Tech Lead, Device Automation & QA

World; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 217,000 - 260,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Healthcare benefits

401(k) plan and match

Flexible time off

Professional development stipend

Job summary

World in San Francisco is seeking a Device Automation & QA Lead to oversee software quality for device platforms, ensuring releases are fully tested and reliable. This role includes recruiting talent, managing automated test infrastructures, and collaborating cross-functionally.

The ideal candidate enjoys building test frameworks and is hands-on with hardware, capable of debugging and improving test systems. Competitive salary ranges from $217,000 to $260,000, along with comprehensive benefits including healthcare, 401(k), and professional development opportunities.

Qualifications

• Deeply hands-on with software and hardware debugging.
• Designed or owned automation systems at scale with test fleets.
• Write and review high-quality reusable test code.

Responsibilities

• Own QA strategy for device software with final release gate responsibilities.
• Recruit top talent for the QA team.
• Act as the build and release manager, handling schedules and reviews.
• Design and automate large-scale test fleets.
• Architect test infrastructure interacting with devices and backend services.
• Enable scalable operations through automated deployments.
• Investigate field issues and perform first-line triage.
• Continuously improve test coverage and system reliability.

Skills

Hands-on with software and hardware

Experience with automation systems

High-quality test code writing

Ability to read production firmware

Proactive bug detection

Comfortable with ambiguity

Collaborative teamwork

Systems thinking

Learning through experimentation

Job description

About the Role

We are looking for a Device Automation & QA Lead to own software quality end-to-end for our device platforms. This role is the final quality gate for device software releases and operates alongside but independently from product development teams, with clear accountability for release readiness, test coverage, and test fleet health.

You will design, build, and operate a scalable automated test infrastructure spanning devices, hardware-in-the-loop (HIL), backend services, and CI/CD systems. Your work will directly enable faster development cycles, higher release confidence, and fewer issues reaching the field.

You will write and review test code, design test architectures, interact directly with hardware, and set the quality bar for multiple device product lines. Over time, this role will define how quality scales as our device portfolio, team size, and system complexity grow.

In This Role, You Will

• Own the automation and QA strategy for Device Software, serving as the independent verification and final release gate for all device releases
• Recruit and hire top talent to the QA team that will be able to be self-sufficient within the realms of software, hardware and fleet management
• Act as the build and release manager including release scheduling, readiness reviews, and release notes
• Design, implement, and evolve a large-scale automated test fleet, including test devices, test stations, and custom HIL systems
• Architect and operate test infrastructure spanning:
  • Devices (Orb and future products)
  • Test stations that interact with devices like a human would
  • Backend services, CI/CD pipelines, and fleet management tooling
• Design and automate regression, smoke, and nightly test workflows
• Define quality benchmarks and test strategies in partnership with project leads for new products and features
• Enable scalable fleet operations, including:
  • Automated test deployment and updates
  • CI-triggered test execution
  • Monitoring and troubleshooting of test failures
• Investigate and reproduce field issues, acting as first-line triage before handing off to firmware, software, hardware, and backend teams
• Continuously improve test coverage, execution speed, and system reliability, including negative and fault-injection testing

You Might Thrive In This Role If You Have

• Are deeply hands-on with software and hardware, comfortable debugging real devices, test rigs, and electrical signals
• Have designed or owned automation systems at scale, including fleets of test devices
• Write and review high-quality test code and enjoy building reusable, maintainable test frameworks and libraries
• Can read production firmware and software code to understand system behavior and translate that understanding into targeted tests
• Are naturally curious and proactive— you dig for bugs, edge cases, and failure modes others miss. A human fuzz tester
• Are comfortable setting direction with ambiguity and do not require detailed test instructions to get started
• Lead with collaboration and low ego, earning trust by delivering value
• Think in systems—anticipating future bottlenecks in testing, release processes, and infrastructure before they become problems
• Are not afraid to break things in the name of learning, validation, and quality

Pay Transparency Statement (for CA And NY Based Roles)

The reasonably estimated salary for this role at TFH in San Francisco ranges from $217,000 - $260,000, plus a competitive long term incentive package, and may include variable compensation. Actual compensation is based on factors such as the candidate's skills, qualifications, and experience.

In addition, TFH offers a wide range of best in class, comprehensive and inclusive employee benefits for this role including healthcare, dental, vision and mental health benefits, a 401(k) plan and match, life insurance, flexible time off, commuter benefits, professional development stipend and much more!