Safety System Engineer

Wayve • Sunnyvale, CA

1d • Hybrid

About The Position

Wayve is developing AV2.0, an end-to-end AI driving system designed to learn and adapt across driving environments. The Safety team assures the safety of the Automated Driving System (ADS) as it evolves across vehicle platforms, applications and operating environments. The Safety System Engineer will lead functional safety activities for the ADS and its integration into current and future vehicle platforms and third-party safety-critical systems. Working with internal engineering teams, external partners and safety experts, the role will build system understanding, assess risk, shape safety concepts and architecture, define verification and validation, and develop evidence for a robust safety case.

The role also contributes to production safety work products and the evolution of safety processes with process and compliance teams for certification activities. Wayve operates a hybrid working model, combining in-person collaboration at its hubs with remote work. The position offers the opportunity to work hands-on in vehicle workshops and labs.

Requirements

• At least 5 years of hands-on automotive functional safety experience applying ISO 26262 across different systems.
• Strong working knowledge of ISO 26262 Parts 3, 4, 5, 6, 8 and 9.
• Experience conducting vehicle-level testing at proving grounds to verify and validate safety concepts.
• Experience with risk analysis and safety engineering techniques such as HARA, FMEA and FTA, and translating findings into practical safety concepts, architectures and requirements.
• Ability to work effectively across software, hardware, systems and external partners, and to discuss safety-related trade-offs at different organisational levels.
• Pragmatism in balancing risk and benefit in a fast-moving development environment while maintaining high safety standards.
• Self-starter able to move between high-level safety thinking and detailed subsystem or application-level problem solving, challenge ideas, and remain open to constructive feedback.

Nice To Haves

• Practical experience with ISO 26262 Part 6, including production software development and software-tool qualification.
• Experience managing suppliers of safety-related hardware or software, including DIA definition, supplier audits and assessments.
• Experience developing safety cases for automated driving systems, including computer-vision-based systems, and sufficient neural-network knowledge to discuss safety assurance approaches with scientists and engineers.
• Experience with SOTIF, including identifying triggering conditions and defining testing and validation strategies.
• Operational safety experience, including identifying operational risks and defining training or procedures for safe public-road testing.

Responsibilities

• Build and maintain Item Definition work products for each vehicle platform and safety-critical integration.
• Conduct HARAs, FMEAs and FTAs to identify risk and define safety concepts that reduce risk to an acceptable level.
• Work with design teams on system architectures that satisfy the safety concept, including decomposition decisions and derived software and external requirements.
• Support software teams in implementing safety requirements on target hardware.
• Define test specifications across integration levels, including vehicle-level verification and validation of the safety concept.
• Build structured safety cases using clear claims, arguments and evidence.
• Contribute to production safety work products and evolve safety processes with process and compliance teams for certification activities.
• Lead functional safety activities for the ADS and its integration into vehicle platforms and third-party safety-critical systems.
• Work with internal engineering teams, external partners and safety experts to understand the system, assess risk, shape safety concepts and architecture, and develop safety-case evidence.

Benefits

• Salaries benchmarked against the market annually.
• Meaningful equity.
• Relocation support and visa sponsorship where applicable.
• Hybrid working and core hours.
• Hands-on work in vehicle workshops and labs.
• Learning and development budgets, with support for training, conferences and growth.
• Comprehensive benefits including health insurance, dental, enhanced maternity and paternity leave, retirement or pension where applicable, access to therapists, wellbeing partnerships and team socials.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: No Education Listed