Senior/Staff Software Engineer (Machine Learning Runtime), Motion Planning
Hybrid Santa Clara Full-time Senior Machine Learning Engineering
At a glance
Senior Machine Learning Engineering role at PlusAI. Santa Clara · full-time · $130,000–$220,000 base.
SalaryStated by PlusAI
$130,000 – $220,000
Base salary for this role, in USD per year, as published in the posting.
This role, from PlusAIOur estimate for the market: $175,000–$217,750Median $213,600
The range includes the market median of $213,600 for senior machine learning engineering roles in Santa Clara.
Worked out from 5 postings that stated pay, median $213,600. Last updated Oct 3, 2026.
RoleMachine Learning Engineering
SenioritySenior
LocationSanta Clara
WorkplaceHybrid
EmploymentFull-time
Base pay$130,000–$220,000
PostedAug 27, 2026 · 8w ago
Role brief
aimlroles summary, based on the employer's posting.
What you'll do
- Build and tune the production runtime that executes machine-learning planning for autonomous vehicles
- Connect planning models to the production software stack, keeping deployment reliable and efficient
- Improve inference speed and resource use through C++ work, profiling, algorithm changes, and memory tuning
- Add runtime checks and fallback paths so generated trajectories remain feasible and follow traffic rules
- Trace planning failures across pipeline stages, then build debugging, testing, and monitoring tools to prevent repeats
What you bring
- At least four years building high-performance software for production use
- A degree in computer science, robotics, electrical engineering, or a related discipline
- Strong C++ skills, including work optimizing substantial software systems and real-time performance
- Hands-on experience putting ML inference into production, with an inference acceleration framework such as TensorRT, CUDA, or ONNX Runtime
Who this fits
This senior or staff-level role suits an engineer who can work across machine-learning and systems teams, investigate complex runtime failures, and carry fixes through deployment. The position is hybrid in Santa Clara.
From the employer
PlusAI is a Physical AI company pioneering AI-based virtual driver software for factory-built autonomous trucks. Headquartered in Silicon Valley with operations in the United States and Europe, Plus was named by Fast Company as one of the World’s Most Innovative Companies. Partners including TRATON GROUP’s Scania, MAN, and International brands, Hyundai Motor Company, Iveco Group, Bosch, and DSV are working with Plus to accelerate the deployment of next-generation autonomous trucks. If you’re ready to make a huge impact and drive the future of autonomy, Plus is looking for talented individuals to join its fast-growing teams.
Responsibilities
- Design, implement, and optimize the production runtime pipeline for ML-based autonomous vehicle planning.
- Integrate machine learning models into a scalable, safety-critical planning software stack.
- Optimize end-to-end inference performance through algorithm optimization, C++ implementation, profiling, memory optimization, and efficient execution on compute-constrained embedded platforms.
- Develop high-performance C++ components for feature extraction, inference, post-processing, trajectory generation, and runtime orchestration.
- Design runtime validation, safety guardrails, and fallback mechanisms to ensure generated trajectories are feasible, robust, and compliant with traffic rules.
- Investigate complex runtime issues by tracing failures across the planning pipeline, from feature extraction through inference to trajectory generation.
- Debug difficult edge-case scenarios using logs, profiling tools, visualization, offline replay, and quantitative analysis to identify root causes and implement robust solutions.
- Build tooling and infrastructure to improve debugging, observability, performance analysis, testing, and runtime monitoring.
- Collaborate closely with machine learning engineers to efficiently deploy new models into production while maintaining system reliability and performance.
- Drive continuous improvements in runtime architecture, scalability, reliability, and maintainability.
- Ensure technical work complies with the company's Quality Management System (QMS), customer requirements, regulatory standards, and internal engineering processes.
Requirements
- BS, MS, or PhD in Computer Science, Robotics, Electrical Engineering, or a related field.
- 4+ years of experience developing high-performance production software.
- Strong C++ programming skills with experience building, optimizing, and maintaining large-scale software systems.
- Experience optimizing real-time systems, including latency, throughput, memory usage, and multithreaded performance.
- Experience deploying machine learning inference into production environments.
- Familiarity with TensorRT, CUDA, ONNX Runtime, or similar inference acceleration frameworks.
- Strong software engineering fundamentals, including software architecture, testing, and code quality.
- Excellent debugging and analytical problem-solving skills, with the ability to systematically investigate complex software and system-level issues.
- Experience tracing failures across multi-stage pipelines, identifying root causes, and implementing reliable long-term solutions.
- Experience designing validation strategies, automated testing, runtime monitoring, and observability for production systems.
- Strong ownership mindset with the ability to drive problems from investigation through implementation, validation, and deployment.
- Excellent communication skills and experience collaborating across machine learning and systems engineering teams.
Preferred Skills
- Experience with autonomous driving planning, prediction, or robotics software.
- Experience profiling CPU and GPU performance using modern profiling tools.
- Experience deploying software on embedded GPU platforms.
- Familiarity with PyTorch and machine learning workflows.
- Experience with distributed systems, CI/CD, and cloud infrastructure. Bonus Qualifications
- Deep expertise in modern C++ (C++17/20) and high-performance software engineering.
- Experience optimizing production inference pipelines for low latency and high throughput.
- Experience developing internal debugging, visualization, profiling, or observability tools.
- Proven ability to diagnose and resolve complex production issues involving machine learning, runtime software, and system integration.
- Strong systems thinking with the ability to balance correctness, performance, maintainability, scalability, and safety.
- Demonstrated technical leadership and experience mentoring engineers on large production software projects.
Candidates who stand out typically have one or more of the following: