Autonomous Vehicle Safety Lead & Systems Architect

NextGenEnergyJobs; Santa Clara (CA); Hybrid; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Job summary

Gatik is seeking a Head of Systems and Safety Engineering to own the safety architecture, risk strategy, and lifecycle for our autonomous vehicle platform. You will lead a multidisciplinary team, drive safety governance, and interface with regulators, OEMs, and customers.

You will defend the end-to-end safety case using UL 4600, ISO 26262, and ISO 21448, while guiding AI/ML safety strategies and formal risk analyses in a fast-moving frontier technology environment.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Systems Engineering, Robotics, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, or related field.
• 10+ years of experience in systems safety engineering for safety-critical domains (autonomous vehicles, automotive, or aerospace).
• 4+ years of direct engineering management experience leading teams, managing budget/resources, and directing day-to-day engineering operations.
• Proven experience acting as a primary interface to customers or external stakeholders, translating complex safety concepts and risk frameworks into executive communications.
• Ph.D. in relevant field preferred; deep mastery of functional safety standards.

Responsibilities

• Own safety architecture, risk management strategy, and safety lifecycle for the AV platform.
• Build and lead a multidisciplinary systems and safety engineering team and manage integration with clients and suppliers.
• Author, evolve, and defend the end-to-end safety case framework (UL 4600, ISO 26262, ISO 21448/SOTIF).
• Define safety strategies for AI/ML autonomy models and establish quantitative metrics for robustness and edge-case validation.
• Define system-level safety requirements, hazard mitigations, and fail-operational pathways across hardware, compute, and software.
• Oversee Hazard Analysis and Risk Assessment (HARA), FMEA, FTA, and STPA with traceability.
• Direct safety program operations, safety review boards, and incident response protocols.
• Collaborate with HW, SW, and V&V teams to validate safety arguments (HIL, closed-course, simulation).
• Engage regulatory agencies (NHTSA, DMV, DOT), standard committees, and third-party auditors.
• Interface with OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers; establish DIAs and ensure alignment with safety requirements.
• Communicate core safety concepts to enterprise customers and partners.

Skills

Safety Engineering

Leadership

Regulatory liaison

System safety lifecycle

V&V integration

AI/ML safety

HARA/FMEA/FTA/STPA

DIAs with OEMs

GSN

Education

Bachelor's or Master’s degree in Systems Engineering/Robotics/EE/CS

Ph.D. in Systems Engineering/CS/Robotics/ML

Tools

UL 4600

ISO 26262

ISO 21448 (SOTIF)

ISO/PAS 8800

DIAs tooling (Jama/Polarion/DOORS)

Job description

Gatik is seeking a Head of Systems and Safety Engineering to own the safety architecture, risk strategy, and lifecycle for our autonomous vehicle platform. You will lead a multidisciplinary team, drive safety governance, and interface with regulators, OEMs, and customers.

You will defend the end-to-end safety case using UL 4600, ISO 26262, and ISO 21448, while guiding AI/ML safety strategies and formal risk analyses in a fast-moving frontier technology environment.