Staff Software Developer - IVI Test Infrastructure

Job-ID: 59182Category: PD Operations and QualityLocation: Palo Alto, CA, United StatesWorkplace: HybridSchedule: Full timePosted: 2026-09-24Closes: 2026-11-23We are the movers of the world and the makers of the future. We get up every day, roll up our sleeves and build a better world -- together. At Ford, we’re all a part of something bigger than ourselves. Are you ready to change the way the world moves? Ford’s Electric Vehicles, Digital and Design (EVDD) team is charged with delivering the company’s vision of a fully electric transportation future. EVDD is customer-obsessed, entrepreneurial, and data-driven and is dedicated to delivering industry-leading customer experience for electric vehicle buyers and owners. You’ll join an agile team of doers pioneering our EV future by working collaboratively, staying focused on only what matters, and delivering excellence day in and day out. Join us to make positive change by helping build a better world where every person is free to move and pursue their dreams. In this position... In this role, you will design, build, and scale the test infrastructure that developers, integration engineers, and QA teams rely on to validate software across vehicles, mobile, and cloud. This is a hands-on IC lead role where you’ll define infrastructure, guide adoption of best practices, streamline developer tools, and help shape the future of how Ford delivers reliable, secure, and high-quality EV software.QualificationsYou'll have...Bachelor's or equivalent combination of relevant education and experience.7+ years experience in software development, test automation, or infrastructure engineering, with meaningful time spent on embedded or platform systems.Strong proficiency in Python and frameworks such as pytest.Proven ability to architect scalable test systems that serve multiple teams.Deep knowledge of embedded Linux systems, shell scripting, and system-level/kernel debugging.Hands-on experience testing or integrating sensor sets (e.g., radar, lidar, ultrasonic) and camera subsystems.Experience validating OTA (over-the-air) update mechanisms, including delivery, rollback, and failure recovery.Strong background in CI/CD pipelines, build systems, and test orchestration.Experience with containerization (Docker) and orchestration tools; cloud platform (GCP/AWS/Azure) exposure a plus.Excellent collaboration and communication skills; able to work cross-functionally with developers, QA, and integration engineers.Even better, you may have...Experience with automotive, embedded systems, or IoT platforms.Familiarity with vehicle testing frameworks, CAN/LIN, or HIL/SIL setups.Hands-on experience with Appium or similar UI automation frameworks (mobile/Android) — nice to have, not core.Knowledge of cloud-native monitoring and logging (e.g., Prometheus, Grafana, ELK).You may not check every box, or your experience may look a little different from what we've outlined, but if you think you can bring value to Ford Motor Company, we encourage you to apply!As an established global company, we offer the benefit of choice. You can choose what your Ford future will look like: will your story span the globe, or keep you close to home? Will your career be a deep dive into what you love, or a series of new teams and new skills? Will you be a leader, a changemaker, a technical expert, a culture builder…or all of the above? No matter what you choose, we offer a work life that works for you, including:• Immediate medical, dental, vision and prescription drug coverage• Flexible family care days, paid parental leave, new parent ramp-up programs, subsidized back-up child care and more• Family building benefits including adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, fertility treatments, and more• Vehicle discount program for employees and family members and management leases • Tuition assistance• Established and active employee resource groups • Paid time off for individual and team community service • A generous schedule of paid holidays, including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day • Paid time off and the option to purchase additional vacation time.This position is a leadership level 6 and ranges from $146,520-276,600.For more information on salary and benefits, click here: sponsorship is available for this position.Candidates for positions with Ford Motor Company must be legally authorized to work in the United States. Verification of employment eligibility will be required at the time of hire.We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, age, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability status or protected veteran status. In the United States, if you need a reasonable accommodation for the online application process due to a disability, please call View phone number on click.appcast.io.This position is hybrid (onsite four days per week) for candidates who are in commuting distance to a Ford hub location. #LI-Hybrid #LI-Remote #LI-SL1 #UEVResponsibilitiesWhat you'll do...Architect, develop, and maintain scalable test infrastructure supporting developers, integration, and QA for the next-gen EV platform, with primary ownership of embedded Linux, sensor sets, camera, and OTA subsystems.Build and optimize frameworks for automation, validation, and continuous integration across embedded Linux, sensor/camera subsystems, and OTA update pipelines.Partner with developers and QA to improve test coverage, speed, and reliability for in-vehicle systems, including sensor fusion, camera pipelines, and OTA rollout/rollback, with lighter-touch support for mobile and backend services.Integrate automated testing into CI/CD pipelines (Jenkins, GitHub Actions, or similar) with support for containerized and hardware-in-the-loop execution.Develop and extend tooling for pytest (Python), embedded/hardware test harnesses, and service-level test frameworks.Scale infrastructure to support distributed and parallel test execution across embedded targets and virtual environments.Improve test observability with dashboards, reporting, and alerting for failures and system health across embedded subsystems.Act as a technical mentor for engineers across QA, integration, and development teams.Build toward an automation-first culture and continuous improvement in software quality for platform-level systems.