Technical Specialist, Motion Controls Architecture

About the role

The Motion Controls Architecture team develops scalable control-system architectures that coordinate propulsion, braking, steering, suspension, chassis, and supervisory control functions to achieve vehicle-level performance, safety, and drivability goals.

As a Technical Specialist, Motion Controls Architecture, you will be a senior individual contributor and technical authority responsible for defining, developing, and guiding the realization of complex controls architectures which span multiple software components, ECUs, vehicle subsystems, sensors, and actuators.

This is a hands-on technical leadership role. You will lead controls design initiatives, develop technically defensible solutions, mentor engineers, and influence decisions across Motion Controls and partner organizations. You may also coordinate the technical activities of other engineers during project execution while staying directly engaged in architecture development.

You will collaborate with internal engineering teams as well as external technology partners and suppliers to define interfaces, resolve system dependencies, aid in selecting sensors/actuators, and ensure the coordinated pursuit of overall control system performance/robustness to achieve desired vehicle attributes. The successful candidate will combine deep expertise in control systems, vehicle dynamics, embedded systems, distributed controls architecture, and functional safety with strong skills in communication, mentoring, and technical leadership.

Key Responsibilities

• Own the design and development of complex, system-level controls architectures spanning multiple software components, ECUs, vehicle subsystems, sensors, actuators, and communication interfaces.
• Apply control theory, dynamic-system analysis, signal processing, estimation, and system-level reasoning to develop robust and scalable Motion Controls solutions.
• Lead technical initiatives from problem definition to realization through architecture development, requirement elicitation, design, implementation guidance, integration support, and issue resolutio n.
• Develop and maintain logical, physical, and software architecture views that define system allocations, interfaces, states, dependencies, assumptions, and failure responses.
• Facilitate innovative controls design and help engineers evaluate alternatives, understand tradeoffs, identify failure modes, and select technically defensible solutions.
• Define and review system, software, controls, interface, diagnostic, and safety requirements, ensuring consistency and traceability between vehicle objectives, architecture, software implementation, and technical evidence.
• Contribute to Functional Safety activities, including Item Definition, HARA, FSR and TSR reviews, software FMEAs, safety-mechanism design, degraded-operation concepts, and fault-response strategies.
• Provide technical mentorship and facilitate structured problem solving.
• Wo rk with managers and technical teams to scope initiatives, establish realistic technical plans, identify risks and dependencies, track progress, and communicate technical status and recommendations.
• Collaborate with internal teams, including Motor Controls, Battery Controls, Active Chassis Controls, Autonomy Controls, Functional Safety, Systems Engineering, Chassis Electronics, Software, Vehicle Integration, Calibration and Validation, Vehicle Dynamics, and program teams.
• Collaborate with external technology partners and suppliers to define interfaces and improve sensor, actuator, controller, and subsystem capability, including diagnostics, latency, bandwidth, controllability, reliability, and fault handling.
• Identify gaps in architecture methods, engineering processes, development tools, and technical-review practices, and lead improvements that increase quality, consistency, and team productivity.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of related experience with a bachelor's degree; 6+ years with a master's degree; or a PhD with 3+ years of related experience. A minimum education of a bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Controls Engineering, Robotics, Mechatronics, Automotive Engineering, or a related technical discipline is required.
• Demonstrated experience designing and implementing complex controls architectures spanning multiple software components, ECUs, communication interfaces, sensors, actuators, and vehicle subsystems.
• Deep knowledge of classical and modern control theory, dynamic systems, digital controls, signal processing, system identification, state estimation, sensor fusion, numerical methods, and data-driven engineering.
• Experience developing production controls in relevant areas such as vehicle motion control, propulsion, braking, steering, suspension, driveline dynamics, vehicle state management, actuator coordination, or supervisory vehicle control.
• Strong understanding of physical-system behavior, including actuator dynamics, delays, bandwidth, saturation, hysteresis, uncertainty, disturbances, noise, tolerances, thermal behavior, and failure modes.
• Proficiency with model-based controls development and analysis tools, including MATLAB, Simulink, Stateflow, and Python.
• Experience with embedded software development, production code generation, controller integration, and software architecture distributed across multiple software components and ECUs.
• Familiarity with programming and development tools such as C/C++, Embedded Coder, Git, Jira, Confluence, Jama, and 3DX.
• Working knowledge of automotive communications protocols, diagnostics, controller hardware, sensors, actuators, and tools such as CANoe, CANalyzer, CANape, or equivalent platforms.
• Knowledge of ISO 26262 and experience contributing to functional safety concepts, technical safety concepts, HARA, FSR and TSR development, software FMEAs, safety mechanisms, degraded operation, or fallback strategies.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to explain complex technical topics, advocate for recommendations, report progress, and communicate with engineers, managers, senior leadership, partners, and suppliers.
• Demonstrated ability to mentor engineers, lead complex technical initiatives, manage personal priorities, make evidence-based decisions, and resolve ambiguous system-level problems.

Advantageous

• Experience with longitudinal /lateral vehicle dynamics, driveline dynamics, ride, handling, NVH, integrated vehicle motion control, or control allocation.
• Experience with robust control, nonlinear control, adaptive control, state estimation, sensor fusion, or model predictive control.
• Experience developing fail-safe, fail-operational, redundant, or degraded-mode control architectures.
• Experience designing safety monitors, plausibility checks, fault-detection and isolation logic, controlled-stop functions, or fallback strategies.
• Experience with rapid prototyping, model-in-the-loop, software-in-the-loop, hardware-in-the-loop, replay, simulation, or representative system-development environments.
• Familiarity with AUTOSAR, Automotive SPICE, model-based systems engineering, software architecture, requirements traceability, and production release processes.
• Experience collaborating with internal engineering organizations, external technology partners, Tier 1 suppliers, sensor suppliers, actuator suppliers, or vehicle subsystem suppliers.
• Experience leading complex technical investigations from initial problem definition through root-cause identification, architecture resolution, implementation guidance, and production closure.

Salary Range

The compensation range for this position is specific to the locations listed below and is the range Lucid reasonably and in good faith expects to pay for the position taking into account the wide variety of factors that are considered in making compensation decisions, including job-related knowledge; skillset; experience, education and training; certifications; and other relevant business and organizational factors.

Base Pay Range (Annual) $179,400 - $263,120 USD

Compensation &

Benefits

Lucid offers a comprehensive and competitive benefits package including medical, dental, and vision insurance; life and disability coverage; paid time off; paid holidays, paid sick leave; and a 401(k) retirement plan. Hourly/non-exempt employees accrue up to 120 hours paid time off, and salaried/exempt employee accrue up to 160 hours paid time off.

Eligible employees may also participate in Lucid's equity program and/or a discretionary annual cash incentive program. Incentive and equity awards, if applicable, are determined based on individual performance, role scope, market considerations, and overall company results, in accordance with the terms of the applicable plans.