Sr. Software Systems Safety Engineer

Apptronik; Sunnyvale (CA); On-site; USD 200,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

Apptronik is seeking a Safety Assurance Engineer to own the safety assurance of software and AI for our humanoid robots. You will analyze safety architectures, lead safety analyses, and ensure evidence supports safety claims in line with IEC 61508-3 and ISO/IEC TS 22440.

You will collaborate on system risk assessments, define software safety plans, and review verification results across in-house and third-party libraries, RTOS, and middleware, supporting certification efforts and conformance

Qualifications

• Demonstrated experience analyzing and assuring safety-critical software architectures.
• Practical application of safety lifecycles and safety-case development.
• Experience with safety analyses and verification evidence.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate on system-level risk assessments and allocate safety requirements.
• Define and analyze software safety architecture and monitors.
• Lead software safety analyses such as FMEA, FTA, and timing/resource analyses.
• Specify safety-related software behavior and review against IEC 61508-3.
• Define software safety plan and lifecycle; assess conformance through reviews.
• Assess verification evidence including fault injection and SIL/SC considerations.
• Apply AI safety lifecycle to AI/ML-enabled functions and evidence.
• Own software requirements traceability and safety-case scope.
• Support certification and demonstration of standards conformity.

Skills

Safety analysis

Safety case development

IEC 61508-3 / ISO 26262-6 experience

Embedded software

RTOS & partitioning

FMEA/FTA

AI safety (ISO/IEC TS 22440)

Requirements traceability

Git, CI/CD, static analysis

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in Systems Engineering, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Robotics, or related field

Master’s degree preferred

Tools

JAMA

Git

CI/CD

Static analysis tools

Job description

Apptronik is a human-centered robotics company developing AI-powered robots to support humanity in every facet of life. Our flagship humanoid robot, Apollo, is built to collaborate thoughtfully with people, starting with critical industries such as manufacturing and logistics, with future applications in healthcare, the home, and beyond. We operate at the cutting edge of Applied AI, applying our expertise across the full robotics stack to solve some of society's most important problems. You will join a team dedicated to bringing Apollo to market at scale, tackling the complex challenges like safety, commercialization, and mass production to change the world for the better.

JOB SUMMARY

Own the safety assurance of the software and AI that run our humanoid robots, from architecture analysis through verification evidence. You will analyze software and AI safety architectures, lead the safety analyses, and assess whether the evidence supports our safety claims. You will draw on IEC 61508-3, ISO/IEC TS 22440, and deep experience with safety-critical software systems.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES or KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

• Collaborate on system-level risk assessments, allocate risk reduction measures to software and AI elements, and own the breakdown of software-domain safety requirements into subsystem and element-level requirements
• Analyze and define the software safety architecture, including partitioning and freedom from interference, watchdogs, diagnostics, plausibility and timing monitoring, communication integrity, startup/shutdown behavior, and fault handling
• Lead software safety analyses, including software FMEA, fault tree analysis, dependent/common-cause failure analysis, and timing and resource analysis
• Specify safety-related software behavior, such as monitors, diagnostics, and safe-state logic, and review software team designs against IEC 61508-3 requirements for the target SIL / SC
• Define the IEC 61508-3 software safety plan and lifecycle, and assess team conformance through reviews and audits, including existing in-house, open-source, and third-party libraries, RTOS, and middleware
• Assess software systematic capability and review verification evidence, including coverage, static analysis, fault injection, and software-in-the-loop and hardware-in-the-loop test results, for adequacy against safety claims
• Apply the AI safety lifecycle (ISO/IEC TS 22440) to AI/ML-enabled functions, defining the safety architecture around them, including independence of safety functions from learned components and the safety mechanisms that monitor them
• Assess AI/ML safety evidence against the AI safety lifecycle, including data and model assurance, performance limitations, and operational design domain
• Own software requirements traceability and the software portion of the safety case, including gap assessments against standards
• Support product safety and compliance teams in certification and demonstration of standards conformity

SKILLS AND REQUIREMENTS

• Demonstrated experience analyzing and assuring safety-critical software architectures, including software safety analyses and safety case development
• Practical application of the IEC 61508-3 or ISO 26262-6 (automotive) software lifecycle, with depth in software safety activities and qualification of existing software and tools, and experience with IEC 62061, ISO 13849, ISO 10218, ANSI/A3 R15.06, or ISO 25785-1 as relevant
• Strong knowledge of embedded software architectures, including RTOS, mixed-criticality partitioning, watchdogs, communication buses, and diagnostics
• Hands-on experience with FMEA/FMEDA, FTA, and dependent failure analysis, and with reviewing verification evidence such as fault injection, software-in-the-loop and hardware-in-the-loop testing, and test coverage
• Working knowledge of safety for AI/ML-enabled systems, such as ISO/IEC TS 22440; familiarity with ISO/PAS 8800, UL 4600, or SOTIF preferred
• Experience with requirements and traceability tools such as JAMA; familiarity with Git, CI/CD, and static analysis; certification or third-party assessment experience preferred
• Ability to work cross-functionally and make sound, risk-based engineering decisions
• Experience with common Product Development Processes / Product Lifecycle management including Agile, CMMI, Waterfall, etc. helping teams to deliver to organizational milestones.

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE

• Bachelor’s Degree in Systems Engineering, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Robotics, or a related field (or equivalent experience); Master’s preferred
• 8+ years of relevant engineering experience, including substantial responsibility for safety assurance or analysis of safety-critical software in complex electromechanical products

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer
• Must be able to lift 15 pounds at times
• Vision to read printed materials and a computer screen
• Hearing and speech to communicate

The annual salary range is $200,000 - $240,000 base

Apptronik provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.

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

If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection.As a government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measurethe effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categoriesis as follows:

A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.

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An "Armed forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.