Senior / Staff Engineer, Developer Productivity, Autonomy Careers at Rivian - Palo Alto, CA

Role Overview

Join Rivian, the pioneering EV manufacturer redefining adventure with emissions-free Electric Adventure Vehicles. We're seeking exceptional Senior or Staff Engineers in Developer Productivity for our Autonomy team in Palo Alto, California. In this pivotal role, you'll build and optimize foundational systems, tools, and processes that empower self-driving vehicle engineers to iterate rapidly and deliver safe, reliable autonomous technology.

As a Senior Engineer, you'll be a high-level individual contributor owning complex features from design to deployment, while mentoring others. Staff Engineers act as force multipliers, identifying bottlenecks across the Autonomy organization, defining technical roadmaps, and shaping strategy. If you're passionate about AI-driven developer tools, CI/CD optimization, and scalable infrastructure for autonomous vehicles, this is your chance to accelerate Rivian's mission.

Rivian's Autonomy team pushes boundaries in perception, planning, and more, and your work will bridge these specialized groups with central DevOps, translating needs into actionable infrastructure. Experience the thrill of innovating in a domain that's unknown yet transformative.

Key Responsibilities at Rivian

Thrive in a fast-paced environment where you'll:

• Accelerate engineering velocity by designing advanced automation and processes that slash manual effort and boost software quality/speed.
• Bridge engineering worlds as the primary liaison between Perception, Planning, and central vehicle software DevOps teams.
• Drive developer experience & reliability: Listen to engineers' pain points, unblock them, and ensure 99.9% uptime for development infrastructure.
• Innovate with AI: Leverage cutting-edge AI tools to revolutionize workflows, CI/CD pipelines, and make Rivian the most productive autonomy team in the industry.
• Build the future: Collaborate with product/research engineers to lay technical foundations for real-world self-driving capabilities.
• Identify systemic bottlenecks across the entire Autonomy organization (Staff level).
• Define long-term roadmaps and influence strategy for multiple teams (Staff level).
• Mentor and ensure excellence: Own features end-to-end and guide technical best practices (Senior level).
• Troubleshoot distributed systems with expert problem-solving skills.

Qualifications & Requirements

To succeed at Rivian, bring:

• Education: Bachelor's or Master's in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or related field.
• Experience: 4+ years (Senior) or 6+ years (Staff) in developer productivity, infrastructure, or DevOps—bonus for autonomous vehicles/robotics.
• Programming: Proficiency in Python, C++, Rust, Go, or Java.
• Build Systems: Deep expertise in Bazel, CMake, Meson.
• CI/CD & Tools: Hands-on with Jenkins, GitLab CI, ArgoCD.
• Containerization: Docker, Kubernetes.
• IaC: Terraform, Ansible.
• Strong communication, collaboration, and problem-solving for complex systems.

Preferred: Cloud (AWS/GCP/Azure), ML workflows/MLOps, embedded systems/HIL simulation, passion for autonomous driving.

Salary & Benefits

Salary Range: $162,800 - $258,000 USD yearly for California applicants (based on experience, location, factors permitted by law).

• Comprehensive Health: Medical/Rx, dental, vision insurance starting day one.
• Family Coverage: Includes spouse/domestic partner and children up to 26.
• EV Innovation: Work on world-changing autonomous tech.
• Culture: Diverse team united by love for outdoors and sustainability.
• Growth: Leadership opportunities in a high-impact role.
• Equity & More: Competitive perks in equal opportunity environment.

Why Join Rivian?

Rivian isn't just building electric vehicles—we're keeping the world adventurous. Our team challenges the status quo, reframing problems in uncharted territories like autonomous driving. With a diverse crew passionate about protecting the outdoors, you'll innovate on AI-powered developer tools that directly impact safe self-driving tech. Palo Alto location puts you at the heart of Silicon Valley innovation. Be a force multiplier in a company that's emissions-free and future-focused.

How to Apply

Ready to boost developer productivity at Rivian? Apply now for this Senior/Staff Engineer, Developer Productivity, Autonomy role in Palo Alto, CA. Submit your resume highlighting CI/CD, Kubernetes, Bazel experience. Rivian is an equal opportunity employer—qualified applicants considered without regard to protected characteristics. Join us and accelerate the future of adventure!