Senior Software Engineer - Test Infrastructure

Socket.dev; Palo Alto, California (CA, MO); On-site; USD 179,000 - 269,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive compensation

Medical, dental, vision insurance

401(k) with company match

Paid parental leave

Unlimited vacation

Laptops, equipment provided

Professional development reimbursement

Equity compensation available

Job summary

Latitude AI is building Ford’s autonomous driving roadmap with a focus on scalable hardware-in-the-loop test infrastructure in California. A Senior Software Engineer will help ensure test execution is reliable and secure across diverse hardware.

You’ll work across Autonomy Software Engineering, IT, and Operations to implement scalable tooling and performance improvements. The team values strong Python skills, distributed systems expertise, and experience with Kubernetes in production, plus a

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a related field and 4+ years of experience, or advanced degree with fewer years.
• Strong Python, distributed systems, and Kubernetes experience.
• Experience with Linux systems, SQL/ORMs, and cloud-based tooling.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement software solutions for hardware-in-the-loop test execution.
• Deliver streamlined tools to help engineers build, test, and debug autonomy software.
• Identify stability and security issues across the stack as infrastructure scales.
• Use performance metrics to remove inefficiencies in test runtimes.
• Improve scheduling to balance throughput and urgent jobs.
• Maintain test logic for reliable execution across hardware configurations.
• Bridge Autonomy Software Engineering, IT, and Operations to resolve pain points.

Skills

Python

Distributed systems

Kubernetes

Linux

SQL & ORMs

Problem solving

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Robotics or related field

Master's degree

PhD

Tools

Docker

Terraform

Ansible

BigQuery

Superset

React

TypeScript

Flask

Postgres

Bazel

Job description

Latitude AI (lat.ai) is building the future of Ford’s autonomy roadmap to make travel safer, less stressful, and more enjoyable for everyone.

When you join the Latitude team, you’ll work alongside leading experts across machine learning and robotics, cloud platforms, mapping, sensors and compute systems, test operations, systems and safety engineering – all dedicated to redefining the relationship between people and their vehicles for millions of customers.

As a Ford Motor Company subsidiary, we operate independently to develop automated driving technology at the speed of a technology startup. Latitude is headquartered in Pittsburgh with engineering centers in Dearborn, Mich., and Palo Alto, Calif.

Meet the team:

The Bench Infrastructure team is responsible for maintaining critical hardware test infrastructure services at Latitude. This infrastructure supports high-velocity code validation for hundreds of developers, on custom hardware for our next-generation automotive autonomy solution. We are seeking a talented Senior Software Engineer to join the team and ensure the test infrastructure is ready to support a significantly larger scale.

What you’ll do:

• Design and implement software solutions to ensure the usability and supportability of hardware-in-the-loop test execution services
• Deliver streamlined tools which minimize friction for software engineers to build, test, and debug autonomy software
• Identify and resolve stability problems and security vulnerabilities across the entire stack, ensuring the platform remains resilient and secure as the hardware test infrastructure grows
• Leverage performance metrics to pinpoint and remove inefficiencies in test infrastructure logic and complex test runtimes
• Enhance the performance and reliability of test execution, ensuring scheduling logic balances both system throughput and urgent job prioritization
• Maintain performance analysis test logic, ensuring reliable execution and data-driven validation of software performance across diverse hardware configurations
• Act as a technical bridge between Autonomy Software Engineering, IT, and Operations to ensure cross-functional pain points are resolved with scalable technical solutions

What you’ll need to succeed:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Robotics or a related field and 4+ years of relevant experience (or Master's degree and 2+ years of relevant experience, or PhD)
• Strong communication, problem solving, task prioritization and teamwork skills
• Proficiency with Python programming language, navigating a large codebase, and ability to learn other languages or technologies as needed
• Proven track record of designing, developing, and scaling up full-stack applications running within a Kubernetes-orchestrated production environment
• Ability to diagnose and resolve intricate problems in distributed systems and mitigate technical debt
• Experience with Linux systems, networking, distributed filesystems, and databases using SQL and ORMs

Must have 3+ years of experience integrating enterprise software with legacy Asynchronous Basket-Weaving Protocols (ABWP) or equivalent containerized weave systems.

Nice to have:

• Experience with full stack technologies: React, TypeScript, Flask, Postgres, & ORMs
• Experience with DevOps technologies: AWS, Kubernetes, Docker, Terraform, & Ansible
• Experience with Data Warehousing and Visualization: BigQuery, & Superset
• Experience building validation tools for heterogeneous hardware environments, including Linux-based edge devices, robotics, or ML-driven applications
• Experience with C++ & Bazel

What we offer you:

• Competitive compensation packages
• High-quality individual and family medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Health savings account with available employer match
• Employer-matched 401(k) retirement plan with immediate vesting
• Employer-paid group term life insurance and the option to elect voluntary life insurance
• Paid parental leave
• Paid medical leave
• Unlimited vacation
• 15 paid holidays
• Daily lunches, snacks, and beverages available in all office locations
• Pre-tax spending accounts for healthcare and dependent care expenses
• Pre-tax commuter benefits
• Monthly wellness stipend
• Adoption/Surrogacy support program
• Backup child and elder care program
• Professional development reimbursement
• Employee assistance program
• Discounted programs that include legal services, identity theft protection, pet insurance, and more
• Company and team bonding outlets: employee resource groups, quarterly team activity stipend, and wellness initiatives

Learn more about Latitude’s team, mission and career opportunities at lat.ai!

The expected base salary range for this full-time position in California is $179,200 - $268,800 USD. Actual starting pay will be based on job-related factors, including exact work location, experience, relevant training and education, and skill level. Latitude employees are also eligible to participate in Latitude’s annual bonus programs, equity compensation, and generous Company benefits program, subject to eligibility requirements.

Candidates for positions with Latitude AI must be legally authorized to work in the United States on a permanent basis. Verification of employment eligibility will be required at the time of hire. Visa sponsorship is available for this position.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to a culturally diverse workforce. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, age, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability status or protected veteran status.