Senior Safety Case Engineer

Volkswagen of America, Inc; Austin (TX); Hybrid; USD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

An automotive company in Austin seeks a Safety Case Engineer to develop and maintain safety cases for Level 4 autonomous driving systems. This role involves collaborating with various teams to ensure the safety case reflects system behavior and supports regulatory compliance. Candidates should have over 7 years of experience in safety-critical systems, a Bachelor’s in Engineering or related field, and strong analytical and communication skills. Flexibility for travel within the U.S. and overseas is expected.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience with safety-critical systems.
• Experience with autonomous driving or complex software systems.
• Exposure to system safety analyses is a must.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain system-level safety cases.
• Collaborate to ensure safety arguments reflect system behavior.
• Assess safety impact for design changes and updates.

Skills

Systems thinking and analytical skills

Clear communication skills

Ability to synthesize technical information

Effective collaboration across teams

Detail-oriented, evidence-driven style

Confidence in identifying safety gaps

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or related field

Tools

Safety case development methodologies

Knowledge of ISO 26262

Hazard analysis methods (HARA, FMEA, FTA)

Job description

The Safety Case Engineer is responsible for developing, maintaining, and defending the safety case for Level 4 autonomous driving systems, including Voluntary Safety Self‑Assessment (VSSA). The role ensures that safety arguments are complete, consistent, and supported by credible evidence across development and operations. The Safety Case Engineer works closely with systems, software, validation, and operations teams to ensure safety claims accurately reflect system behavior and limitations. This role collaborates with the global development and supports safety acceptance decisions by the Director of Safety and plays a critical role in demonstrating safety to internal leadership, regulators, and external assessors.

Possible Tasks within this Role

Safety Case & VSSA Development

• Develop, structure, and maintain system‑level safety cases for Level 4 autonomous driving systems embedded and alongside the global MOIA organization
• Collaborate with global team for structure, content, and evolution of system safety cases, including claims, arguments, assumptions, and supporting evidence.
• Author and maintain Vehicle Safety Safety Assessments (VSSA) in line with regulatory expectations
• Define safety goals, claims, assumptions, and argument structures
• Ensure safety cases remain current with system changes, feature updates, and ODD expansions

Safety Evidence & Traceability

• Identify, collect, and assess safety evidence across hardware, software, simulation, validation, and operations, and curate and justify the sufficiency, credibility, and consistency of that evidence to support system‑level safety arguments across the lifecycle.
• Ensure traceability between hazards, safety requirements, mitigations, and supporting evidence
• Review safety analyses, test results, and operational data for inclusion in the safety case
• Assess completeness, consistency, and credibility of safety evidence

Lifecycle & Change Management

• Integrate safety case activities into the development lifecycle and release processes
• Perform safety impact assessments for design changes, software updates, and new operational scenarios
• Support go/no‑go decisions by providing safety case readiness assessments
• Ensure safety arguments remain valid throughout development, deployment, and operation

Cross‑Functional Collaboration

• Work closely with systems engineering, validation, fleet operations, and safety teams
• Provide guidance on safety case expectations and evidence needs to contributing teams
• Review and challenge inputs to ensure technical rigor and safety integrity
• Support internal reviews and management safety assessments

Regulatory & External Interface

• Support regulatory submissions, reviews, and audits related to safety cases and VSSA
• Prepare safety case material for engagement with authorities and external assessors
• Address questions, findings, and feedback from regulators or independent reviewers
• Track evolving regulatory expectations for safety case and VSSA content

Qualification requirements

Years of Relevant Experience

• 7+ years of experience developing, maintaining, or reviewing safety cases for safety‑critical systems
• Experience working with autonomous driving, ADAS, or other complex, software‑intensive systems
• Exposure to system safety analyses and safety assurance activities across the development lifecycle
• Experience supporting regulatory assessments, audits, or safety approvals

Education Requirements

Required

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Safety Management, Transportation, or a related field

Desired

• Master’s degree in Engineering, Safety Management, Transportation, or a related field
• Formal training in functional safety, system safety, or safety assurance is a plus

Skills

• Strong systems thinking and analytical skills
• Clear and structured written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to synthesize complex technical information into coherent safety arguments
• Ability to work effectively across engineering, validation, operations, and management teams
• Structured, detail‑oriented, and evidence‑driven working style
• Confidence in challenging assumptions and identifying safety gaps

Specialized Skills

Required

• Experience with safety case development methodologies and notations (e.g., Goal Structuring Notation – GSN)
• Strong understanding of Vehicle Safety Safety Assessment (VSSA) concepts and expectations
• Knowledge of automotive and autonomous driving safety standards (e.g., ISO 26262, ISO 21448 / SOTIF, UL 4600)
• Experience with hazard analysis and risk assessment methods (HARA, FMEA, FTA, scenario‑based analysis)
• Understanding of Level 4 autonomous driving architectures, ODDs, and operational concepts

Desired

• Experience structuring safety evidence for software‑ and AI‑based systems
• Working knowledge of perception, prediction, planning, and control stacks
• Familiarity with AI/ML failure modes (e.g., dataset bias, corner cases, overfitting, distribution shift)
• Experience with simulation‑based safety validation and scenario generation
• Familiarity with SIL, HIL, and vehicle‑in‑the‑loop testing approaches
• Experience interacting with regulators, assessors, or certification bodies in ADS contexts
• Participation in industry working groups, standards committees, or safety consortia

Work Flexibility

Travel is estimated to be 10‑15%, as needed within U.S. and overseas, mainly Germany