Principal Software Engineer, Team Lead - Perception Platforms

Motional; Boston (MA); On-site; USD 240,000 - 330,000; Full time

Job summary

Motional in Boston is seeking a senior engineering leader to head the Perception Platform, overseeing data, training, and evaluation pipelines for perception modelling. You will mentor engineers, define team goals, and align with company objectives while delivering scalable ML infrastructure.

You will work with ML engineers and researchers to accelerate end-to-end ML development, build visualization tools, and advance data quality and model robustness across on-car and off-car systems.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of professional software engineering experience, with 3+ years in leadership or mentorship.
• 2+ years of distributed ML training across GPU clusters.
• Hands-on ability to contribute production-quality code.
• Strong Python and data-processing library experience.
• Experience in backend development and architecture of complex systems.
• Understanding of ML or Perception topics to guide pipelines/tooling.
• Experience delivering data visualization tools or dashboards.

Responsibilities

• Build, lead and manage a high-performing team for data, training, and evaluation pipelines for perception modelling.
• Provide technical guidance, mentorship, and career development for team members.
• Define team goals, priorities, and roadmap aligned with company objectives.
• Collaborate with ML engineers to optimize ML workflows and deploy improvements.
• Lead design and code reviews and promote best practices.
• Foster cross-functional collaboration across the organization.

Skills

Team leadership

Python

Backend architecture

Data visualization

Communication

Mentorship

ML infrastructure

Education

BS or MS in Computer Science or related field

Tools

Kubernetes (K8s)

Ray

PyTorch

TensorFlow

C++

Job description

Mission Summary

On our Perception team, you have the opportunity to work with world-class ML engineers and research scientists to make self-driving vehicles a reality. The Perception Platform team is central to this mission, operating at the intersection of ML Infrastructure and Perception. We build the foundational frameworks, evaluation pipelines, and tooling that enable our Perception team to scale their work on the tech stack responsible for perceiving the dynamic world around our robo-taxi.

Mission Summary

On our Perception team, you have the opportunity to work with world-class ML engineers and research scientists to make self-driving vehicles a reality. The Perception Platform team is central to this mission, operating at the intersection of ML Infrastructure and Perception. We build the foundational frameworks, evaluation pipelines, and tooling that enable our Perception team to scale their work on the tech stack responsible for perceiving the dynamic world around our robo-taxi. These foundational systems include our large-scale data pipelines, which are critical for efficient end-to-end ML development (e.g. data transformation, model training, and model evaluation) of our on-car and off-car Perception solutions. It also includes our evaluation and visualization tools, which provide intuitive insights into dataset distributions, model behavior, system performance, and edge-case scenarios. Finally, our active learning loop which continuously selects and incorporates high-value data to improve model accuracy and robustness over time.

What you’ll be doing:

• Build, lead and manage a high-performing team in the creation, maintenance, and optimization of our internal data, training, and evaluation pipelines specific to perception modelling team.
• Provide technical guidance, mentorship, and career development opportunities to team members
• Define team goals, priorities, and roadmap in alignment with company objectives
• Work closely with ML engineers to proactively identify and resolve technical challenges , while also contributing directly to the implementation of those improvements. This includes troubleshooting and optimizing machine learning workflows for maximum efficiency and performance, architecting and executing cutting‑edge technologies/methodologies for accelerating ML development end-to-end from concept to deployment & maintenance.
• Lead design and code reviews, setting a high bar for quality and ensuring the adoption of best practices.
• Foster cross‑functional collaboration ensuring alignment with broader organizational goals.

What We’re Looking for:

• 7+ years of professional software engineering experience, with at least 3+ years in a formal or informal leadership or mentorship role.
• 2+ years of experience developing, operating, or supporting distributed machine learning training across clusters of GPU nodes.
• BS or MS in Computer Science or a related technical field.
• A passion for remaining hands‑on and a proven ability to contribute high‑quality, production‑level code to a shared codebase.
• Fluency in Python and familiarity with data processing libraries (e.g., NumPy, Pandas)
• Proven experience in backend development and leading the architecture of complex systems.
• A deep understanding of ML or Perception topics to strategically guide pipelines/tooling.
• Demonstrated experience in designing and delivering data visualization tools or internal engineering dashboards that drive insights and action.
• Expert knowledge of software engineering principles, with a track record of leading teams in software design, source control management, build processes, code reviews, and testing methods.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to articulate a technical vision and motivate a team

Bonus Points:

• Expertise in concurrency, parallel processing, and database systems to inform architectural decisions.
• Experience with distributed computing frameworks like K8s and Ray.
• A proven track record of developing and deploying Perception systems for autonomous vehicles or robotics.
• A Ph.D. in a relevant field, or equivalent industry experience that demonstrates a commitment to continuous learning.
• Proficiency in modern C++ (C++14/17 or later)
• Experience with building products with current LLMs and MCP protocols.
• Experience with GPU‑accelerated data processing.
• Familiarity with Pytorch, TensorFlow or other modern ML development platform
• Experience in project management and a history of successfully delivering complex technical projects.

The salary range for this role is an estimate based on a wide range of compensation factors including but not limited to specific skills, experience and expertise, role location, certifications, licenses, and business needs. The estimated compensation range listed in this job posting reflects base salary only. This role may include additional forms of compensation such as a bonus or company equity. The recruiter assigned to this role can share more information about the specific compensation and benefit details associated with this role during the hiring process. Candidates for certain positions are eligible to participate in Motional’s benefits program. Motional’s benefits include but are not limited to medical, dental, vision, 401k with a company match, health saving accounts, life insurance, pet insurance, and more.

Salary Range: $240,000 USD - $330,000 USD

Motional is a driverless technology company making autonomous vehicles a safe, reliable, and accessible reality. We’re driven by something more.

Our journey is always people first. We aren't just developing driverless cars; we're creating safer roadways, more equitable transportation options, and making our communities better places to live, work, and connect. Our team is made up of engineers, researchers, innovators, dreamers and doers, who are creating a technology with the potential to transform the way we move.

Higher purpose, greater impact.

We’re creating first‑of‑its‑kind technology that will transform transportation. To do so successfully, we must design for everyone in our cities and on our roads. We believe in building a great place to work through a progressive, global culture that is diverse, inclusive, and ensures people feel valued at every level of the organization. Diversity helps us to see the world differently; it’s not only good for our business, it’s the right thing to do.

Scale up, not starting up.

Our team is behind some of the industry's largest leaps forward, including the first fully‑autonomous cross‑country drive in the U.S, the launch of the world's first robotaxi pilot, and operation of the world's longest‑standing public robotaxi fleet. We’re driven to scale; we’re moving towards commercialization of our technology, and we need team members who are ready to embrace change and challenges.

Formed as a joint venture between Hyundai Motor Group and Aptiv, Motional is fundamentally changing how people move through their lives. Headquartered in Boston, Motional has operations in the U.S and Asia. For more information, visit www.Motional.com and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube.

Motional AD Inc. is an EOE. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. To comply with Federal Law, we participate in E-Verify. All newly-hired employees are queried through this electronic system established by the DHS and the SSA to verify their identity and employment eligibility.