Director, Perception - Autonomous Vehicles
NVIDIA· Mgmt, Sys SW
Santa Clara, CA$320k - $488.8kFull-timePosted 7mo ago
About the role
Director of Perception leading AI model evolution for autonomous vehicles, overseeing development of state-of-the-art deep learning models for real-time 3D world reconstruction and multi-sensor fusion, and ensuring production-ready, safety-critical ML systems on NVIDIA DRIVE platforms.
Responsibilities
- Lead and Inspire: Manage, mentor, and scale a high-performing organization of engineering managers, applied researchers, and software engineers dedicated to autonomous vehicle perception.
- Drive the Architecture: Guide the strategic direction, design, and execution of modern network architectures (e.g., Transformers, BEV, Occupancy Networks, Vision-Language-Action models) for multi-sensor fusion (camera, LiDAR, radar) and real-time 3D world reconstruction.
- End-to-End Ownership: Oversee the entire machine learning lifecycle—from active learning, data mining, and synthetic data generation to model training, model performance acceleration, and deployment on NVIDIA DRIVE platforms (Orin/Thor).
- Cross-Functional Teamwork: Partner with Planning and Control, Mapping, Hardware, and Safety teams to ensure seamless integration of the perception stack and alignment on AV system-level metrics.
- Cultivate Excellence: Foster radical ownership, high-velocity execution, and continuous innovation; ensure all algorithms and production code adhere to automotive quality and safety standards (ISO 26262).
Qualifications
- Ph.D. or master's degree in computer science, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, visual computing, or related field (or equivalent experience).
- 10+ overall years in deep learning, computer vision, or autonomous robotics, with at least 5+ years in senior leadership managing large teams or multiple layers of management.
- Deep hands-on expertise with modern network architectures (Transformers, CNNs, Foundation Models) and multi-sensor fusion paradigms.
- Proven track record deploying production-grade, safety-critical ML models to edge/embedded platforms.
- Strong Python, C++, and deep learning frameworks (PyTorch, JAX, or TensorFlow).
- Exceptional communication and leadership skills with ability to translate technical uncertainty into clear strategies.
- Entrepreneurial mindset with drive to solve hard AV problems and ship bleeding-edge technology.
Skills
Required:Deep learningComputer visionMulti-sensor fusionLeadershipAutomotive safety standards
Benefits
- equity
- benefits (eligibility unspecified in detail)
Last updated Sep 11, 2026. Interested? Apply on the company site.
About NVIDIA
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NVIDIA invents the GPU and drives advances in AI, HPC, gaming, creative design, autonomous vehicles, and robotics.
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