Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies · 13 hours ago
Staff Software Engineer, Connected Middleware & OTA Architecture
Palo Alto, CA
Full-time
Onsite
Senior Level, Lead/Staff
$116K/yr - $145K/yr
7+ years expRivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies is a joint venture between two industry leaders focused on the future of automotive technology. The Staff Software Engineer will lead the architecture and development of Over-the-Air software update systems for connected vehicles, ensuring scalability and security while mentoring other engineers.
AutomotiveInformation TechnologySoftware
Responsibilities
Define and evolve the end-to-end architecture for OTA middleware systems, ensuring modularity, extensibility, and long-term scalability
Set engineering best practices for system reliability, security, and performance
Design and implement core OTA middleware components and services, with deep consideration for fault tolerance, state management, and data integrity
Build APIs and robust communication frameworks between in-vehicle systems and cloud platforms
Work cross-functionally with embedded, cloud, cybersecurity, compliance, and product teams to drive OTA integration and alignment across the stack
Champion security-first design in all OTA communications, ensuring alignment with industry standards (e.g., ISO 21434, ISO 26262) and regulatory requirements
Act as a technical mentor and advisor for other engineers, guiding code quality, design decisions, and career development
Drive observability and operational excellence through monitoring, diagnostics, and incident response improvements
Make strategic technical decisions and conduct design reviews across multiple teams and domains
Qualification
Required
Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, a relevant technical field or equivalent practical experience
Proficiency in Rust and C/C++ for systems-level development
Expertise building and scaling middleware, distributed systems, or connected vehicle software platforms
Experience with building high-performance and low-latency systems in large-scale environments
Experience with OTA systems in automotive, IoT, or embedded domains
Experience in systems-level design and architecture
Experience leading and influencing cross-functional teams as well as mentoring junior engineers
Preferred
7+ years of software engineering experience, with at least 2 years in a technical leadership or Staff/Principal-level role
Experience with networking protocols (e.g., HTTP, MQTT, TCP/IP), OTA frameworks, and secure software update strategies
Experience with software security, cryptographic principles, and secure boot mechanisms
Experience with automotive safety standards (e.g., ISO 26262, ASPICE)
Experience using CI/CD pipelines tailored for OTA workflows and automotive-grade deployments
Experience with cloud services (e.g., AWS, Azure) and vehicle communication protocols (e.g., CAN, UDS, DoIP)
Experience with communications protocols like websocket and gRPC
Experience with systems debugging, production, and monitoring tools such as Datadog and Amazon CloudWatch
Benefits
Robust medical/Rx, dental and vision insurance packages for full-time and part-time employees, their spouse or domestic partner, and children up to age 26.
Full Time Employee coverage is effective on the first day of employment.
Part-Time employee coverage is effective the first of the month following 90 days of employment.
Company
Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies
Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies develops scalable automotive software and technology platforms for multiple vehicle segments.
1001-5000 employees
H1B Sponsorship
Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies 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
Represents job field similar to this job
Trends of Total Sponsorships
2025 (9)
Funding
Current Stage
Late StageLeadership Team
Kranti Garatkar
Staff Technical Program Manager
Recent News
2025-11-14
Company data provided by crunchbase