Hardware Systems Engineer

The posting, as DoorDash wrote it

About the Team

DoorDash Labs is an independent team within DoorDash. We are working on building autonomous delivery robots from the ground-up and other automation solutions as part of DoorDash's core delivery platform. If you have a passion for applying AI and robotics solutions in a service used by millions of people, then we want to talk to you!

About the Role

We're looking for a Hardware Systems Engineer to own system-level architecture across electrical, mechanical, firmware, sensor, and compute subsystems – decomposing platform requirements into verifiable specs for power distribution, motion control, embedded compute, sensor suites and communication buses (CAN, Ethernet, etc.). You'll drive requirements traceability, interface control documents (ICDs), trade studies, and verification and validation (V&V) plans that ensure subsystems built by separate EE, ME, firmware, and perception teams function as one safe, reliable delivery robot.

Responsibilities

• Own system-level architecture across electrical, mechanical, firmware, sensor, and compute subsystems for autonomous delivery platforms.
• Decompose platform requirements into verifiable specs for power distribution, motion control, embedded compute, and sensor suites.
• Drive requirements traceability, ICDs, trade studies, and V&V plans across EE, ME, firmware, and perception workstreams.
• Define fault-tolerant architectures (FMEA, fault trees, redundancy) governing system behavior during component failures.
• Lead cross-functional root-cause debugging across hardware, firmware, and software boundaries, conducting design and safety reviews.
• Translate business and regulatory requirements into engineering specs in collaboration with Product, Safety, Legal, and Operations.

Qualifications

• B.S., M.S., or Ph.D. in EE, ME, Computer Science, Systems Engineering, Robotics, or a related field
• 8+ years of experience building, testing, and validating mechatronics or sensor-equipped hardware in robotics, automotive, or aerospace.
• Strong expertise in embedded systems architecture, vehicle mechanicals, electronics, and autonomous perception systems.
• Demonstrated ability to perform cross-boundary debugging across hardware, firmware, and software layers.
• Ability to evaluate complex trade-offs, identify failure modes, and translate ambiguous business and regulatory goals into precise, verifiable engineering specifications
• Track record of leading complex, multi-disciplinary projects across EE, ME, firmware, and perception teams.

Compensation

The successful candidate’s starting pay will fall within the pay range listed below and is determined based on job-related factors including, but not limited to, skills, experience, qualifications, work location, and market conditions. Base salary is localized according to an employee’s work location. Ranges are market-dependent and may be modified in the future.

In addition to base salary, the compensation for this role includes op
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success have no place at DoorDash. We value a diverse workforce – people who identify as women, non-binary or gender non-conforming, LGBTQIA+, American Indian or Native Alaskan, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latinx, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, differently-abled, caretakers and parents, and veterans are strongly encouraged to apply. Thank you to the Level Playing Field Institute for this statement of non-discrimination.

Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance, and any other state or local hiring regulations, we will consider for employment any qualified applicant, including those with arrest and conviction records, in a manner consistent with the applicable regulation.

If you need any accommodations, please inform your recruiting contact upon initial connection.

Notice Regarding Use of AI and Automated Tools: To streamline our hiring process, DoorDash utilizes an automated recruitment tool called Metaview.

How it works: Metaview assists our recruiting team by evaluating job related qualifications and characteristics in connection with hiring. The tool is designed and used to support - rather than replace - human decision-making; trained personnel make final decisions with meaningful human review and oversight, and DoorDash does not use Metaview or other AI-enabled tool in a manner that has the effect of subjecting applicants or employees to discrimination based on any protected characteristic or proxy or for engaging in any protected activity under applicable law.

Data Retention, Privacy & Bias Audit: Data collected during this process is retained in accordance with our Candidate Privacy Policy https://help.doordash.com/en-us/legal/article/ax-privacy-notice and applicable state laws. In compliance with New York City Local Law 144, the independent bias audit summary for Metaview is publicly available for review at https://trust.warden-ai.com/metaview/application-review .