Robotics Controls Engineer

General Motors•Sunnyvale, CA

22h•$138,200 - $211,700

About The Position

At General Motors, our product teams are redefining mobility. Through a human-centered design process, we create vehicles and experiences that are designed not just to be seen, but to be felt. We’re turning today’s impossible into tomorrow’s standard —from breakthrough hardware and battery systems to intuitive design, intelligent software, and next-generation safety and entertainment features. Every day, our products move millions of people as we aim to make driving safer, smarter, and more connected, shaping the future of transportation on a global scale. About the Team The Local Planner Controller team builds optimization-based planning and control software for GM’s Super Cruise system. The team formulates and solves online optimization problems that balance kinematic feasibility, collision avoidance, and ride comfort, and plays a central role in delivering safe, comfortable vehicle behavior through the Local Planner Controller and related guardrails systems. The Role We are looking for a Robotics Controls Engineer to join GM’s Local Planner Controller team. In this role, you will work on challenging problems in trajectory optimization, vehicle dynamics, estimation, and closed-loop controls that support Super Cruise and other advanced driver assistance capabilities.

Requirements

Master’s degree with 2+ years of relevant experience, or PhD, in Robotics, Controls, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Applied Mathematics, or a related field.
Strong foundation in optimal control, trajectory optimization, motion planning, or numerical optimization.
Strong understanding of classical and modern feedback control theory and techniques.
Solid understanding of vehicle dynamics, robotics dynamics, or related physical system modeling.
Proficiency in C++ and Python for research or production software development.
Demonstrated ability to translate algorithms into reliable software in a collaborative engineering environment.
Strong communication skills and the ability to work effectively across disciplines.
Passion for autonomous driving, robotics, or advanced driver assistance technologies.

Nice To Haves

Industry or research experience in robotics, autonomous vehicles, ADAS, or safety-critical systems.
Experience with model predictive control, constrained optimization, or trajectory generation for real-world robotic systems.
Familiarity with ROS or similar robotics middleware.
Experience developing or validating software for embedded or real-time control systems.
Experience working with simulation, closed-loop evaluation, or system-level performance analysis.
Exposure to estimation, prediction, or planning/control interfaces in autonomous systems.

Responsibilities

Develop and deliver vehicle dynamics, planning, and controls software that supports safe and comfortable behavior in GM’s Super Cruise system.
Implement, test, and refine optimization and control algorithms for trajectory tracking, constraint handling, and motion execution under real-world vehicle and environment limits.
Partner with more senior engineers to break down ambiguous technical problems, evaluate tradeoffs, and translate algorithmic ideas into robust production-quality software.
Contribute to technical reviews, code reviews, validation efforts, and day-to-day engineering execution using strong software engineering best practices.
Work closely with cross-functional teams across perception, prediction, localization, systems, safety, simulation, and evaluation to integrate solutions and debug end-to-end behavior.
Improve software reliability and development velocity through testing, tooling, continuous integration, and thoughtful iteration on team processes.
Contribute to GM engineering culture through clear communication, collaboration, ownership, and a strong learning mindset.