Senior System Safety Engineer- Robot Stability

Senior System Safety Engineer- Robot Stability LocationMountain ViewEmployment TypeFull timeDepartmentHardwareCompensation$175K – $250K • Offers EquityAt Rhoda AI, we’re building the next generation of generalist intelligent robots. We own the full robotics stack from high-performance hardware and robot systems to the infrastructure and state-of-the-art foundation world models that control our robots. Our robots are designed to be generalists capable of operating in complex, real-world environments and handling long-tail edge cases, made possible by our cutting edge research and end-to-end system design. We've raised over $450M and are investing aggressively in model research, infrastructure, hardware development, and manufacturing scale-up to make generalist robotics a reality.SummaryThis is a Senior MTS position reporting directly to the Head of Safety and Certification. The Safety Systems Engineer-Robot Stability will own the design, implement, and optimize control systems that enable robust balance, posture maintenance, and dynamic locomotion in humanoid robots.This role sits at the intersection of AI, functional safety, and robotics — responsible for ensuring that the robot's AI-driven perception, planning, and control behaviors meet the requirements of the broader humanoid robot safety standard ecosystem. You will assess risks introduced by dynamic robot behaviors, define robot safety requirements for stability, lead verification through data collection and analysis, and build the evidence packages needed for formal certification. The role requires a technical executor with a bias for action, impeccable rigor, and the ability to drive cross-disciplinary teams. The candidate must demonstrate deep technical credibility.Key ResponsibilitiesDevelop safety requirements for Robot Stability through analysis, empirical derivation, and testingDerive requirements for performance and stability of advanced control algorithms for whole-body stability, balance, and posture regulation in humanoid platformsArchitect fail-safe methodology for robot stability to influence design and implementation of real-time controllers (e.g., ZMP, MPC, inverse dynamics, whole-body control)Define requirements, performance and fail-safe methods for sensor feedback (IMU, force/torque, vision) for state estimation and disturbance rejectionInvent novel and improve existing techniques for robustness against external perturbations, uneven terrain, and dynamic interactionsCollaborate with perception, planning, and hardware teams to ensure seamless system integrationSimulate, test, and validate control strategies in both virtual environments and physical robotsContribute to safety-critical features, including fall prevention and recovery strategiesRequired QualificationsMS or PhD in Robotics, Control Systems, Mechanical Engineering, or related fieldStrong background in dynamics, kinematics, and control theoryExperience with humanoid or legged robot control systemsProficiency in Python for data analysisHands-on experience with simulation tools (e.g., MuJoCo, Gazebo, Isaac Sim)Familiarity with state estimation techniques (e.g., Kalman filters, sensor fusion)Hands-on experience with data collection and data analysis in Verification and ValidationPreferred QualificationsExperience with whole-body control frameworks and optimization-based control (QP, MPC)Knowledge of contact dynamics and multi-body systemsHands-on experience with dFMEA, STPA, Fault Tree AnalysisExperience with reinforcement learning applied to locomotion or balanceProficiency in C with language extensions for MISRA C for real-time systemsExperience with applying ISO/TS 15066 and ISO/TS 25785-1Background in safety-critical or functional safety systems (e.g., ISO 26262, IEC 61508)Experience deploying algorithms on embedded or edge compute platformsApply for this Job