Senior V&V Engineer – Closed Course & Proving Grounds Santa Clara, CA

Gatik; Santa Clara, Northern (CA, KY); Hybrid; USD 160,000 - 260,000; Full time

Job summary

Gatik is seeking a Senior V&V Engineer for Closed Course and Proving Grounds to design, orchestrate and execute rigorous physical test scenarios on proving grounds. You will push Gatik’s Level 4 autonomous commercial vehicles to their operational limits using robotic targets, weather simulations and controlled fault-injection techniques to validate safety requirements.

This role is onsite five days a week at the Santa Clara, CA office.

Qualifications

• B.S. in Automotive/Mechanical/Mechatronics or Systems Engineering.
• 5+ years of vehicle-level closed-course testing experience for AVs/ADAS/OEMs.
• Direct experience operating soft-target robotic platforms; strong data skills.

Responsibilities

• Plan and execute closed-course test programs for software and hardware on commercial trucks.
• Set up and operate proving ground equipment and targets.
• Ensure V&V plans are developed and executed with stakeholder feedback.
• Analyze high-precision vehicle data (CAN, IMU, telemetry) using Python/MATLAB.
• Enforce track safety protocols and risk mitigation during tests.

Skills

Python scripting

Data analysis

Test planning

Vehicle dynamics understanding

Education

B.S. in Automotive Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics, or Systems Engineering

Tools

CANoe

CANape

Dewesoft

Wireshark

Job description

Senior V&V Engineer – Closed Course & Proving Grounds

Who we are

Gatik, the leader in autonomous middle-mile logistics, is revolutionizing the B2B supply chain with its autonomous transportation-as-a-service (ATaaS) solution and prioritizing safe, consistent deliveries while streamlining freight movement by reducing congestion. The company focuses on short-haul, B2B logistics for Fortune 500 retailers and in 2021 launched the world’s first fully driverless commercial transportation service with Walmart. Gatik's Class 3-7 autonomous trucks are commercially deployed across major markets, including Texas, Arkansas, and Ontario, Canada, driving innovation in freight transportation.

The company's proprietary Level 4 autonomous technology, Gatik Carrier™, is custom-built to transport freight safely and efficiently between pick-up and drop-off locations on the middle mile. With robust capabilities in both highway and urban environments, Gatik Carrier™ serves as an all-encompassing solution that integrates advanced software and hardware powering the fleet, facilitating effortless integration into customers' logistics operations.

About the role

Before autonomous trucks operate on public roads without a driver, their performance must be physically validated in controlled, repeatable environments. The Senior V&V Engineer – Closed Course will lead the design, orchestration, and execution of rigorous physical test scenarios on proving grounds. You will push Gatik’s commercial vehicles to their operational and physical limits using robotic targets, weather simulation setups, and controlled fault-injection techniques to validate system safety requirements.

This role is onsite 5 days a week at our Santa Clara, CA office!

What you'll do

Key Responsibilities

• Track Test Execution: Plan and execute closed-course test programs for new software features, hardware platforms, and safety-critical fallback maneuvers on commercial trucks. Own the process end to end.
• Robotic Equipment & Soft Targets: Setup and operate state-of-the‑art proving ground equipment.
• Ensuring Testing Coverage: Ensure that V&V plans are developed and executed, providing triaging feedback to relevant stakeholders and tracking issues to conclusion.
• Data Collection & Log Analysis: Analyze high‑precision vehicle dynamics data, IMU outputs, CAN logs, and autonomy telemetry using Python/MATLAB to evaluate dynamic performance.
• Test Site Safety Protocols: Enforce strict track safety procedures, risk assessments, and emergency intervention protocols for all track personnel and test drivers.

Minimum Qualifications

• Education: B.S. in Automotive Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Mechatronics, or Systems Engineering.
• Experience: 5+ years executing vehicle‑level closed‑course testing on proving grounds for AVs, ADAS, or automotive OEMs.
• Practical Skills:
• Direct experience operating soft‑target robotic platforms.
• Proficiency in automotive data acquisition tools (CANoe, CANape, Dewesoft, Wireshark).
• Strong Python scripting capabilities for log parsing and test metrics generation.
• Safety Rigor: Demonstrated adherence to proving ground safety regulations and risk mitigation practices.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience testing commercial trucks or heavy machinery.
• Knowledge of ISO 26262 track validation and UNECE / NCAP active safety test protocols.

Salary Range - $160,000- $260,000

More about Gatik

Founded in 2017 by experts in autonomous vehicle technology, Gatik has rapidly expanded its presence to Mountain View, Dallas‑Fort Worth, Arkansas, and Toronto. As the first and only company to achieve fully driverless middle‑mile commercial deliveries, Gatik holds a unique and defensible position in the AV industry, with a clear trajectory toward sustainable growth and profitability.

We have delivered complete, proprietary AV technology - an integration of software and hardware - to enable earlier successes for our clients in constrained Level 4 autonomy. By choosing the middle mile – with defined point‑to‑point delivery, we have simplified some of the more complex AV challenges, enabling us to achieve full autonomy ahead of competitors. Given extensive knowledge of Gatik’s well‑defined, fixed route ODDs and hybrid architecture, we are able to hyper‑optimize our models with exponentially less data, establish gate‑keeping mechanisms to maintain explainability, and ensure continued safety of the system for unmanned operations.

At Gatik, we connect people of extraordinary talent and experience to an opportunity to create a more resilient supply chain and contribute to our environment’s sustainability. We are diverse in our backgrounds and perspectives yet united by a bold vision and shared commitment to our values. Our culture emphasizes the importance of collaboration, respect and agility.

We at Gatik strive to create a diverse and inclusive environment where everyone feels they have opportunities to succeed and grow because we know that together we can do great things. We are committed to an inclusive and diverse team. We do not discriminate based on race, color, ethnicity, ancestry, national origin, religion, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, disability, veteran status, genetic information, marital status or any legally protected status.

As set forth in Gatik AI’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy,we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.