Definition

Engineering Manager - Planning & Controls

Applied Compute

Applied Compute

Software Engineering, Other Engineering
Sunnyvale, CA, USA
Posted on Mar 6, 2026

Location

Sunnyvale

Employment Type

Full time

Department

Self-Driving Systems

About the role

As an Engineering Manager on the Trucking Autonomy team, you’ll lead a world-class group of engineers focused on building and deploying scalable planning and control systems for commercial trucking. You will own the architecture and delivery of a next-generation system, focusing on safe and efficient movement in high-traffic highway and suburban environments. This opportunity includes driving critical architectural and business decisions, mentoring and building high-impact teams, and owning a significant portion of our autonomy stack for trucking that has significant contract value and business opportunity.

At Applied Intuition, you will:

  • Drive the overall strategy, technical roadmap, and architecture for motion planning and controls dedicated to L4 autonomous trucks

  • Guide the design and implementation of robust, safety-critical algorithms for various driving domains, including urban streets, highways, and diverse environmental conditions

  • Grow and manage a team of world class engineers in the field of control systems for autonomous driving

  • Evolve the architecture to achieve the final goal of an L4 end-to-end stack

  • Work cross functionally with other teams, including Perception, Remote Assistance, Simulation, and Vehicle Operations, to ensure the robust and efficient integration of the motion planning and controls software stack

  • Work across the different verticals in the company, and help create technology used across trucks and cars, for all levels of automation

We’re looking for someone who has:

  • 5+ years of experience in robotics or autonomous systems, with a focus on motion planning and control systems

  • Experience in two or more of the following: behavior planning, path planning, motion planning, trajectory generation, control theory

  • Demonstrated ability to architect large-scale, production software for real-world robotic or automotive systems

  • Proven leadership experience managing engineering teams, setting goals, and overseeing technical projects

  • Strong communication and problem-solving skills

Nice to have:

  • Direct experience working in the Trucking autonomy domain

  • Hands-on experience developing and testing planning algorithms on an autonomous vehicle

  • Experience writing safety-critical, high-performance software using modern C++

  • Experience in quadratic programming and nonlinear optimization to create robust and performant controllers

  • Experience applying machine learning techniques to vehicle dynamics modeling

Compensation at Applied Intuition for eligible roles includes base salary, equity, and benefits. Base salary is a single component of the total compensation package, which may also include equity in the form of options and/or restricted stock units, comprehensive health, dental, vision, life and disability insurance coverage, 401k retirement benefits with employer match, learning and wellness stipends, and paid time off. Note that benefits are subject to change and may vary based on jurisdiction of employment.

Applied Intuition pay ranges reflect the minimum and maximum intended target base salary for new hire salaries for the position. The actual base salary offered to a successful candidate will additionally be influenced by a variety of factors including experience, credentials & certifications, educational attainment, skill level requirements, interview performance, and the level and scope of the position.

Please reference the job posting’s subtitle for where this position will be located. For pay transparency purposes, the base salary range for this full-time position in the location listed is: $204,000 - $343,000 USD annually.