Senior Data Scientist

Wayve • Sunnyvale, CA

2d • Hybrid

About The Position

Our Product Dependability team connects Wayve’s embodied AI technology with the demands of real-world automotive products. Working across systems engineering, safety, cybersecurity and data analysis, the team helps translate AI capabilities into dependable vehicle-level behavior and supports integration with our OEM partners. As a Senior Data Scientist within this team, you’ll use data to understand how our driving models perform, where their limitations lie, and whether our evaluation methods reflect real-world customer needs. You’ll help define data collection and validation requirements, identify gaps or bias in datasets, and turn your findings into actionable recommendations for model development and product improvement. You’ll collaborate closely with model developers, engineering, validation and product teams. This isn’t a model-building role—it’s an opportunity to influence what we develop, how we evaluate it, and the evidence we use to demonstrate dependable performance.

Requirements

• 7+ years of experience in systems engineering, automotive data analysis, data science or a related field.
• Familiarity with traffic regulations and human driving behaviors across multiple geographies.
• Proficiency with data analysis tools such as Python, SQL, GIS and Jupyter.
• Comfortable working with large datasets through platforms such as Databricks.
• Ability to visualize and communicate ODD and scenario coverage metrics, turning complex analysis into clear, actionable insights.
• Ability to work effectively across disciplines and translate domain analysis into technical and product requirements.
• Thrive in an agile, fast-scaling environment and bring a strong execution mindset.

Nice To Haves

• Experience analyzing or defining ODDs for autonomous driving or advanced driver assistance systems (AV/ADAS).
• A master’s degree or PhD in Physics, Statistics or Mathematics, with a specialization in traffic system modeling, autonomous driving deployment or urban mobility analysis.

Responsibilities

• Analyze target markets to understand road infrastructure, weather, traffic density, local driving behaviors and regulatory requirements.
• Define ODD boundaries, edge conditions and potential failure triggers to inform data collection and system design.
• Map the driving competencies required in each region, quantifying their complexity and frequency using traffic data and real-world observations.
• Analyze model performance metrics and behavioral patterns to identify data gaps, edge-case risks and opportunities for improvement.
• Use historical data and statistical models to understand behaviors affecting reliability and Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF).
• Translate your findings into actionable data strategies, technical requirements and deployment recommendations with cross-functional partners.

Benefits

• Salaries benchmarked against the market annually
• Meaningful equity, sharing in the ownership and long term success of Wayve
• Relocation support and visa sponsorship where applicable
• Hybrid working, core hours and the chance to work hands on 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, team socials and more

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior