Senior Software Engineer, Autonomy - Controls

About Cyngn

Based in Menlo Park, CA, Cyngn is a publicly-traded autonomous vehicle company. Whether at a warehouse floor, mine, or construction site, our self-driving technology can be deployed at a variety of commercial domains, across a variety of vehicle form-factors. To build this emergent technology, we are looking for innovative, motivated, and experienced leaders to join our team and move this field forward. If you like to build, tinker, and create with a team of trusted and passionate colleagues, then Cyngn is the place for you. Key reasons to join Cyngn:

We are Small and Big.

With under 100 employees, Cyngn is still a company that operates with the energy of a startup. On the other hand, we are publicly traded. Combined, our employees not only work in close-knit teams with close mentorship from company leaders, they also get access to the liquidity of our publicly-traded equity. This gives our small team the opportunity to make a big impact in industries that other people aren’t touching — without taking on the risks associated with untested organizations.

We Build Today and Deploy Tomorrow.

Our employees aren’t just researchers but are creating reality. In other words, the autonomous vehicles we’re building are designed to go to real clients right away. We are driven by our passion for innovation and the ability to see the entire product and the real impact of our work out in the real world. At Cyngn, the distance between the theoretical and the actual is razor-thin.

We aren’t robots. We just build them.

Go read our glassdoor reviews and you’ll find that one of the best things about working here is the people. We are an inclusive, diverse team of top talent with exceptional synergy. We thrive on open collaboration and a trusting and creative work environment that is fueled by our passion for the industry. At Cyngn, everyone’s voice is valued and each of our unique perspectives is celebrated. It’s the people that allow our company to continue to grow bigger and better every day.

About this role:

As a Senior Controls Software Engineer, you will be responsible for delivering mission-critical improvements and new features for our control subsystems. You will work on a small, highly focused team developing production-quality software that realizes planned vehicle trajectories using techniques in adaptive and optimal control. You will collaborate cross-functionally with motion planning, simulation, and QA team members to achieve seamless integration with interfacing submodules, comprehensive testing, and ultimately robust control system performance for the next generation of our autonomous vehicles. 

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and tune autonomous vehicle control algorithms in C++. 
• Develop tooling and metrics for system identification, performance analysis/validation, and continuous testing frameworks. 
• Contribute to simulation models for root causing issues and regression testing software releases.
• Continuously support autonomy team technical roadmap planning efforts through ideation, maintenance, and prioritization.
• Balance project tasks, code reviews, mentoring, and research to meet product-driven milestones in a fast-paced startup environment.

Qualifications

• MS/Phd with focus in Control Systems, Robotics, Mechanical Engineering or similar technical field of study, and/or equivalent practical experience. 
• Solid background and knowledge in dynamic systems and controls (LQR, MPC). 
• 4+ years of industry experience as an autonomous vehicle or robotics control systems software engineering professional including hands-on implementation and tuning on hardware.
• 4+ years experience writing C++ software in a production environment - architecture design, unit testing, code review, algorithm performance trade-offs, etc. 
• Strong written & verbal communication skills.

Bonus Qualifications

• Direct experience implementing the following:
• 1. Adaptive control techniques for autonomous vehicles.
• 2. Automated nonlinear system identification for vehicle fleets.
• 3. Safety guarantees for dynamical systems.
• Familiarity with concepts in motion planning and/or experience implementing trajectory planners on HW.
• Exposure to modern software development version control and project management tools - Git, Jira, etc.

Benefits & Perks

• Health benefits (Medical, Dental, Vision, HSA and FSA (Health & Dependent Daycare), Employee Assistance Program, 1:1 Health Concierge)
• Life, Short-term and long-term disability insurance (Cyngn funds 100% of premiums)
• Company 401(k)
• Commuter Benefits
• Flexible vacation policy
• Remote or hybrid work opportunities
• Stock options for all full-time employees
• Sabbatical leave opportunity after 5 years with the company
• Paid Parental Leave
• Daily lunches for in-office employees and fully-stocked kitchen with snacks and beverages
• Monthly meal and tech allowances for remote employees
• Allowance to purchase new headphones when you join!