At Ouster, we are pioneering the future of Physical AI. Our advanced vision algorithms and cutting-edge sensor hardware power the next generation of autonomous systems - from robots to smart infrastructure - building a safer and more efficient world.
The Industrial Autonomy Team is seeking a senior reliability and verification engineer to design the test frameworks and validation strategies proving our products for autonomy and physical AI customers are safe and rugged. Within our small hardware team, you will be the gatekeeper for reliability, ensuring our compute, electromechanical, and safety-critical platforms survive harsh environments for customer deployment at scale.
Responsibilities- Define, develop, and execute comprehensive reliability test plans for all autonomy hardware projects
- Validate AI compute boxes, focusing on thermal management, power integrity, and hardware-software integration
- Lead the electrical validation of vehicle wire harness, power distribution, and sensor interfaces, ensuring resistance to EMI/EMC, vibration, and other environmental factors
- Design and oversee environmental stress testing including HALT, thermal cycling, ingress protection, and mechanical vibration
- Lead Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) and Root Cause Analysis for complex hardware failures
- Partner with the functional safety experts to design and execute test cases validating compliance for safety rated hardware
Qualifications
- 8+ years of experience defining verification strategies, building test infrastructure, and shipping complex hardware systems
- Experience qualifying rugged electromechanical and compute systems to industrial-grade standards for harsh deployment environments
- Extensive knowledge of reliability physics, accelerated life testing, signal/power integrity, and environmental stress profiles
- Experience owning the reliability lifecycle from initial test plan creation to field stability tracking
- Proven track record leading cross-functional Root Cause Analysis (RCA) and failure investigations to drive critical design and manufacturing improvements.
Preferred experience
- Experience validating autonomous vehicle systems, edge AI compute platforms, or safety-critical industrial robotics.
- Experience with Functional Safety standards (ISO 26262 or similar) and implementing rigorous validation frameworks for safety-rated hardware
The base pay will be dependent on your skills, work experience, location, and qualifications. This role may also be eligible for equity & benefits. ($140,000 - $200,000)
We acknowledge the confidence gap at Ouster. You do not need to meet all of these requirements to be the ideal candidate for this role.
Ouster is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer that pursues and hires a diverse workforce. Ouster does not make employment decisions on the basis of race, color, religion, ethnic or national origin, nationality, sex, gender, gender-identity, sexual orientation, disability, age, military status, or any other basis protected by local, state, or federal laws. Ouster also strives for a healthy and safe workplace, and prohibits harassment of any kind. Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, Ouster considers qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know.
Skills Required
- 8+ years defining verification strategies, building test infrastructure, and shipping complex hardware systems
- Experience qualifying rugged electromechanical and compute systems to industrial-grade standards for harsh deployment environments
- Extensive knowledge of reliability physics, accelerated life testing, signal and power integrity, and environmental stress profiles
- Experience owning the reliability lifecycle from initial test plan creation to field stability tracking
- Proven track record leading cross-functional Root Cause Analysis (RCA) and failure investigations to drive design and manufacturing improvements
- Experience validating autonomous vehicle systems, edge AI compute platforms, or safety-critical industrial robotics
- Experience with Functional Safety standards (ISO 26262 or similar) and implementing validation frameworks for safety-rated hardware
What We Do
At Ouster, we build digital lidar sensors and perception tools for engineers, roboticists, and researchers so they can make the world safer and more efficient. If you’re motivated by solving big problems, we’re hiring key roles across the company and need your help to build the eyes of autonomy! Check out https://ouster.com/careers/ for open roles.
