Sr Staff Vehicle Controls Engineer

About ALSO.

We’re ALSO, an electric mobility company originally conceived as a part of Rivian. We’re a passionate team of builders, dreamers, doers and innovators, focused on creating entirely new (not to mention, innovative and delightful) vertically integrated, small EVs designed to meet the global mobility challenges of today and tomorrow. Our mission is to inspire everyone to ride ALSO—replacing many local car, truck and SUV miles with ones on vehicles that are more affordable, more enjoyable and 10-50x more efficient.

ALSO is looking for a Senior Staff Vehicle Controls Engineer to lead the design and development of world-class vehicle control systems. You will take ownership of the full software development life cycle from concept and modeling through validation and release. This role requires strong technical leadership across control architecture, estimation, and algorithm development, helping shape next-generation vehicle control systems in a fast-paced and collaborative environment. You will work across software, firmware, electrical, and vehicle domains to solve complex engineering problems

What You Will Do

• Define and lead architecture and development of vehicle control systems including motion management, stability control, and related vehicle control functions.

• Own system-level control strategy and interface definition across controls, firmware, electrical, and vehicle domains.

• Develop and guide control algorithms and state estimators for vehicle control applications.

• Define handling metrics, objective maneuvers, and performance evaluation methodologies.

• Build and maintain high-fidelity simulation models to validate estimators, observers, and control solutions.

• Guide development of state estimation and sensor fusion approaches supporting vehicle controls (e.g., IMU, GPS, WSS integration).

• Define control architecture for distributed or multi-controller systems and ensure scalability across programs.

• Identify technical risks early and drive mitigation strategies across programs.

• Drive system-level integration and issue resolution across software, firmware, and vehicle domains.

• Provide technical leadership and mentorship across the controls team, reviewing architecture and algorithm design.

• Drive continuous improvement of controls development workflows, tools, and automation.

What You Will Bring

Required Qualifications

• Masters or PhD in Controls, Electrical, Mechanical Engineering, Robotics, or related field.

• Proficiency in MATLAB/Simulink, including model-based design, Stateflow, and development of automation scripts.

• Expertise in control theory and modern control methods, including MPC and LQR, with a deep background in system modeling, system identification, and state estimation techniques for dynamic systems.

• Experience developing and validating control algorithms through simulation and in-vehicle or dyno testing.

• Working knowledge of vehicle dynamics fundamentals and their interaction with control system design.

• Familiarity with embedded automotive software workflows and real-time control implementation.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with advanced control approaches such as adaptive or robust control applied to nonlinear systems.

• Real-time embedded systems and/or sensor fusion background.

• Experience with automotive communication networks (e.g., CAN, etherCAT) and tools such as Vector CANalyzer or CANape.

• Familiarity with version-control and CI tools (e.g., Git, Jenkins).

• Experience applying system identification or estimation techniques in production control systems.

  Location: This is an onsite position requiring attendance in the office five (5) days per week. Once fully ramped and in alignment with their manager, employees may have the opportunity for limited flexibility, including the potential to work remotely one day per week, based on business and team needs.

  The salary for this position ranges from $260,000 to $285,000 per year, depending on experience and qualifications.

  Perks & Benefits
  • Robust health coverage — excellent health, dental, and vision insurance covered up to 100% by ALSO, with FSA & HSA options
  • One Medical membership and dedicated insurance advocates
  • Rich fertility and family-building benefits with Progyny
  • Flexible time off
  • 401(k) match

Why ALSO.

We’re passionate about helping the world find a better way to get there—wherever it is you’re headed.

We’re located in the heart of Silicon Valley and have brought together a world-class team from some of the biggest brands in the technology, automotive, cycling, outdoor recreation and retail spaces. 

Together we’re working hands-on to imagine, design and build an entirely new solution to a global set of transportation challenges.