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Applied Intuition is building digital infrastructure for physical AI across automotive, defense, trucking, construction, mining, and agriculture. The company is valued at $15 billion and trusted by 18 of the top 20 global automakers and the US military.
As Manager of Hardware System Validation, you will lead a 0-to-1 initiative to establish Applied Intuition's hardware system validation department. This is a people-management role where you will hire, scale, and lead a multidisciplinary validation team spanning electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, software automation, and systems engineering.
Key responsibilities include:
- Building the hardware system validation function from scratch and scaling it cross-functionally
- Defining, architecting, and executing system test plans and reliability validation processes across all hardware products
- Hiring and directing a validation engineering team across multiple disciplines
- Working directly with external automotive and defense customers to translate operational requirements into rigorous hardware validation test specifications
- Ensuring all physical AI hardware products meet strict electrical, mechanical, environmental, and system-level KPIs
- Developing automated test execution scripts and software pipelines to streamline test coverage and validation cycles
The role is based in Sunnyvale, California, with an expectation of 5 days per week in-office, though the company recognizes flexibility for occasional remote work and personal commitments.
REQUIREMENTS:
- BS or MS degree in Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Systems Engineering, Computer Science, or related field
- 10+ years of experience in hardware system validation, testing, and reliability engineering
- 5+ years of experience leading and managing cross-functional technical teams (Electrical, Mechanical, Automation, and Systems Engineers)
- Mixed product background spanning consumer electronics and at least one target sector: automotive, trucking, defense, construction, mining, or agriculture
- Deep expertise defining hardware system test requirements, environmental reliability tests, and hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) validation setups
- Hands-on coding proficiency in Python, C++, or scripting languages for test automation, data analysis, and hardware control
NICE TO HAVE:
- Hands-on experience shipping high-complexity hardware in both early-stage startup (0-to-1) and mass-production environments
- Familiarity with automotive reliability standards (ISO 16750, AEC-Q100) or MIL-STD environmental testing protocols
- Strong commitment to customer success and raising technical quality bars across complex hardware platforms
