Senior/Staff Software Engineer (Machine Learning Runtime), Motion Planning

PlusAI; Santa Clara (CA); On-site; USD 130,000 - 220,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Catered free lunch

Unlimited snacks

401(k) plan

Job summary

PlusAI in Silicon Valley is seeking a senior software engineer to design, implement, and optimize the production runtime pipeline for ML-based autonomous vehicle planning. You will integrate ML models into a scalable, safety-critical stack and develop high-performance C++ components for feature extraction, inference, and runtime orchestration.

You will debug complex edge cases, improve debugging and observability tooling, collaborate with ML and systems teams, and ensure adherence to QMS and

Qualifications

• BS/MS/PhD in Computer Science, Robotics, Electrical Engineering, or related field.
• 4+ years of experience developing high-performance production software.
• Strong C++ programming skills for large-scale systems.
• Experience with real-time, low-latency software.
• Experience deploying ML inference in production environments.

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and optimize the production runtime pipeline for ML-based autonomous vehicle planning.
• Integrate ML models into a scalable, safety-critical planning software stack.
• Optimize end-to-end inference performance, including memory and multithreading.
• Develop high-performance C++ components for feature extraction, inference, and runtime orchestration.
• Design validation, guardrails, and fallback mechanisms for feasible trajectories.
• Debug edge cases across the planning pipeline using logs, profiling, and offline replay.
• Build tooling to improve debugging, observability, performance analysis, testing, and runtime monitoring.
• Collaborate with ML engineers to deploy models while maintaining reliability and performance.

Skills

C++ development

Real-time systems

ML inference in prod

TensorRT CUDA

ONNX Runtime

Software architecture

Debugging skills

Multithreading

Profiling CPU/GPU

Mentoring engineers

Education

BS/MS/PhD in CS/Robotics/EE

Tools

TensorRT

CUDA

ONNX Runtime

Job description

PlusAI is a Physical AI company pioneering AI-based virtual driver software for factory-built autonomous trucks. Headquartered in Silicon Valley with operations in the United States and Europe, Plus was named by Fast Company as one of the World’s Most Innovative Companies. Partners including TRATON GROUP’s Scania, MAN, and International brands, Hyundai Motor Company, Iveco Group, Bosch, and DSV are working with Plus to accelerate the deployment of next-generation autonomous trucks. If you’re ready to make a huge impact and drive the future of autonomy, Plus is looking for talented individuals to join its fast-growing teams.

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and optimize the production runtime pipeline for ML-based autonomous vehicle planning.
• Integrate machine learning models into a scalable, safety-critical planning software stack.
• Optimize end-to-end inference performance through algorithm optimization, C++ implementation, profiling, memory optimization, and efficient execution on compute-constrained embedded platforms.
• Develop high-performance C++ components for feature extraction, inference, post-processing, trajectory generation, and runtime orchestration.
• Design runtime validation, safety guardrails, and fallback mechanisms to ensure generated trajectories are feasible, robust, and compliant with traffic rules.
• Investigate complex runtime issues by tracing failures across the planning pipeline, from feature extraction through inference to trajectory generation.
• Debug difficult edge-case scenarios using logs, profiling tools, visualization, offline replay, and quantitative analysis to identify root causes and implement robust solutions.
• Build tooling and infrastructure to improve debugging, observability, performance analysis, testing, and runtime monitoring.
• Collaborate closely with machine learning engineers to efficiently deploy new models into production while maintaining system reliability and performance.
• Drive continuous improvements in runtime architecture, scalability, reliability, and maintainability.
• Ensure technical work complies with the company's Quality Management System (QMS), customer requirements, regulatory standards, and internal engineering processes.

Requirements

• BS, MS, or PhD in Computer Science, Robotics, Electrical Engineering, or a related field.
• 4+ years of experience developing high-performance production software.
• Strong C++ programming skills with experience building, optimizing, and maintaining large-scale software systems.
• Experience optimizing real-time systems, including latency, throughput, memory usage, and multithreaded performance.
• Experience deploying machine learning inference into production environments.
• Familiarity with TensorRT, CUDA, ONNX Runtime, or similar inference acceleration frameworks.
• Strong software engineering fundamentals, including software architecture, testing, and code quality.
• Excellent debugging and analytical problem-solving skills, with the ability to systematically investigate complex software and system-level issues.
• Experience tracing failures across multi-stage pipelines, identifying root causes, and implementing reliable long-term solutions.
• Experience designing validation strategies, automated testing, runtime monitoring, and observability for production systems.
• Strong ownership mindset with the ability to drive problems from investigation through implementation, validation, and deployment.
• Excellent communication skills and experience collaborating across machine learning and systems engineering teams.

Preferred Skills

• Experience with autonomous driving planning, prediction, or robotics software.
• Experience profiling CPU and GPU performance using modern profiling tools.
• Experience deploying software on embedded GPU platforms.
• Familiarity with PyTorch and machine learning workflows.
• Experience with distributed systems, CI/CD, and cloud infrastructure.

Bonus Qualifications

• Deep expertise in modern C++ (C++17/20) and high-performance software engineering.
• Experience optimizing production inference pipelines for low latency and high throughput.
• Experience developing internal debugging, visualization, profiling, or observability tools.
• Proven ability to diagnose and resolve complex production issues involving machine learning, runtime software, and system integration.
• Strong systems thinking with the ability to balance correctness, performance, maintainability, scalability, and safety.
• Demonstrated technical leadership and experience mentoring engineers on large production software projects.

$130,000 - $220,000 a year

Your opportunities joining PlusAI

Work, learn and grow in a highly future-oriented, innovative and dynamic field.

Wide range of opportunities for personal and professional development.

Catered free lunch, unlimited snacks and beverages.

Highly competitive salary and benefits package, including 401(k) plan.