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Wayve is building embodied AI for autonomous driving, moving from core technology development to deployment across multiple vehicle platforms, OEM programmes, and Robotaxi applications. As the software systems grow in complexity, we're seeking a Distinguished Software Architect to define how our architecture evolves through this next phase of scale.
This is a highly cross-functional individual contributor role operating across onboard software, AI, simulation, training and inference, product engineering, and Robotaxi teams. You'll work alongside senior technical and engineering leaders to ensure systems built today can scale across future products and platforms.
Day-to-day responsibilities include:
- Operating across engineering organisations to develop deep understanding of how software systems fit together and identify where architectural decisions in one area impact another
- Working closely with senior engineers and leaders to identify architectural challenges, shape technical direction, and lead major changes spanning multiple teams
- Acting as a trusted technical partner on complex engineering decisions, helping teams navigate trade-offs between immediate delivery and long-term system health
- Leading through technical credibility and influence, creating alignment across teams and raising the bar for software design and engineering practices
- Defining architectural direction across Wayve's software ecosystem as we scale across vehicle platforms and products
- Creating clear software boundaries, interfaces, and abstractions enabling rapid team development without fragmentation
- Leading large architectural changes spanning multiple engineering organisations
- Improving software development, integration, testing, and deployment across different vehicle platforms and programmes
- Shaping development platforms and engineering systems that underpin how Wayve builds software at scale
- Partnering with teams working with OEMs and Tier 1 suppliers to ensure architecture supports different production environments
- Acting as technical decision-maker and tiebreaker on complex architectural decisions
- Helping establish strong engineering and design culture for large-scale, safety-critical software systems
Wayve operates a hybrid working model combining in-person collaboration in dedicated office spaces with focused remote work time. Main hubs include London, Sunnyvale, Yokohama, Herzliya, Vancouver, and Leonberg.
Requirements:
- Operated as a Principal, Distinguished, or equivalent senior individual contributor, shaping architecture of large, complex software systems
- Track record of leading significant technical or architectural change across multiple teams or engineering organisations
- Exceptional systems thinker who can understand broad technical landscape while going deep where necessary
- Experience building or evolving software platforms operating reliably across significant scale and complexity
- Comfortable making difficult technical trade-offs and distinguishing between what is right for individual teams versus the broader system
- Ability to influence senior engineers and leaders through technical credibility rather than organisational authority
- Deep care for software design, engineering quality, and creating systems enabling other engineers to move faster
- Ability to enter unfamiliar technical domains, learn quickly, and develop strong technical judgment
- Combination of architectural thinking with strong bias towards execution and turning technical direction into real engineering change
- Experience in autonomous driving, robotics, or automotive systems is valuable but not essential
