Toyota Research Institute · 5 months ago
Senior Simulation Engineer
Los Altos, CA
Full-time
Onsite
Senior Level, Lead/Staff
$180K/yr - $270K/yr
10+ years expToyota Research Institute (TRI) is on a mission to improve the quality of human life through innovative tools and capabilities. They are seeking a Senior Simulation Engineer to lead the development of sensor and system-level simulation workflows that support closed-loop validation and synthetic data generation for training in automated driving. This role involves building simulated environments and collaborating with cross-functional teams to enhance the validation process of autonomous systems.
Artificial Intelligence (AI)AutomotiveConsumer ResearchMachine LearningProduct Research
Responsibilities
Build a visually realistic simulator to test full end-to-end autonomy stack behavior, from simulating sensors to motion planning, across a range of scenario conditions
Prototype and integrate with internal and third-party simulators to evaluate their ability to support learned system testing
Curate scenarios, system introspection
Build data logging frameworks used during large-scale virtual tests
Collaborate closely with autonomy, ML, and integration teams to define simulation entry points, runtime configs, and closed-loop evaluation metrics
Build diagnostic tooling and analysis pipelines to understand and improve real system behavior in simulation
Lead cross-functional efforts to close the gap between simulation and on-vehicle deployment, increasing the reliability of sim-based validation
Provide technical mentorship and foster a collaborative, high-trust engineering culture across organizational boundaries
Demonstrate excellent design practices; generate technical documentation; lead technical presentations; aligning with stakeholders before, during, and after implementation is essential
Qualification
Required
Bachelor's or Master's in Computer Science, Robotics, or a related field
10+ years of experience in robotics, autonomous systems, or simulation
Strong programming skills in Python and C++, especially for robotics or systems development
Experience with simulation platforms (e.g., CARLA, Applied Intuition, Nvidia DriveSim, etc) and their integration into autonomous system workflows
Knowledge of sensor simulation principles and how perception systems interact with synthetic data
Understanding of end-to-end autonomy pipelines, from raw sensor input to trajectory outputs
Demonstrated ability to design for both users (e.g., autonomy developers) and simulation infrastructure stakeholders
Passion for using simulation to drive real-world progress and system understanding
Preferred
Hands-on experience validating machine learning-based autonomy stacks in closed-loop simulation
Knowledge of scenario generation, rare event simulation, or counterfactual testing
Knowledge of one or more cloud compute platforms, such as AWS
Experience with multi-agent simulation or high-fidelity 3D environments
Prior experience in fast-paced R&D environments bridging research and production
Benefits
401(k) eligibility
Various paid time off benefits, such as vacation, sick time, and parental leave
Annual cash bonus structure
Company
Toyota Research Institute
Toyota Research Institute is an R&D enterprise with an initial focus on artificial intelligence and robotics.
201-500 employees
H1B Sponsorship
Toyota Research Institute has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships. Please note that this does not
guarantee sponsorship for this specific role. Below presents additional info for your
reference. (Data Powered by US Department of Labor)
Distribution of Different Job Fields Receiving Sponsorship
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Trends of Total Sponsorships
2025 (10)
2020 (7)
Funding
Current Stage
Growth StageLeadership Team
Gill Pratt
CEO
Phillip Zackler
Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel
Recent News
2025-12-18
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