (ISO 26262, safety MCUs, safety monitors, diagnostics), or working closely with a safety organization on requirements and designs for safety-critical/regulated environments.
- Experience with high-performance, high-bandwidth, low-latency systems, such as moving large amounts of data across numerous subsystems with tight timing requirements.
- Familiarity with physical AI ecosystems, where machine learning models sense and act in the real world. That includes how those models run on embedded compute, how they depend on sensors and the onboard runtime, and how on-road and simulation data is used to train and evaluate them.
- Experience in the autonomous vehicle or robotaxi industry.
We encourage a hybrid schedule with in-office time at one of our locations in Boston, Pittsburgh, or Las Vegas to support collaboration, or this role can be fully remote.
#LI-AE1
The salary range for this role is an estimate based on a wide range of compensation factors including but not limited to specific skills, experience and expertise, role location, certifications, licenses, and business needs. The estimated compensation range listed in this job posting reflects base salary only. This role may include additional forms of compensation such as a bonus or company equity. The recruiter assigned to this role can share more information about the specific compensation and benefit details associated with this role during the hiring process.
Candidates for certain positions are eligible to participate in Motional’s benefits program. Motional’s benefits include but are not limited to medical, dental, vision, 401k with a company match, health saving accounts, life insurance, pet insurance, and more.
Motional is a driverless technology company making autonomous vehicles a safe, reliable, and accessible reality. We’re driven by something more.
Our journey is always people first.
We aren't just developing driverless cars; we're creating safer roadways, more equitable transportation options, and making our communities better places to live, work, and connect. Our team is made up of engineers, researchers, innovators, dreamers and doers, who are creating a technology with the potential to transform the way we move.
Higher purpose, greater impact.
We’re creating first-of-its-kind technology that will transform transportation. To do so successfully, we must design for everyone in our cities and on our roads. We believe in building a great place to work through a progressive, global culture that is diverse, inclusive, and ensures people feel valued at every level of the organization. Diversity helps us to see the world differently; it’s not only good for our business, it’s the right thing to do.
Scale up, not starting up.
Our team is behind some of the industry's largest leaps forward, including the first fully-autonomous cross-country drive in the U.S, the launch of the world's first robotaxi pilot, and operation of the world's longest-standing public robotaxi fleet. We’re driven to scale; we’re moving towards commercialization of our technology, and we need team members who are ready to embrace change and challenges.
Formed as a joint venture between Hyundai Motor Group and Aptiv, Motional is fundamentally changing how people move through their lives. Headquartered in Boston, Motional has operations in the U.S and Asia. For more information, visit www.Motional.com and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube.
Motional AD Inc. is an EOE. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. To comply with Federal Law, we participate in E-Verify. All newly-hired employees are queried through this electronic system established by the DHS and the SSA to verify their identity and employment eligibility.
Skills Required
- BS or MS in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or equivalent knowledge and work experience
- 12+ years of software engineering experience
- 5+ years leading organizations of 40 or more engineers as a manager of managers
- Experience in software running on physical hardware, such as automotive, robotics, aerospace, or consumer devices
- Hands-on experience building or leading teams building embedded firmware, Linux kernel or BSP software, real-time middleware, or high-performance runtimes
- Experience running software in production on a fleet or in the field
- Experience maintaining a current platform while bringing up a next-generation platform
- Experience hiring, developing, and retaining engineering talent
- Experience owning a large area spanning multiple teams and resolving cross-organizational boundaries
- Clear written and verbal communication skills
- Experience building inclusive teams
- Ability to establish and enforce high engineering-quality standards
- Experience with automotive functional safety, ISO 26262, safety MCUs, safety monitors, or diagnostics
- Experience with high-performance, high-bandwidth, low-latency systems
- Familiarity with physical AI ecosystems and embedded machine-learning systems
- Experience in autonomous vehicles or the robotaxi industry
Motional Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Motional and has not been reviewed or approved by Motional.
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Healthcare Strength — Multiple medical plan options (HDHP and PPO) with dental and vision, plus complimentary mental‑health counseling through Modern Health and 24/7 EAP support, point to comprehensive coverage administered via Aetna. Health choices are generally characterized as solid and comparable to larger tech peers, with typical plan tradeoffs.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Flexible PTO, paid holidays, and a company‑wide shutdown between Christmas and New Year’s indicate generous time‑off policies. The ability to work outside one’s home country for up to 60 days per year adds flexibility, though practical use can depend on team norms.
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Retirement Support — A 401(k) with company matching alongside employer‑paid life, AD&D, and disability coverage provides strong baseline financial security. Additional protections and conveniences such as identity‑theft coverage and commuter/travel support complement the core retirement benefit.
Motional Insights
What We Do
Our team is commercializing a world-class driverless system. The Motional team is behind some of the industry’s largest leaps forward in the last decade, including the first fully-autonomous cross-country drive in the U.S, the launch of the world’s first robotaxi pilot, and operation of the world’s most-established public robotaxi fleet. Strategically formed by Hyundai Motor Group, one of the world’s largest vehicle manufacturers offering smart mobility solutions, and Aptiv, a global technology leader in advanced safety, electrification, and vehicle connectivity, Motional is fundamentally changing how people move through their lives.
Why Work With Us
Our leadership team has been working in this industry for decades and includes renown early innovators in driverless technology. We are creating a future where transportation is safe, reliable, and accessible. Join our team in revolutionizing the industry that will change how the world moves.
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