Sr. Software Development Engineer in Test, Infotainment

The Infotainment and Connectivity QA Infrastructure team builds and maintains the automation frameworks, CI/CD pipelines, and hardware test bench infrastructure that power quality assurance for RVTech's infotainment systems. This role is responsible for developing Python-based automation, physically building and maintaining hardware test rigs, and keeping CI/CD pipelines reliable and fast so the broader QA organization can test continuously and ship with confidence. The person will work closely with test engineers, firmware teams, and DevOps to troubleshoot failures across the code, network, and hardware stack. This is a hybrid role based out of Palo Alto.

- Design, build, and maintain Python-based automation frameworks to control and monitor hardware test benches.

- Manage and optimize CI/CD pipelines (e.g., GitLab CI) to support continuous testing and rapid deployment cycles.

- Physically assemble, configure, and maintain computer systems and hardware test rigs, including component selection and setup.

- Administer Linux-based test environments, ensuring systems are configured, patched, and tuned for reliable performance.

- Serve as first responder for test bench failures, triaging whether root cause is a software bug, network issue, or hardware fault.

- Collaborate with test engineers and firmware/software teams to define automation requirements and integrate new hardware into the test infrastructure.

- Monitor system health and pipeline performance, proactively identifying and resolving bottlenecks or recurring failure patterns.

- Document automation tooling, bench configurations, and troubleshooting procedures to support team knowledge-sharing.

- 8+ years of experience writing Python for automation, scripting, or hardware/CLI interaction.

- Demonstrated experience working in Linux environments, including shell scripting, file permissions, and package management.

- Familiarity with assembling or maintaining physical PC hardware components.

- Proven ability to troubleshoot and isolate root causes across software, network, and hardware layers under time pressure.

- Experience with CI/CD tools such as Jenkins, GitLab CI, or GitHub Actions.

- Familiarity with system monitoring and observability tooling in Linux environments.

- Experience building or maintaining hardware test benches or lab infrastructure in a QA or engineering context.

- Exposure to network troubleshooting (e.g., basic packet capture, routing, connectivity diagnostics).

- Experience working cross-functionally with firmware, software, or DevOps teams in a fast-paced test environment.

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 https://rvtech.mybenefits.life/.

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 https://app.ashbyhq.com/internal/job-board/b10a9912-eb45-4a84-9a34-84b2a459923a.