Staff Firmware Engineer, Platform Security

ridealso; Palo Alto (CA); On-site; USD 200,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health coverage

One Medical

Fertility benefits

Flexible time off

401(k) match

Job summary

ALSO is seeking a Staff Firmware Security Architect in Palo Alto to set the technical direction for vehicle firmware security. You will own end-to-end security across ECUs, guide cross‑functional teams, and architect reusable crypto libraries and trust models.

You will lead threat modeling, secure boot, OTA trust, and platform security frameworks while collaborating with cloud, manufacturing, and product teams to deliver production‑readiness security across the fleet.

Qualifications

• 8+ years in embedded software/firmware development, with deep ownership of secure boot, crypto, or vehicle/IoT security architecture, and a proven track record setting technical direction across multiple ECUs or products, not just one component
• BS in an engineering discipline (Computer Science or Electrical Engineering preferred; MS or equivalent depth a plus)
• Hands‑on expertise with cryptographic primitives and embedded crypto (AES, ECC/RSA, HMAC, certificates) on constrained MCUs, including key provisioning, OTP/fuse programming, and HSM or secure element usage in production
• Experience designing and shipping secure boot chains, bootloaders, signed firmware images, and OTA trust models in production
• Experience securing vehicle or industrial networks (CAN/CAN‑FD, authenticated messaging, secure diagnostics) is a strong plus
• Expert‑level C/C++ on bare‑metal or RTOS (FreeRTOS, Zephyr, ThreadX, or similar), with deep comfort with linkers, memory maps, and debugging tools (JTAG/SWD)
• Ability to wire signing and verification into CI/release pipelines and drive platform‑wide adoption
• Excellent communication skills — able to document security architecture, threat models, and runbooks, and mentor senior engineers; hardware‑in‑the‑loop testing and emulation experience is a plus

Responsibilities

• Secure boot & root of trust: define secure boot architecture across MCU families (ROM → bootloader → app) — image signing, verification, anti‑rollback, and debug/JTAG lockdown for production — setting the standard other ECU teams adopt
• Key storage & management: own the on‑device and fleet key strategy (HSM/OTP/secure element), key hierarchy design, and integration with signing and PKI services across development, manufacturing, and field
• Network & bus integrity: lead CAN/CAN‑FD security design (authentication, integrity, encryption where required), and establish policies for protected diagnostics and secure UDS access platform‑wide
• OTA security: own end‑to‑end trust for firmware updates — signed/encrypted payloads, on‑device verification, rollback safety, and secure handoff between cloud signing infrastructure and vehicle update flows
• Platform security frameworks: architect reusable security libraries and APIs (crypto wrappers, secure storage, auth services) that product ECU teams adopt without reinventing trust
• Threat modeling & hardening: lead threat models across boot, update, and network attack surfaces, and partner with product and cloud teams on security reviews and production readiness
• Validation & cross‑functional leadership: drive security test strategy (benchtop PoCs, negative tests, HIL scenarios), integrate critical checks into CI, mentor engineers on secure design, and align firmware, cloud, manufacturing, and systems stakeholders on requirements and trade‑offs

Skills

Secure boot

Crypto primitives

Embedded C/C++

Threat modeling

CAN security

CI/CD security

OTA security

RTOS debugging

Education

BS in Engineering

MS depth preferred

Tools

JTAG

SWD

FreeRTOS

Zephyr

Job description

About ALSO.

We’re ALSO, an electric mobility company originally conceived as a part of Rivian. We’re a passionate team of builders, dreamers, doers and innovators, focused on creating entirely new (not to mention, innovative and delightful) vertically integrated, small EVs designed to meet the global mobility challenges of today and tomorrow. Our mission is to inspire everyone to ride ALSO—replacing many local car, truck and SUV miles with ones on vehicles that are more affordable, more enjoyable and 10-50x more efficient.

At ALSO, we are looking for a Staff Firmware Security Architect to set the technical direction for our vehicle firmware security platform — secure boot, cryptographic key lifecycle, network integrity, and trusted OTA.

You'd own the end-to-end security architecture that protects every ECU across our product portfolio, make the hard cross-cutting calls that product teams build on, and partner with cloud, manufacturing, and firmware teams to make security practical in CI, on the bench, and in production. You'd raise the bar for the entire organization through design leadership, mentorship, and hands‑on delivery of the most critical trust paths in the vehicle.

What You’ll Do

• Secure boot & root of trust: define secure boot architecture across MCU families (ROM → bootloader → app) — image signing, verification, anti‑rollback, and debug/JTAG lockdown for production — setting the standard other ECU teams adopt

• Key storage & management: own the on‑device and fleet key strategy (HSM/OTP/secure element), key hierarchy design, and integration with signing and PKI services across development, manufacturing, and field

• Network & bus integrity: lead CAN/CAN‑FD security design (authentication, integrity, encryption where required), and establish policies for protected diagnostics and secure UDS access platform‑wide

• OTA security: own end‑to‑end trust for firmware updates — signed/encrypted payloads, on‑device verification, rollback safety, and secure handoff between cloud signing infrastructure and vehicle update flows

• Platform security frameworks: architect reusable security libraries and APIs (crypto wrappers, secure storage, auth services) that product ECU teams adopt without reinventing trust

• Threat modeling & hardening: lead threat models across boot, update, and network attack surfaces, and partner with product and cloud teams on security reviews and production readiness

• Validation & cross‑functional leadership: drive security test strategy (benchtop PoCs, negative tests, HIL scenarios), integrate critical checks into CI, mentor engineers on secure design, and align firmware, cloud, manufacturing, and systems stakeholders on requirements and trade‑offs

What You’ll Bring

• 8+ years in embedded software/firmware development, with deep ownership of secure boot, crypto, or vehicle/IoT security architecture, and a proven track record setting technical direction across multiple ECUs or products, not just one component

• BS in an engineering discipline (Computer Science or Electrical Engineering preferred; MS or equivalent depth a plus)

• Hands‑on expertise with cryptographic primitives and embedded crypto (AES, ECC/RSA, HMAC, certificates) on constrained MCUs, including key provisioning, OTP/fuse programming, and HSM or secure element usage in production

• Experience designing and shipping secure boot chains, bootloaders, signed firmware images, and OTA trust models in production

• Experience securing vehicle or industrial networks (CAN/CAN‑FD, authenticated messaging, secure diagnostics) is a strong plus

• Expert‑level C/C++ on bare‑metal or RTOS (FreeRTOS, Zephyr, ThreadX, or similar), with deep comfort with linkers, memory maps, and debugging tools (JTAG/SWD)

• Ability to wire signing and verification into CI/release pipelines and drive platform‑wide adoption

• Excellent communication skills — able to document security architecture, threat models, and runbooks, and mentor senior engineers; hardware‑in‑the‑loop testing and emulation experience is a plus

The salary for this position ranges from $200,000 - $240,000 per year, depending on experience, qualifications, and location.

Perks & Benefits

• Robust health coverage — excellent health, dental and vision insurance covered up to 100% by ALSO with FSA & HSA options

• One Medical membership and dedicated insurance advocates

• Rich fertility and family building benefits with Progyny

• Flexible time off

• 401(k) match

Why ALSO.

We’re passionate about helping the world find a better way to get there—wherever it is you’re headed.

We’re located in the heart of Silicon Valley and have brought together a world‑class team from some of the biggest brands in the technology, automotive, cycling, outdoor recreation and retail spaces.

Together we’re working hands‑on to imagine, design and build an entirely new solution to a global set of transportation challenges.