by Torc | Oct 15, 2024 | People Ops
The autonomous trucking sector has found itself at the epicenter of the global mobility revolution, driven by increased freight demand and powered by advancements in sensing, behavior algorithms and machine learning. Not only are governments around the world preparing for it, but commercial firms are growing more enthusiastic about the prospect of fully self-driving trucks on the road.
Thanks to this growing excitement about self-driving trucks, businesses will look for qualified workers to fill various autonomous driving jobs. If you’re searching for a position in the autonomous vehicle sector, get ready for a challenging and exciting opportunity.
How to Find Self-Driving Truck Jobs
Some autonomous vehicle jobs are focused on research and development, driving new capabilities for advanced driving and corner cases. Others develop and hone the software crucial to driving skills such as simulation, machine learning, perception components or mapping. Some focus on the day-to-day operations and testing vehicles on roads or test tracks.
Those interested in working as a self-driving truck engineer should have a bachelor’s or master’s degree in Electrical, Mechanical, System, Industrial Engineering, Robotics, or a similar discipline. While educational qualifications are vital to companies, finding talented individuals with real-world experience is crucial. Employers will also demand knowledge of machine learning processes, Python and C++, as well as Linux. It’s crucial to know how to develop clean, manageable, and extendable code and an ability to navigate vast codebases.
If you’re considering autonomous vehicles careers, depending on the specialty, you’ll need to demonstrate experience with industry software, sensing hardware such as Lidar and radar, distributed computing, or distributed machine learning. While prior expertise in autonomous trucking, traffic simulation, or control and estimation algorithms testing is not necessarily required for these positions, it’s a desired skill set for possible applicants.
A successful self-driving vehicle engineer will need excellent verbal, writing, and interpersonal skills, as well as a willingness to learn, outstanding problem-solving abilities, and most importantly, the ability to operate successfully as part of a tight-knit team.
Prerequisites for Driverless Truck Jobs
The following skills are the most in-demand in an autonomous vehicle profession:
- Python
- C or C++
- Image processing
- Artificial intelligence
- Machine learning
- Git
- Java
- MATLAB
- Shell script
- Embedded software
Top Jobs in the Self-Driving Trucks Industry
Perception Software Engineer
One of the most highly sought-after self-driving truck jobs is that of a perception software engineer. This position presents the opportunity to work on cutting-edge technology and machine learning models for self-driving trucks. A self-driving truck must be aware of fixed and moving objects in its surroundings and be able to self-navigate safely and correctly around them. Lidar, cameras, and radars are among the most common sensors used in this technology. Companies in the autonomous trucking development sector require researchers and software developers to be familiar with machine learning algorithms.
Computer Scientists
Autonomous Systems and Computer Science experts are needed to design and create software for intelligent systems for driverless trucking. Computer scientists seeking open autonomous trucking and self-driving trucks jobs will need to have a current understanding of one of the fastest developing and most dominant technical changes in transportation. These experts will need to display essential knowledge and skills in:
● Artificial intelligence
● Autonomous systems security troubleshooting
● Computer graphics
● Computer imaging
● Data mining
● Deep learning
● Industrial mathematics
● Process control
● Real-time systems
● Robotics
● Signal processing
● Software technology
Strategic Account Manager
Autonomous truck jobs within the trucking industry require a large number of technical experts and talented software engineers, but it is important that the final product meets the needs of customers. That’s why a strategic account manager is just as vital as an engineer. An account manager is someone who helps a company launch a new autonomous truck by developing, defining, and executing profit-generating initiatives. Companies will need a strategic account manager that works closely with sales, marketing, business units, and cross-functional teams.
Field Service Technician
A field service technician is one of the most important self-driving truck jobs because they assist with self-driving system testing. This includes extensive testing of operation, maintenance, and evaluation. The field service technician reports to the autonomous vehicle operator’s supervisor, who oversees assuring and maintaining the vehicle’s safety during operations. Customers are the focus of the field service technician’s work, which includes:
- Operations and maintenance training
- Installation supervision
- On-site system commissioning
- Fielding customer calls
- Acceptance testing
Industrial Engineer
An industrial engineer oversees the process and system to improve material flow, design tools, strategies, and various other jobs. Autonomous vehicles industrial engineers are primarily concerned with finding methods to make the manufacturing process more efficient for the trucking industry. To do this, industrial engineers use their expertise, materials flow, project management, order fulfillment procedures, and WMS.
Customer Success Field Representative
A customer success field representative is hired to serve customers and works with the sales and marketing departments to help them sell more highly technical products to target audiences. While representing the company, this crucial position maintains personal contact with consumers and gauges the needs of customers. Autonomous trucking requires a lot of attention not just to the machines, but to the product itself.
Autonomous Vehicles Jobs: Future Requirements
As the need for autonomous vehicle jobs advances, additional positions will be required to support the operation and maintenance of self-driving trucks. As more firms develop self-driving fleets, their recruiting needs will include additional positions supporting self-driving car maintenance and operation. The following are some of the most essential autonomous downstream jobs:
- Automotive Service Technician
- Recruiter
- Accountant
- Marketing Manager
- Technical Writer
Join us!
If you enjoyed learning about autonomous vehicles jobs, we would love to hear from you. At Torc, you’ll have the ability to build a rewarding career with opportunities to learn, innovate, and contribute to a world-changing mission. Torc is a leader and pioneer in the field of autonomous vehicles with over 17 years of industry experience.
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by Torc | Mar 14, 2024 | People Ops
Kannan officially joins Torc’s executive leadership team to head financial operations in support of the company’s go-to-market strategy
BLACKSBURG, Va – March 14, 2024 – Torc Robotics, an independent subsidiary of Daimler Truck AG and a pioneer in commercializing self-driving vehicle technology, today announced the appointment of Richard Kannan as the organization’s new Chief Financial Officer. In his role, Kannan will manage all financial operations and lead the development of Torc’s overall financial strategy as it moves to bring its autonomous trucking technology to market. He will also oversee all reporting, enterprise risk management and compliance obligations for the business.
“Richard has proven himself to be an invaluable asset to Torc during his time as interim CFO, and I am thrilled to welcome him as a permanent member of our executive team,” said Peter Vaughan Schmidt, Torc Robotics’ CEO. “Richard helps shape our operational and business decisions using a data-driven approach. This will be essential as we work toward scalable market entry in 2027.”
After serving as interim CFO for Torc Robotics over the last several months, Kannan now becomes a permanent member of the executive leadership team. This prior integration empowered him to better understand and model Torc’s budgeting and forecasting for the business’s short- and long-term goals. It also provided invaluable context on the most significant reporting needs for the CEO, Board of Directors, and other key stakeholders.
“Being able to contribute to Torc’s vision of transforming the trucking industry with autonomous technology is an incredible opportunity, and one that I look forward to taking on as Chief Financial Officer,” said Kannan. “To collaborate with such smart people here at Torc, alongside our partner Daimler Truck AG, is an honor. I look forward to helping create value for our many stakeholders as we drive the future of freight.”
Spanning several industries during his career, Kannan generated multimillion-dollar cash flow and savings improvements. This timeframe included the pandemic and 2008 financial crisis. Kannan’s leadership style is nimble and data driven. With decades of prior experience coaching and mentoring teams in senior roles for General Electric and Genworth Financial, Kannan has lent his skills in the C-suite both as a fractional and full-time CFO for online retail companies spanning the U.S. He is a licensed CPA in the state of Virginia and holds a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
About Torc Robotics
Torc Robotics, headquartered in Blacksburg, Virginia, is an independent subsidiary of Daimler Truck AG, a global leader and pioneer in trucking. Founded in 2005 at the birth of the self-driving vehicle revolution, Torc has over 18 years of experience in pioneering safety-critical, self-driving applications. Torc offers a complete self-driving vehicle software and integration solution and is currently focusing on commercializing autonomous trucks for long-haul applications in the U.S. Torc operates test facilities in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and engineering offices in Austin, Texas; Stuttgart, Germany; and Montreal, Canada. Torc’s purpose is driving the future of freight with autonomous technology. As the world’s leading autonomous trucking solution, we empower exceptional employees, deliver a focused, hub-to-hub autonomous truck product, and provide our customers with the safest, most reliable, and cost-efficient solution to the market.
by Torc | Mar 7, 2024 | People Ops
With 18 years of experience, Ramachandran will leverage her skillset in delivering complex integrated systems to lead the development and deployment of autonomous driving technology
BLACKSBURG, Va – March 7, 2024 – Torc Robotics, an independent subsidiary of Daimler Truck AG and a pioneer in commercializing self-driving vehicle technology, today announced the appointment of Bhuvana Ramachandran as the vice president of engineering in the Product Engineering and Release organization. In her role, Ramachandran will be responsible for developing a comprehensive approach to the safe development, systematic testing and deployment of autonomous driving technology in Level 4 freight trucks.
“Bhuvana’s background and expertise in AI-based autonomous vehicle solutions coupled with her passion for innovation will be crucial for us on our journey towards commercialization of autonomous trucking,” said Peter Vaughan Schmidt, Torc Robotics’ CEO. “Bhuvana is a seasoned leader in the industry, and we are fortunate to have her aboard the Torc Robotics team.”
Along with system level testing, Ramachandran will lead simulation validation, with a goal of building a realistic, high-fidelity virtual environment while meticulously replicating real-world driving scenarios, enabling rigorous qualification and refinement of self-driving algorithms and systems. Virtual validation allows for the systematic exploration of various road conditions, traffic scenarios and unexpected events, helping to uncover potential challenges and vulnerabilities in the autonomous system.
Having spent more than five years establishing the team and directing autonomous vehicle software quality for Zoox, Ramachandran’s expertise extends across various domains from networking hardware, embedded software for virtualization and data storage products, to artificial-intelligence-based autonomous vehicles and their validation. She has successfully led teams through the analysis and implementation of verification and validation processes for driverless operational design domains and has experience in orchestrating seamless product releases.
“Throughout my career, I have been dedicated to driving innovation, ensuring the highest quality in products, and fostering a collaborative engineering culture to achieve transformative results,” said Ramachandran. “Torc’s commitment to advancing autonomous technology in a safe and sustainable way aligns perfectly with my passion for pushing the boundaries of what is possible in engineering.”
For more information on Torc, please visit www.torc.ai.
About Torc Robotics
Torc Robotics, headquartered in Blacksburg, Virginia, is an independent subsidiary of Daimler Truck AG, a global leader and pioneer in trucking. Founded in 2005 at the birth of the self-driving vehicle revolution, Torc has over 18 years of experience in pioneering safety-critical, self-driving applications. Torc offers a complete self-driving vehicle software and integration solution and is currently focusing on commercializing autonomous trucks for long-haul applications in the U.S. Torc operates test facilities in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and engineering offices in Austin, Texas; Stuttgart, Germany; and Montreal, Canada. Torc’s purpose is driving the future of freight with autonomous technology. As the world’s leading autonomous trucking solution, we empower exceptional employees, deliver a focused, hub-to-hub autonomous truck product, and provide our customers with the safest, most reliable, and cost-efficient solution to the market.
