Staff Hardware Reliability Engineer

Aurora•Mountain View, CA

2d•$163,000 - $290,000•Hybrid

About The Position

Aurora is seeking a Staff Hardware Reliability Engineer to join its Hardware Reliability team and lead reliability efforts for next-generation hardware systems supporting the Aurora Driver. The role focuses on ensuring the robustness of autonomous-vehicle hardware and helping bring a reliable, scalable product to market in collaboration with partners such as Volvo, PACCAR, and Aumovio (formerly Continental).

Requirements

Proven experience developing and validating hardware products, such as compute systems, automotive sensors, and systems including thermal management or sensor cleaning.
Expertise driving root-cause analysis and using findings to inform design improvements.
Deep understanding of failure physics for electronic, mechanical, and optoelectronic components in hardware systems.
Ability to design and execute reliability test flows, including shock, vibration, and thermal testing, suitable for contract manufacturing environments.
Proficiency analyzing hardware performance data to generate actionable insights.
Direct experience improving reliability of mass-produced optomechanical assemblies and managing feedback loops with external vendors.

Nice To Haves

Prior experience leading research and development at automotive companies.
Familiarity with AEC-Q, ISO-16750, and other relevant automotive reliability standards.
Experience evaluating manufacturing and assembly process reliability as a product approaches large-scale production.
Working knowledge of hardware-firmware interactions that affect hardware performance.
Conceptual understanding of material science, PCBA BGA structural integrity, and the effects of conformal coatings on humidity exposure.

Responsibilities

Conduct rigorous reliability assessments and design test campaigns for internal and external hardware designs to verify they meet automotive standards.
Own complex reliability failures, lead failure analysis, and guide corrective actions, including near-term containment and longer-term design or process mitigations.
Lead Design Failure Mode and Effect Analysis (DFMEA) sessions and implement corrective action plans based on prior experience and testing.
Develop predictive reliability models for individual and integrated modules across varied climates and road conditions.
Collaborate with Hardware Design, Systems Engineering, Hardware Safety, Field Operations, Embedded Software, and contract manufacturers to incorporate reliability findings into design and manufacturing processes.