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Automation Engineering Jobs in California (NOW HIRING)

We're looking for an Automation Engineering Manager to lead the team responsible for building and operating Tubi's multi-platform test automation infrastructure. You will own the strategy, tooling ...

We're looking for an Automation Engineering Managerto lead the team responsible for building and operating Tubi's multi-platform test automation infrastructure. You will own the strategy, tooling ...

The Automation Engineering Manager will lead the end-to-end integration and launch of the automation system in Porterville, CA , driving execution from design alignment through installation, testing ...

The Automation Engineering Manager will lead the end-to-end integration and launch of the automation system in Porterville, CA , driving execution from design alignment through installation, testing ...

The Reliability & Maintenance Engineering (RME) team are the business partners that work tirelessly ... As an Automation Engineer, you will play a crucial role in maximizing equipment reliability and ...

The Reliability & Maintenance Engineering (RME) team are the business partners that work tirelessly ... As an Automation Engineer, you will play a crucial role in maximizing equipment reliability and ...

The Reliability & Maintenance Engineering (RME) team are the business partners that work tirelessly ... As an Automation Engineer, you will play a crucial role in maximizing equipment reliability and ...

The Reliability & Maintenance Engineering (RME) team are the business partners that work tirelessly ... As the Regional Automation Engineer, you will engage on all aspects of high-level support for the ...

AI Automation Engineering Intern

San Jose, CA · On-site

$19.75 - $25.50/hr

About the Role We are looking for a motivated and technically curious intern to join our Silicon Test Engineering team. In this role, you will leverage AI and modern automation tools to build ...

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Automation Engineering information

See California salary details

$36.5K

$105.7K

$160.9K

How much do automation engineering jobs pay per year?

As of Jul 27, 2026, the average yearly pay for automation engineering in California is $105,723.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $85,400.00 and $121,900.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What engineers make $500,000?

Senior automation engineers with extensive experience, specialized skills in programming, control systems, and industry certifications can earn salaries approaching or exceeding $500,000 annually, especially in high-demand sectors like aerospace, semiconductor manufacturing, or large-scale industrial automation. Compensation often includes bonuses, stock options, and other incentives for top-tier professionals in these fields.

Will AI replace automation engineer?

AI automation engineers design and implement automated systems that incorporate artificial intelligence technologies. While AI can augment and streamline certain tasks, the role requires expertise in system integration, programming, and problem-solving that AI alone cannot fully replace. Automation engineers will continue to adapt by working alongside AI tools and developing new skills to manage complex automation projects.

What are some common challenges faced by automation engineers when implementing new systems, and how can they be addressed?

Automation engineers often encounter challenges such as integrating new automation solutions with legacy equipment, ensuring system reliability, and managing project timelines. Effective communication with cross-functional teams—including IT, production, and maintenance—is crucial to address compatibility issues and minimize downtime. Staying proactive with documentation, thorough testing, and continuous learning helps overcome these obstacles and ensures smooth implementation of automation projects.

What engineers make $300,000 a year?

Senior automation engineers, especially those with extensive experience, specialized skills in programming, control systems, and robotics, can earn $300,000 or more annually. High compensation is often associated with leadership roles, working in industries like aerospace, manufacturing, or technology, and may require advanced certifications and a strong track record of project management.

What is automation engineering?

Automation engineering is a field that focuses on designing, developing, and implementing systems and technologies to automate processes in manufacturing, production, and other industries. Automation engineers work with hardware, software, and control systems to increase efficiency, safety, and reliability while reducing human intervention. Their work often involves programming, troubleshooting, and optimizing automated equipment and processes.

What is the difference between Automation Engineering vs Electrical Engineering?

AspectAutomation EngineeringElectrical Engineering
Required CredentialsBachelor's in Automation, Control Systems, or related fields; certifications like Certified Automation Professional (CAP)Bachelor's in Electrical Engineering; Professional Engineer (PE) license often preferred
Work EnvironmentManufacturing plants, industrial facilities, automation system designPower plants, electrical systems, electronics labs, infrastructure projects
Industry UsageAutomation, manufacturing, process controlPower generation, electronics, telecommunications
Common Search/ComparisonAutomation Engineering vs Electrical Engineering

Automation Engineering focuses on designing and implementing automated systems and control processes in manufacturing and industrial settings. Electrical Engineering covers a broader range of electrical systems, power distribution, and electronics. While both roles require technical knowledge, Automation Engineers specialize in control systems, sensors, and automation software, whereas Electrical Engineers work more with electrical circuits, power systems, and electronics design.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as an Automation Engineer, and why are they important?

To thrive as an Automation Engineer, you need a strong background in engineering principles, programming, and process control, typically supported by a degree in electrical, mechanical, or automation engineering. Familiarity with PLCs, SCADA systems, robotics, and certifications like ISA or Siemens are commonly required technical proficiencies. Problem-solving, attention to detail, and effective collaboration are vital soft skills that set outstanding automation engineers apart. These skills and qualifications are essential to design, implement, and maintain efficient automated systems that improve productivity and ensure operational reliability.

What does an automation engineer do?

An automation engineer designs, develops, and maintains systems that automate manufacturing processes, software workflows, or industrial operations. They use programming, control systems, and tools like PLCs and SCADA to improve efficiency, reduce errors, and ensure safety in automated environments.
What are the most commonly searched types of Automation Engineering jobs in California? The most popular types of Automation Engineering jobs in California are:
What cities in California are hiring for Automation Engineering jobs? Cities in California with the most Automation Engineering job openings:
Infographic showing various Automation Engineering job openings in California as of July 2026, with employment types broken down into 92% Full Time, 5% Part Time, and 3% Contract. Highlights an 85% Physical, 5% Hybrid, and 10% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $105,723 per year, or $50.8 per hour.
Automation Engineering Manager

Automation Engineering Manager

Tubi

San Francisco, CA • Hybrid

Other

Posted 20 days ago


Job description

About the Role:

Tubi is one of the largest free streaming platforms in the US, serving a large-scale streaming audience across Web, iOS, Android, Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV, and game consoles. Quality at this scale isn't a checkbox - it's a competitive advantage.

We're looking for an Automation Engineering Manager to lead the team responsible for building and operating Tubi's multi-platform test automation infrastructure. You will own the strategy, tooling, and execution quality across our client surfaces - from video playback and ad delivery to content discovery and onboarding.

This role is for a hands-on technical leader who can set direction, influence cross-functional roadmaps, and stay close enough to the code to guide architecture, review critical implementation decisions, and unblock complex technical issues. You will build a team that ships reliable automation at speed - and you will help the team move toward AI-native automation practices: fluent in AI tooling, proactive about applying it, and disciplined about using it responsibly.

This is a hybrid role based out of either our San Francisco or Toronto office. You must be willing to travel to either location at least 2 days a week.  

What You'll Do:

Test Strategy & Quality Planning

  • Define and own Tubi's multi-platform automation strategy - covering Web, iOS, Android, CTV (Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV, Smart TVs, game consoles), and API layers.
  • Establish testing standards, coverage targets, and quality gate policies across the CI/CD pipeline to protect release confidence and production reliability.
  • Design specialized test strategies for business-critical scenarios: video playback (HLS/DASH), ad insertion, content recommendation surfaces, and user authentication flows.
  • Use AI-assisted analysis (e.g., failure pattern clustering, test gap detection) to continuously improve test strategy based on real production signal and defect trends - not gut instinct.

Automation Framework & Infrastructure

  • Lead the design and maintenance of scalable, cross-platform automation frameworks built for Tubi's unique device matrix and streaming use cases.
  • Ensure automation suites are reliable, fast, and integrated as quality gates in CI/CD - owning execution health, not just test coverage numbers.
  • Continuously build and evolve AI-augmented engineering workflows/system that fundamentally change how the team creates, maintains, and improves automation - going beyond adopting existing tools to designing new patterns, custom integrations, and repeatable practices that raise the team's output ceiling.
  • Own the team's AI capability growth: identify high-leverage AI applications in the automation lifecycle (e.g., AI-assisted test case generation, intelligent flaky cases detection, regression root cause summarization), prototype them, and codify them into team standards.
  • Evaluate and selectively adopt emerging testing tools and AI-for-testing innovations. Translate promising external ideas into concrete, team-specific workflows, and make sure adoption leads to measurable improvements in speed, reliability, and engineering quality.

Team Leadership & Growth

  • Manage and grow a team of automation engineers: set clear individual goals, run regular 1:1s, create concrete career development plans, and hold a high bar for technical execution.
  • Actively mentor engineers on AI-augmented engineering practices - including prompt engineering, AI-assisted debugging, and responsible review of AI-generated code - so that AI becomes a multiplier, not a shortcut.
  • Drive consistent AI tool adoption across the team; share workflows and learnings org-wide to spread impact beyond the immediate team.
  • Foster a culture of continuous improvement: encourage experimentation, normalize blameless retrospectives, and track team health alongside delivery metrics.
  • Stay current on AI technology trends - proactively surface relevant tools, research, and practices to the team and translate them into actionable process improvements.

Cross-Functional Collaboration & Reporting

  • Partner with QA leads, engineering managers, and product managers to clarify testing requirements, flag quality risks early, and align on release readiness criteria.
  • Represent automation engineering in cross-functional planning, contributing to roadmap discussions with data on quality gaps, automation ROI, and risk areas.
  • Produce regular, data-driven quality status reports for leadership, covering defect trends, automation coverage, execution reliability, team velocity, and AI-driven insights such as flaky test clusters, recurring failure patterns, and release risk signals.
  • Participate in incident reviews for production quality regressions, driving root cause analysis and ensuring systematic prevention - not just one-off fixes.

Your Background:

  • Bachelor's degree or above in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a related technical field.
  • 10+ years of experience in software testing and quality engineering, with at least 3 years in a technical leadership or team management role.
  • Experience building AI agents, skills, workflows, or similar Native AI based automation systems. Can combine multiple AI tools for complex tasks and proactively identifies where AI augmentation reduces toil or improves accuracy.
  • Hands-on expertise with cross-platform automation frameworks (e.g., Puppeteer, Playwright, Appium, WebDriverIO, Selenium, PyTest, TestNG, Jest) - and the judgment to know when to adopt a new tool vs. improve what exists.
  • Proficient in at least one primary programming language - JavaScript/TypeScript (preferred), Python, or Java - and comfortable reading code across stacks.
  • Solid grasp of client and server application architecture, enabling effective test design at the system boundary - not just at the UI surface.
  • Strong understanding of CI/CD systems (e.g., GitHub Actions, Jenkins, Buildkite) and experience integrating automation into complex, multi-stage pipelines.
  • Strong product sense: able to identify quality risks from a user and business perspective, not just a coverage-metrics perspective.
  • Excellent communication skills - writes clearly, presents data persuasively, and drives alignment in cross-functional settings.
  • Led the end-to-end design and rollout of a large-scale automation framework (new build or major migration).
  • Multi-platform testing experience across Web, Mobile, and Smart TV / CTV / OTT device ecosystems.
  • Hands-on experience applying AI to automation tasks: test case generation, log summarization, flaky test analysis, quality dashboard construction, or regression triage automation. 
  • Experience coaching engineers or QA partners on responsible, effective AI usage in daily engineering work.
  • Familiarity with video playback, streaming protocols (HLS/DASH), or ad insertion testing scenarios.
  • Prior experience in the streaming, media, or consumer tech industry.
  • Experience with distributed system testing or large-scale performance and load testing.

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