Software Engineer, AV Frameworks – Early Career

General Motors; Sunnyvale (CA); Hybrid; USD 130,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

General Motors is hiring an early-career Software Engineer for the AV Frameworks team in Sunnyvale, CA. You will design and deliver core IPC and runtime building blocks for AV/Robotics applications, working across C++ systems, Linux, and networking to achieve low-latency messaging and deterministic scheduling.

You will learn from experienced engineers while contributing code to dependable, observable, and maintainable vehicle software.

Qualifications

• BS/MS/PhD in CS/EE/Robotics or related field.
• Strong background in modern C++ (20/23) and Python development.
• Strong grasp of concurrency, memory management, and performance profiling.
• Hands-on experience with IPC/messaging systems and distributed systems fundamentals.
• Knowledge of Linux-based networking (sockets, TCP/UDP, multicast).
• Ability to debug complex software problems and communicate clearly in a team.
• Interest in autonomous vehicles, robotics, embedded systems, or high-performance software.

Responsibilities

• Build and debug high-performance IPC and middleware primitives (publish/subscribe, shared memory, serialization, discovery, QoS).
• Drive latency, throughput, and determinism improvements through profiling, tracing, benchmarking, and targeted optimizations.
• Build developer-facing APIs, tooling, and documentation for internal customers.
• Deliver platform-ready components with observability and robust fault handling.
• Collaborate with OS, drivers, safety, controls, perception, and tooling teams to ramp up on AV software.
• Apply production rigor: code reviews, testing strategies, and rollout/rollback discipline.
• Grow through progressively more complex assignments spanning design, implementation, integration, and testing.

Skills

C++ (20/23)

Python

Concurrency

Memory management

IPC/messaging

Linux networking

Debugging

Autonomous systems interest

Education

BS/MS/PhD in CS/EE/Robotics or related

Tools

ROS 2

DDS

gRPC

Protobuf

FlatBuffers

Job description

Job Description

About the Team

We’re AV Frameworks within AV Platform Core at General Motors. We build the foundational frameworks that power robotics and autonomous capabilities across distributed compute — with a focus on inter-process communication (IPC), middleware, and developer experience that make complex systems reliable, observable, and fast.

The Role

As a early career Software Engineer on the AV Frameworks, you will design and deliver the core communication and runtime building blocks used by AV/Robotics applications on vehicles, on benches, and in simulation. You’ll work across C++ systems, Linux, and networking/IPC to achieve low-latency messaging, deterministic scheduling, and production-grade reliability at scale. This role is designed for a recent graduate or engineer early in their career who wants to build depth in embedded systems, distributed software, vehicle platforms, and autonomous driving technology. You will learn from experienced engineers while contributing meaningful code to systems that must be dependable, observable, and maintainable. You will develop a systems-level understanding as you learn how individual applications, compute elements, and data flows interact. Over time, you will turn that understanding into clear abstractions and design guidance that inform how other developers build vehicle software.

What you’ll do

• Build and debug high-performance IPC and middleware primitives (publish/subscribe, shared memory, serialization, discovery, QoS).
• Drive latency, throughput, and determinism improvements through profiling, tracing, benchmarking, and targeted optimizations.
• Build developer-facing APIs, tooling, and documentation that improve ergonomics, correctness, and velocity for internal customers.
• Deliver platform-ready components with observability (metrics, logs, traces), robust fault handling, and reproducible performance characteristics.
• Work alongside experienced engineers platform OS, drivers, safety, controls, perception, and tooling teams to ramp up on AV software.
• Apply production rigor: code reviews, testing strategies (unit, integration, soak), performance and regression gates, and rollout/rollback discipline.
• Grow through progressively more complex assignments spanning design, implementation, integration, and testing.

Required Qualifications

• Recently completed a BS/MS/PhD in Computer Science, Electrical/Computer Engineering, Robotics, or a degree in a related field.
• Strong background in modern C++ (20/23) and Python development, demonstrated through coursework, internships, research, or substantial projects.
• Strong grasp of software fundamentals including concurrency, memory management, lock-free or low-contention patterns, and performance profiling.
• Hands‑on experience with IPC/messaging systems and distributed systems fundamentals (serialization, backpressure, flow control, QoS).
• Knowledge of linux‑based networking (sockets, TCP/UDP, multicast, NICs, buffers, MTU, packetization).
• Ability to debug complex software problems, reason about system behavior, and communicate clearly in a collaborative team environment.
• Interest in autonomous vehicles, robotics, embedded systems, or high‑performance software.

Preferred Qualifications

• Robotics/AV middleware: ROS 2, DDS, gRPC.
• Serialization and data: Protobuf, FlatBuffers, Cap’n Proto, zero‑copy techniques.
• Real‑time Linux and systems constraints (scheduling, CPU isolation, priority inversion mitigation, bounded latency).
• Prior internship, research, or project experience in autonomous driving, robotics, embedded systems, AI/ML infrastructure, or platform software.
• Degree completed between December 2025 and August 2026, with availability to begin employment in 2026.

Location

Hybrid: This role is categorized as hybrid. This means the successful candidate is expected to report to our Suynnvale, CA office three times per week, at minimum. This job may be eligible for relocation benefits.

Compensation

The compensation information is a good faith estimate only. It is based on what a successful applicant might be paid in accordance with applicable state laws. The salary range for this role is $125,000 to $150,000. The actual base salary a successful candidate will be offered within this range will vary based on factors relevant to the position.

Bonus Potential

An incentive pay program offers payouts based on company performance, job level, and individual performance.

About GM

Our vision is a world with Zero Crashes, Zero Emissions and Zero Congestion and we embrace the responsibility to lead the change that will make our world better, safer and more equitable for all.

Why Join Us

We believe we all must make a choice every day – individually and collectively – to drive meaningful change through our words, our deeds and our culture. Every day, we want every employee to feel they belong to one General Motors team.

Benefits Overview

From day one, we're looking out for your well‑being–at work and at home–so you can focus on realizing your ambitions. Learn how GM supports a rewarding career that rewards you personally by visiting Total Rewards resources.

Non-Discrimination and Equal Employment Opportunities (U.S.)

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We strongly believe that providing an inclusive workplace creates an environment in which our employees can thrive and develop better products for our customers.

All employment decisions are made on a non‑discriminatory basis without regard to sex, race, color, national origin, citizenship status, religion, age, disability, pregnancy or maternity status, sexual orientation, gender identity, status as a veteran or protected veteran, or any other similarly protected status in accordance with federal, state and local laws.

Accommodations

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Learn more about:

Our Company Our Culture How we hire Our diverse team of employees bring their collective passion for engineering, technology and design to deliver on our vision of a world with Zero Crashes, Zero Emissions and Zero Congestion. We are looking for adventure‑seekers and imaginative thought leaders to help us transform mobility. Explore our global locations We are determined to lead change for the world through technology, ingenuity and harnessing the creativity of our diverse team. Join us to help lead the change that will make our world better, safer and more equitable for all by becoming a member of GM’s Talent Community (beamery.com). As a part of our Talent Community, you will receive updates about GM, open roles, career insights and more. Please note that filling out the form below will not add you to our Talent Community automatically; you will need to use the link above.