Who we are
Atoms is building the machines that power the next era of progress.
Over the last decade, software has transformed the digital world. But the physical world, where food is made, minerals are mined, goods are moved, and industries are run, remains far less intelligent, far less efficient, and far more constrained. We’re changing that.
Atoms builds Physical AI— real-world robots for the industries that move civilization forward, starting with food, mining, and transport. Our systems are designed to understand, predict, and control the real world with precision, turning complex physical operations into something more reliable, more scalable, and more productive.
This work requires more than robotics. It requires deep integration across hardware, software, AI, operations, manufacturing, and real estate. We don’t just build machines in a lab. We deploy them into real environments, operate them, learn from them, and improve them until they work at scale.
We are roboticists, engineers, operators, and builders. We believe the next great technology companies will not only transform information, but the physical systems that shape everyday life.
If you want to work on hard problems with real-world impact, join us.
About the role
We are seeking a Senior Systems Engineer to own the system requirements and interface control documents for our autonomous vehicle and truck platforms. In this role, you will take a platform from platform-level requirements, to decomposed and allocated subsystem requirements, to a verification plan with results confirmed against each requirement, working out how the autonomy kit's sensing, compute, networks, and power meet the vehicle or machine it is installed on. You will do this across OEM vehicle platforms and off-highway trucks, and you'll build the requirements and interface documentation that each new platform variant is specified and verified against.
What you’ll do
- System requirements. Write and maintain system and subsystem requirements for the vehicle and truck platforms you own, including decomposition from platform-level requirements, allocation to sensing, compute, vehicle networks, power, actuation, and autonomy software, and traceability to verification.
- Interface control documents. Build and maintain the interface control documents between the autonomy kit and each vehicle or truck platform, and between the subsystems within the kit, covering signals, networks, power, timing, mounting, and data. Run the review and change process for the interfaces you own.
- Requirements management and traceability. Run the requirements management toolchain: structure, attributes, baselines, change tracking, and traceability from requirement to design to verification evidence.
- Verification planning. Write the verification plan for the requirements you own, including method, test environment across analysis, bench, simulation, closed course, and on-vehicle test, acceptance criteria, and evidence. Work with test teams on execution and confirm results against requirements.
- New platform variants. Produce the requirements deltas and interface control documents for each new vehicle or truck platform and each new sensor or compute generation, and keep the requirements that are common across platforms common.
- Integration, test, and field feedback. Support integration and bring-up on the vehicle or machine. Classify failures found in integration, test, or the field as requirement, interface, or implementation defects, and feed the changes back into the requirements and interfaces.
- Documentation. Write the requirements and interface documentation that engineers, technicians, and partner teams work from.
- Cross-functional work. Work with vehicle integration and hardware engineering on physical and electrical interfaces, with autonomy and robotics on software interfaces and data, with functional safety on the safety requirements allocated to the platform, and with bench and hardware-in-the-loop engineering on verification environments.
What we’re looking for
- Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Robotics, Systems Engineering, or a related field with 5+ years of systems engineering experience.
- Experience authoring system requirements for a vehicle, robotics, or comparable hardware and software system, including decomposition to subsystems, allocation, and traceability to verification.
- Experience writing and maintaining interface control documents, or equivalent interface specifications, between hardware and software subsystems.
- Working experience with a requirements management tool such as Jama, DOORS, or Polarion, including configuring its structure, attributes, and traceability.
- Experience writing verification plans and acceptance criteria and confirming test results against requirements.
- Working knowledge of vehicle networks and interfaces, including CAN, and CAN FD, and Automotive Ethernet, and of sensor and compute interfaces and time synchronization.
- Experience on an autonomous vehicle or robotics platform.
- Experience handling autonomous driving or robotics sensor data across multiple modalities and timestamps, including camera, LiDAR, and radar.
- Proficiency in Python for data analysis, test automation, and tooling, and the ability to read C++.
- Experience working where the requirements and the platform were still changing.
- Strong written practice covering system requirements, interface specifications, and verification reports, including the limits of a result.
- Ability to work onsite five days a week in San Francisco.
Why join us
At Atoms, you’ll work on one of the defining challenges of our time—bringing automation into the physical world to drive real, lasting impact. We exist to uncover valuable unknown truths and turn them into progress, which means constantly pushing beyond what’s known and building what doesn’t yet exist. The work is ambitious and often challenging, but it’s grounded in a shared sense of purpose and a team committed to seeing it through together. Our work only matters if it serves others, and we know that meaningful progress depends on the trust of the people we serve and the strength of our team—so we invest in both, creating an environment where you can do your best work and grow.
What else you need to know
This role is based in our San Francisco office location. As a company driven by innovation and continuous change, close collaboration is essential. We’re constantly reimagining our industry, creating new products, and refining our processes, and we do our best work together. That’s why all of our office-based teams work onsite, five days a week.
The base salary range for this role is $176,000 - $241,000 per year.
Actual compensation will be determined on an individual basis and may vary depending on experience, skills, and qualifications.
Base salary is just one part of your total rewards package. You may also be eligible for equity awards.
Benefits Summary (USA Full-Time Exempt Employees):
- Medical, Dental, Vision, Disability, and Life Insurance
- Flexible Spending Account / Health Savings Account Options
- 401(k)
- Equity
- Sick Time, Unlimited Flexible Time Off, and Paid Holidays
- Paid Parental Leave
- Pre-Tax Commuter Benefit Plan
- Team lunch in our SoMa office every Tuesday and Thursday
Benefits are subject to change at the company's discretion.
Atoms accepts applications on an ongoing basis.
Ready to join us as we serve those who serve others?
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