Senior Software Engineer - Autonomous Vehicles

NVIDIA•Santa Clara, CA

2d•$152,000 - $287,500

About The Position

The Senior Software Engineer will build and own core online mapping software for autonomous vehicles, from architecture through implementation and deployment. The online mapping system transforms raw sensor data into a live 3D model of roads, including lanes, boundaries, crosswalks, intersection structures, and traffic-control semantics used by the driving stack. The role focuses on turning algorithmic solutions into safe, fast, maintainable production software running on NVIDIA DRIVE Orin and Thor, across L2++, L3, and L4 programs. The engineer will work closely with mapping algorithm engineers and other AV teams; algorithm development itself is not the primary responsibility. The role requires production C++ engineering for real-time embedded systems, performance optimization of C++ and CUDA, and architecture that supports reuse and maintainability across vehicle programs. Development follows automotive safety requirements, including ASIL-B/D, with static analysis, coding guidelines, and thorough unit and integration testing targeting 100% line and branch coverage. The software must robustly handle real-time vehicle signals and varied operating conditions.

Requirements

Bachelor’s or master’s degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent experience.
At least 5 years of validated experience building robust, production-quality software.
At least 3 years of professional C++ development experience, including modern C++, memory management, concurrency, and performance.
Experience designing software architecture and APIs for large, long-lived codebases.
Quality-first approach and comfort with static analysis, unit testing, and high-coverage testing strategies.
Solid understanding of algorithms and data structures, and ability to work with algorithm developers and understand their work.
Strong communication and analytical skills, with the ability to work effectively across multiple teams.
Autonomous and responsible approach, outstanding teamwork, and enjoyment of solving difficult problems.

Nice To Haves

Software development experience on embedded, real-time, or automotive platforms, including real-time operating systems such as QNX or Linux RT.
Experience with functional safety standards and processes, including ISO 26262 and ASIL-B/D, MISRA or AUTOSAR C++ coding guidelines, and safety-qualified toolchains.
Experience achieving high or full structural coverage, including line and branch coverage and ideally MC/DC, on production code.
Experience with GPGPU programming using CUDA and GPU performance tuning.
Strong runtime profiling and CPU/GPU code optimization skills.

Responsibilities

Build and own core online mapping software operating in vehicles, from architecture through implementation to deployment.
Write production C++ for real-time embedded systems, emphasizing correctness, determinism, and maintainability.
Build software architectures and frameworks that encourage code reuse, clean interfaces, and long-term maintainability across vehicle programs.
Improve the performance of C++ and CUDA code on NVIDIA DRIVE Orin and Thor using profilers to identify bottlenecks and meet real-time budgets.
Use CUDA GPU parallelism to make compute-intensive mapping components fast and efficient.
Implement and incorporate mapping-team algorithmic solutions into NVIDIA’s AV stack, collaborating with algorithm engineers to understand and improve them.
Develop according to automotive safety standards, use static analysis, follow safety-oriented coding guidelines, and achieve 100% line and branch coverage through unit and integration testing.
Handle real-time system signals from vehicles operating around the world and build software robust to varied conditions and failure modes.
Collaborate with perception, localization, planning, and infrastructure groups to integrate online mapping into AV programs across L2++, L3, and L4.