Controls Engineer - Body Controls

About Us

Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies is a joint venture between two industry leaders with a clear vision for automotive’s next chapter. From operating systems to zonal controllers to cloud and connectivity solutions, we’re addressing the challenges of electric vehicles through technology that will set the standards for software-defined vehicles around the world.

The road to the future is uncharted. By combining our expertise across connectivity, AI, security and more, we’ll map a new way forward. Working together, we’ll create a future that’s more connected, more intelligent, more sustainable for everyone.

Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies Canada is proud to be a Great Place To Work® Certified company — 92% of employees at RV Tech Canada say it is a great place to work, compared to 60% at a typical company.

Role Summary

We are seeking a dedicated and innovative Body Controls Engineer to join our team, focused on the Vehicle Management feature area. This role owns the development and integration of embedded software for vehicle-level body functions such as vehicle access, central locking, security, alarm, crash response, passive safety, occupant and child presence detection, AVAS/horn, trailer detection, and steering wheel/button interfaces, delivered as software modules on a zonal vehicle platform. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in electrical, computer, or software engineering with a focus on automotive embedded systems, safety-relevant software, and vehicle-network integration.

Responsibilities

• Architect and develop embedded control software for vehicle management features including robust state machines, arbitration logic, and vehicle-mode handling that coordinate multiple ECUs and features across the vehicle.

• Review requirements and produce high-level functional specification designs in collaboration with systems, integration, and platform partners.

• Own features end to end within a feature-focused development model.

• Integrate features on bench and vehicle across multiple ECUs and networks, resolve interface issues, and drive features to release readiness.

• Develop and maintain diagnostics and diagnostic interfaces to support troubleshooting, manufacturing, and service.

• Support safety analyses for ISO 26262 compliance, particularly for passive-safety and vehicle-access features.

• Validate features in Unit, SIL, HIL, and vehicle test environments; contribute to feature tuning and calibration; and triage field and fleet issues using vehicle data and logs.

• Use a multidisciplinary approach to troubleshoot functional problems in vehicles by addressing root causes across physical, electrical, network, and software domains.

• Prioritize and escalate issues based on user impact, safety relevance, and program objectives for prompt resolution.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in electrical, computer, or software engineering, or related field.

• 2+ years of experience with automotive or embedded software systems.

• Expertise in C and Python.

• Strong understanding of embedded software fundamentals: real-time operating systems / task scheduling, memory management and MPU protection, interrupts, timing analysis.

• Experience with vehicle networks and protocols (CAN/CAN-FD, LIN, Automotive Ethernet), diagnostics (UDS, DIDs/DTCs, routines) and proficiency in related tools.

• Experience with safety-relevant automotive software and functional safety methodologies (ISO 26262, FMEA, fault trees); passive-safety or vehicle-access experience strongly preferred.

• Understanding of hardware components relevant to body controls.

• Experience with Requirements Management Systems (e.g., JAMA/Flow).

• Ability to travel up to 10%.

  Nice to Have
  

• Experience building test automation for embedded software: SIL frameworks, HIL/VHIL test benches, automated regression, and CI integration.

• Experience applying AI-assisted software development tools and agents (e.g., code generation, automated test creation, log/issue triage) to accelerate embedded software development while maintaining safety and quality standards.

• Experience with test reporting and data pipelines to track feature health and test coverage

*This role can also be based out of Irvine, California ($107,000 – $147,050 Annually)

Total Rewards

We build the exceptional — and we believe the people doing that work should be rewarded accordingly. In addition to a competitive base salary, full-time positions may be is eligible to participate in our annual company performance bonus program.

Payments are discretionary and not guaranteed; actual amounts depend on company results and the terms of the plan in effect, and require active employment at the time of payout. This role is also eligible for equity in the form of Restricted Stock Units (RSUs), subject to board approval and the terms of our equity incentive plans, including applicable vesting requirements.

In addition to our compensation programs, we invest in our people with a comprehensive benefits package designed to support the health, wellbeing, and financial future for full-time employees — including health coverage, retirement savings, time off, and family planning programs. Offerings vary by country. Learn more about our global benefit programs.

External candidates can apply for this role through the Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies careers site (https://rivianvw.tech/#careers). If you are a current employee, please apply through our internal job board.

Equal Opportunity

Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information or characteristics, physical or mental disability, marital/domestic partner status, age, military/veteran status, medical condition, or any other characteristic protected by law. We are also committed to ensuring compliance with all applicable fair employment practice laws regarding citizenship and immigration status.

Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies is committed to ensuring that our hiring process is accessible for persons with disabilities. If you have a disability or limitation, such as those covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act, that requires accommodations to assist you in the search and application process, please email us at [email protected].

Candidate Data Privacy

Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies” may collect, use and disclose your personal information or personal data (within the meaning of the applicable data protection laws) when you apply for employment and/or participate in our recruitment processes (“Candidate Personal Data”). This data includes contact, demographic, communications, educational, professional, employment, social media/website, network/device, recruiting system usage/interaction, security and preference information. Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies may use your Candidate Personal Data for the purposes of (i) tracking interactions with our recruiting system; (ii) carrying out, analyzing and improving our application and recruitment process, including assessing you and your application and conducting employment, background and reference checks; (iii) establishing an employment relationship or entering into an employment contract with you; (iv) complying with our legal, regulatory and corporate governance obligations; (v) record keeping; (vi) ensuring network and information security and preventing fraud; and (vii) as otherwise required or permitted by applicable law.

Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies may share your Candidate Personal Data with (i) internal personnel who have a need to know such information in order to perform their duties, including individuals on our People Team, Finance, Legal, and the team(s) with the position(s) for which you are applying; (ii) Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies affiliates; and (iii) Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies’ service providers, including providers of background checks, staffing services, and cloud services.

Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies may transfer or store internationally your Candidate Personal Data, including to or in the United States, Canada, and the European Union and in the cloud, and this data may be subject to the laws and accessible to the courts, law enforcement and national security authorities of such jurisdictions.

If you provide a mobile telephone number as part of your application or during the recruitment process, Rivian and Volkswagen Group Technologies may use that number to contact you via SMS text message for recruitment-related purposes, including scheduling, logistics, and status updates. Message and data rates may apply. You may opt out of SMS communications at any time by replying STOP to any text message you receive from us. Consent to receive SMS messages is not a condition of applying for or being considered for employment.

Please see our Candidate Data Privacy Notice (English)and Candidate Data Privacy Notice (Serbian) for more information.

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Please note this job posting represents an open, active vacancy. Additionally, we are not currently accepting applications from third party application services.