Senior Software Engineer, Autonomy Actions Sustaining

Motional · Boston, Massachusetts, United States; Las Vegas, Nevada, United States; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States; Remote U.S. · Engineering

Posted 2026-09-16

Apply for this role →

Mission Summary:

We are looking for a Senior Software Engineer to join the Planning, Motion, and Controls Team to develop and maintain simulation and analysis tools that allow for faster development of the autonomy stack behavior and for automated root cause analysis. This is an exciting opportunity for someone who is looking to make a significant impact in the development and improvement of autonomous driving technology. If you are a self-motivated individual with a strong background in software development and a passion for creating advanced tools, we encourage you to apply for this role.

What you'll be doing:

Core Tech Stack: C++ (for native tool development and high-performance bindings with the autonomous driving stack), Python (for scripting and backend tooling). Design and develop efficient and user-friendly tools to support development of autonomy technology

Parameter Overrides & Local Reruns: Developing local or cloud-based execution runners that allow engineers to modify config files/parameters (e.g., cost weights, distance thresholds, safety margins) and codebase and rerun the autonomy stack against a recorded log to observe behavioral changes instantly.

Behavior Step-Through & Re-Simulation: Building GUI debuggers and web-based or native 2D/3D visualizers that ingest logged perception, prediction, and planning frames, letting developers pause, step forward/backward frame-by-frame, and inspect decision logic.

Collaborate with the planning and controls engineers to understand their requirements of simulation and analysis tools

Continuously improve and optimize the simulation and analysis tools to enhance their performance and functionality

Contribute to the success of the Motional autonomous driving technology by actively listening to the pain points of the Autonomy engineers and developing robust solutions

What we're looking for:

Bachelor's or Master’s degree  in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related field.

Minimum of 5 years of experience in Software development and Testing, preferably in the automotive or gaming industry.

Strong proficiency in programming languages such as C++, with a focus on building high-performance and resilient systems.

Comfortable navigating and contributing to large, complex codebases where modularity and documentation are key.

Passionate about a driverless future and understand the high stakes of deploying software that interacts with the physical world.

Bonus points (not required):

Experience with game engine development

Experience with planning and control systems

Experience with performance optimization with high throughput data

Experience with Qt development

We encourage a hybrid schedule with in-office time at one of our locations in Boston, Pittsburgh, or Las Vegas to support collaboration, or this role can be fully remote

The salary range for this role is an estimate based on a wide range of compensation factors including but not limited to specific skills, experience and expertise, role location, certifications, licenses, and business needs. The estimated compensation range listed in this job posting reflects base salary only. This role may include additional forms of compensation such as a bonus or company equity. The recruiter assigned to this role can share more information about the specific compensation and benefit details associated with this role during the hiring process.

Candidates for certain positions are eligible to participate in Motional’s benefits program. Motional’s benefits include but are not limited to medical, dental, vision, 401k with a company match, health saving accounts, life insurance, pet insurance, and more.

Salary Range

$172,000—$229,000 USD

Apply for this role →

← Back to all jobs