Senior Software Quality Simulation Specialist
Kodiak · Mountain View, CA
$130,000–$145,000
Jul 20, 2026
Mountain View, CA
Jul 22, 2026
What this job asks for AI summary
This role sits within the Software Quality team at an autonomous trucking company, focused on running and improving large-scale simulation testing for self-driving truck software. Day-to-day work involves designing test plans, executing simulation scenarios, triaging results, and collaborating with autonomy and systems engineers to ensure coverage of safety-critical and edge-case conditions. It suits candidates with a background in simulation, QA, or test automation within robotics or autonomous systems.
Mid level · 3+ years · San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA · Bachelor's required · Full-time
Pay in the description: $130,000–$145,000
“or” means any one of them counts — you don't need all of them.
We read this from the posting text with AI. Skim the description below before ruling yourself out.
How this req sits in the market our data
Roughly 1,250 people in the San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA area plausibly meet what this posting asks for (software quality assurance analysts and testers). range 650–1,600
Applicant volume Heavy — This req sits in a large pool with little in its requirements to thin it, and auto-apply tools fire at everything in the occupation. Applying early and leading with the rare skills below is what gets read.
Most people in this occupation already list these. Still required — just not what gets you shortlisted.
What the occupation pays Median $170,192 (middle half $126,400–$188,281). This posting is about at that midpoint.
Estimated from BLS employment for this occupation and area, per-skill prevalence across our listing corpus, and published wage benchmarks — as of Jul 28, 2026. It is a model, not a headcount.
Why we read it this way (8)
The role sits at the intersection of QA/test automation and simulation engineering for autonomous vehicles; 15-1253 (Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers) is the best fit given the emphasis on test planning, scenario execution, triage, and reporting. 15-1299 (Computer Occupations, All Other) is a plausible runner-up given the specialized simulation-operations framing.
The JD states '3+ years of experience in simulation, QA, or test automation' and '2+ years of experience in autonomous vehicle or robotics industry' — the higher of the two (3 years) is used as the overall years minimum.
Python and C++ are listed together as 'Familiarity with python or C++ programming' under the requirements section — treated as a single interchangeable gate with C++ in alternatives.
Simulation workflows / large-scale simulation testing environments are listed as a hard requirement ('Hands-on experience with…') under the 'What you'll bring' section.
Test automation is listed as a hard requirement within the '3+ years of experience in simulation, QA, or test automation' gate.
Applied Intuition is explicitly called out as 'a plus' and is therefore preferred.
The posted pay range ($130,000–$145,000) is described as the base salary range for the SF/Silicon Valley location across several internal levels; actual pay may vary by experience and interview performance.
The posting notes that some roles may require export-license review or U.S. person/citizenship verification, but no formal security clearance is hard-gated.
Read the full posting
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