Lead Systems Engineer, Field Safety & Operational Readiness

Waabi; Texas; Hybrid; USD 189,000 - 242,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity awards

Health benefits

Unlimited vacation

Work from home

Office meals

Team events

Growth opportunities

Job summary

Waabi, the leader in Physical AI, is seeking a practical and decisive systems engineer to bridge AI development and trucking operations. You will define operational procedures, perform deep-dive investigations into field events, and inform when and where our autonomy is ready to deploy.

In this role, you will lead Field Safety, define readiness testing, develop safety protocols for nominal and off-nominal situations, monitor field safety, analyze trends, and support incident response training

Qualifications

• Undergrad in Robotics, Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related technical field; advanced degree preferred.
• 7+ years of experience in safety-critical system development, validation, or operations.
• Strong understanding of systems engineering principles including requirements decomposition, V&V processes, and hazard analysis techniques (HAZOP, FMEA, FTA, STPA, etc.).
• Familiarity with relevant safety standards (ISO 26262, ISO 21448/SOTIF, UL 4600).
• Experience monitoring safety metrics and designing/executing test plans for complex autonomous or robotic systems.
• Excellent technical communication skills with ability to present complex safety arguments to diverse stakeholders.
• Strong project management skills and ability to coordinate across multiple technical teams.
• Track record of driving high-stakes engineering decisions with incomplete information.

Responsibilities

• Lead Field Safety by establishing processes to elevate issues and own incident response.
• Define and conduct operational readiness testing for autonomous vehicle operations and evidence framework.
• Develop protocols for nominal and off-nominal situations (weather, sensor degradation, outages).
• Create processes for ongoing field safety monitoring and safety indicators tooling.
• Analyze trends and past events to drive safety improvements across development and operations.
• Support incident response training and operational preparedness activities.
• Interface with regulators and contribute to industry safety validation standards.

Skills

Leadership

Safety metrics

Technical communication

Project management

Education

Bachelor's in Robotics/Mechanical/Aerospace

Advanced degree preferred

Job description

Waabi, the leader in Physical AI, is seeking a practical and decisive systems engineer to bridge AI development and trucking operations. You will define operational procedures, perform deep-dive investigations into field events, and inform when and where our autonomy is ready to deploy.

In this role, you will lead Field Safety, define readiness testing, develop safety protocols for nominal and off-nominal situations, monitor field safety, analyze trends, and support incident response training