Senior Staff WiFi Connectivity Engineer

Ford Motor • Palo Alto, CA

4d • $163,080 - $308,880 • Hybrid

About The Position

We are the movers of the world and the makers of the future. We get up every day, roll up our sleeves and build a better world -- together. At Ford, we’re all a part of something bigger than ourselves. Are you ready to change the way the world moves? Ford’s Electric Vehicles, Digital and Design (EVDD) team is charged with delivering the company’s vision of a fully electric transportation future. EVDD is customer-obsessed, entrepreneurial, and data-driven and is dedicated to delivering industry-leading customer experience for electric vehicle buyers and owners. You’ll join an agile team of doers pioneering our EV future by working collaboratively, staying focused on only what matters, and delivering excellence day in and day out. Join us to make positive change by helping build a better world where every person is free to move and pursue their dreams. In this position... Ford Motor Company is seeking a Senior Staff WiFi Connectivity Engineer to serve as the primary technical authority for wireless technologies within our Software Defined Vehicle (SDV) architecture. In this role, you will be the owner of the WiFi stack, with a specific focus on ensuring the stability, performance, and certification of high-bandwidth wireless projection services (Apple CarPlay and Android Auto). You will lead the end-to-end delivery, from kernel-level driver tuning to passing the stringent connectivity requirements set by Apple and Google.

Requirements

• Bachelor's or equivalent combination of relevant education and experience.
• Experience: 10+ years in WiFi driver development and wireless systems, with a track record of shipping connectivity solutions for high-volume consumer or automotive products.
• Projection Expertise: Demonstrated experience optimizing WiFi for Wireless CarPlay and Android Auto, including deep knowledge of Wi-Fi Direct (P2P) and SoftAP protocols.
• Expert Programming: Mastery of C and C++ for Linux application / kernel-level development, specifically within the network stack (cfg80211, mac80211).
• Performance Tuning: Expert-level ability to debug and fix latency, packet loss, and throughput issues using network sniffers and logic analyzers.
• Virtualization: Proven experience architecting connectivity solutions in virtualized environments where hardware resources are partitioned or shared between OSs.
• Certification Knowledge: Hands-on experience with Apple/Google connectivity certification requirements and WFA Sigma testing.
• WiFi Deep-Dive: Expert knowledge of 802.11 standards (including Wi-Fi 6/6E/7) and the ability to solve "impossible" bugs spanning hardware, firmware, and OS.
• Education: BS/MS/PhD in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or a related field.

Nice To Haves

• Co-existence: Deep understanding of 2.4GHz/5GHz/6GHz co-existence and interference mitigation strategies (e.g., WiFi/Bluetooth/LTE co-ex).
• System Security: Experience implementing WPA3, secure boot, and encrypted firmware loading.
• Open Source: Active contributor to the Linux Kernel or other relevant networking projects.

Responsibilities

• Wireless Projection Optimization: Take full ownership of WiFi performance for Wireless CarPlay and Android Auto. Optimize the stack for low-latency, high-throughput video streaming and jitter-free audio, ensuring a seamless user experience.
• Projection Certification: Lead the connectivity-side validation for Apple and Google certification. Ensure the WiFi subsystem meets all KPIs regarding connection setup time, throughput stability, and multi-protocol handling required for official projection approval.
• Complex Concurrency Management: Architect and implement solutions for complex WiFi use cases, including Multi-Role/Multi-Channel (MCC/SCC) concurrency.
• Technical Roadmap & Ownership: Define the long-term roadmap for WiFi at Ford. Take accountability for the end-to-end software lifecycle, from silicon selection to production-ready drivers.
• Architectural Leadership: Design and implement WiFi drivers and firmware integrations optimized for hypervisor-based architectures (Xen/KVM), ensuring robust resource sharing between Linux Dom0 and Android Guest VMs.
• Global Certification & WFA: Drive the strategy for WiFi Alliance (WFA) certification and regulatory compliance (FCC/CE). Establish internal standards for Interoperability (IOP) testing across global mobile device ecosystems.
• Cross-Functional Alignment: Act as the central lead between Hardware, Antenna/RF, Cyber Security, and the Projection/Infotainment teams to ensure a cohesive wireless ecosystem.
• Supplier Influence: Manage technical relationships with Tier 1 chipset vendors. Influence vendor roadmaps to prioritize features like advanced co-existence and high-stability projection.

Benefits

• Immediate medical, dental, vision and prescription drug coverage
• Flexible family care days, paid parental leave, new parent ramp-up programs, subsidized back-up child care and more
• Family building benefits including adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, fertility treatments, and more
• Vehicle discount program for employees and family members and management leases
• Tuition assistance
• Established and active employee resource groups
• Paid time off for individual and team community service
• A generous schedule of paid holidays, including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day
• Paid time off and the option to purchase additional vacation time.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees