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Perception Jobs in California (NOW HIRING)

Zoox

Director, Perception

Foster City, CA

$410K - $492K/yr

Our perception stack is responsible for building Zoox's world-class 3D environment model from multi-modal sensor data. We create novel AI architectures that combine the latest academic results with ...

Zoox

Director, Perception

Foster City, CA · On-site

$410K - $492K/yr

Our perception stack is responsible for building Zoox's world-class 3D environment model from multi-modal sensor data. We create novel AI architectures that combine the latest academic results with ...

General Atomics

Perception Engineer

Poway, CA · On-site

Join our Perception group to design and implement a real-time Dynamic Environment Model (DEM) to support multi-sensor fusion, track management, and sensor resource management across advanced unmanned ...

Zoox

Director, Perception

Foster City, CA · On-site

Our perception stack is responsible for building Zoox's world-class 3D environment model from multi-modal sensor data. We create novel AI architectures that combine the latest academic results with ...

Aurelius Systems

Perception Engineer

San Francisco, CA · On-site

$130K - $170K/yr

We are seeking a skilled Perception Engineer to join our software team and work on end‑to‑end perception and sensor‑fusion stack. You will develop, train, and deploy vision and sensor based ...

Mach Industries

Perception Engineer

Huntington Beach, CA · On-site

$125K - $220K/yr

As a Perception Engineer, you will design, train, and deploy state-of-the-art vision and multi-sensor perception systems that enable navigation, targeting, and automatic target recognition on our ...

Teleo

Senior Perception Engineer

Palo Alto, CA · On-site

$123K - $168K/yr

The Senior Perception Engineer will build perception algorithms and architecture to ensure safe operations for heavy machinery on construction and mining sites. Responsibilities : • Re-use, adapt ...

Zoox

Senior Manager, Perception

Foster City, CA · On-site

Our perception stack is responsible for building Zoox's world-class 3D environment model from multi-modal sensor data. We create novel AI architectures that combine the latest academic results with ...

xdof, Inc.

Senior Perception Engineer

San Mateo, CA · On-site

$150 - $210/hr

The Perception Algorithm team transforms raw multimodal sensor data into high-quality robot training annotations. You will be deeply involved in the complete loop from data collection to model ...

Albert Invent

Lead Perception Engineer

Palo Alto, CA · On-site

$110 - $140/hr

Build perception algorithms and architecture, fusing multiple sensor modalities and supporting an evolving set of novel object classes, in order to provide safe operations for heavy machinery working ...

Zoox

Senior Manager, Perception

Foster City, CA · On-site

$277K - $389K/yr

Our perception stack is responsible for building Zoox's world-class 3D environment model from multi-modal sensor data. We create novel AI architectures that combine the latest academic results with ...

Aeva, Inc.

Senior Perception Engineer

Mountain View, CA · On-site

$181K - $245K/yr

Aeva's mission is to bring the next wave of perception to a broad range of applications from automated driving to industrial robotics, consumer electronics, consumer health, security, and beyond.

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Perception information

What is a perception job?

A Perception job typically involves developing and improving a system's ability to interpret and understand sensory data, often in fields like robotics, autonomous vehicles, and computer vision. Professionals in this role work with sensor fusion, machine learning, and computer vision algorithms to detect, track, and classify objects in an environment. Their goal is to enable machines to perceive and react to their surroundings accurately, enhancing safety and efficiency.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a perception engineer, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Perception Engineer, you need strong foundations in computer vision, robotics, and sensor fusion, typically supported by a degree in computer science, robotics, or a related field. Familiarity with tools like ROS, OpenCV, TensorFlow, and experience working with LiDAR, radar, or camera systems are highly valuable. Excellent problem-solving skills, adaptability, and effective communication help you collaborate within multidisciplinary teams and tackle complex technical challenges. These skills are crucial for developing reliable perception systems that enable autonomous machines to interpret and interact safely with real-world environments.

What are some common challenges faced by professionals working in perception roles within autonomous vehicle development teams?

Professionals in perception roles often encounter challenges related to processing large volumes of sensor data, such as lidar, radar, and cameras, in real time to ensure accurate object detection and scene understanding. Balancing the need for high accuracy with the computational limitations of embedded systems can be demanding. Additionally, perception engineers frequently collaborate with teams in sensor fusion, mapping, and planning, requiring strong communication and interdisciplinary problem-solving skills. Adapting to rapidly evolving technologies and continuously improving algorithms to handle edge cases in complex environments are also key aspects of the role.

What is the difference between Perception vs Data Analyst?

AspectPerceptionData Analyst
Required CredentialsVaries; often no formal certification requiredBachelor's degree in statistics, data science, or related field; certifications like CAP or Microsoft Data Analyst
Work EnvironmentResearch, consulting, or strategic planning settingsBusiness, finance, healthcare, and tech industries
Employer & Industry UsageUsed in marketing, psychology, and strategic rolesCommon in corporate, finance, and tech sectors
Search & Comparison IntentUnderstanding how perceptions influence decisionsAnalyzing data to inform business strategies

Perception focuses on how individuals interpret and understand information, often in psychological or strategic contexts. Data Analysts interpret and analyze data sets to support business decisions. While perception is more subjective and qualitative, Data Analysts rely on quantitative data analysis. Both roles are essential in decision-making processes but serve different functions within organizations.

What are the most commonly searched types of Perception jobs in California?

The most popular types of Perception jobs in California are:

What are popular job titles related to Perception jobs in California?

For Perception jobs in California, the most frequently searched job titles are:

What job categories do people searching Perception jobs in California look for?

The top searched job categories for Perception jobs in California are:

What cities in California are hiring for Perception jobs?

Cities in California with the most Perception job openings:

Perception jobs near you
Infographic showing various Perception job openings in California as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 100% Full Time. Highlights an 100% In-person job distribution.

Perception Engineer

Human Computer Lab

San Francisco, CA • On-site

Full-time

Posted 29 days ago

Job description

Human Computer Lab is a research lab building character robots that feel alive and responsive. Our first robot, LeLamp, explores a new category of consumer robotics where everyday objects become interactive and help us reshape our attachment to technology.
Our goal is to push the frontier of human-robot interaction by making technology more legible, emotionally intuitive, and human-centered. We are building the foundation for a new generation of robots designed for everyday environments.
What to Expect
We are looking for a hands-on Perception Engineer who can build the system that allows our robot to understand people and the world around it. You will work on developing computer vision and machine learning system at the core of the robot's awareness, enabling it to recognize people, understand gestures, track attention, and respond naturally in real time. The liveliness of our robot will truly convey the character interface that we are building that can learn and adapt as required.
This role sits at the intersection of robotics, machine learning, and software engineering. You will work closely with the CEO and the founding team to develop perception capabilities from prototype to deployment, collecting data, training models, optimizing performance, and integrating the stack directly into the robot's behavior.
In this Role, You Will:
  • Design, train, and deploy computer vision and perception models for person detection, tracking, pose estimation, gesture recognition, emotion recognition and scene understanding.
  • Develop data collection, labeling, and evaluation pipelines to improve model performance and reliability.
  • Build perception systems that operate robustly across varying lighting conditions, environments, and user behaviors.
  • Optimize models for real-time inference on edge hardware while balancing latency, accuracy, and power constraints.
  • Work with RGB cameras, depth sensors, IMUs, audio inputs, and other sensor modalities to create multi-modal perception systems.
  • Develop tools for dataset management, model evaluation, debugging, and monitoring.
  • Support integration between perception, behavior, controls, and firmware systems.
  • Stay updated with state-of-the-art research to develop architectures and techniques that can improve the robot's ability to understand and interact with people.
  • Debug perception failures systematically and close the loop through data-driven improvements.
  • Help define and evolve the platform's perception architecture as the robot grows in capability.

You May Be a Good Fit If You:
  • Have a degree in Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Robotics, Electrical Engineering, or a related field, and a minimum of 3+ years of hands-on experience.
  • Are proficient in Python and comfortable working in C++ when required.
  • Have experience training and deploying machine learning models using frameworks such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, ONNX, or similar tools.
  • Have worked on computer vision problems such as object detection, tracking, pose estimation, segmentation, gesture recognition, or activity understanding.
  • Have experience deploying models to edge devices and optimizing performance for real-world systems.
  • Understand the challenges of collecting, labeling, and maintaining high-quality datasets.
  • Are comfortable working in environments where architecture is still evolving and your input shapes direction.
  • Document clearly and drive issues to resolution.

You Will Be a Strong Fit If You:
  • Care deeply about building perception systems that work reliably outside ideal lab conditions.
  • Have strong intuition for debugging machine learning systems and can distinguish between data problems, model problems, and deployment problems.
  • Enjoy converting cutting-edge research into practical systems that ship.
  • Think critically about tradeoffs between accuracy, latency, robustness, power consumption, and cost.
  • Have the ability to quickly adapt through iteration cycles without waiting for perfect information to make progress.
  • Take ownership over systems end-to-end, from data collection and training through deployment and monitoring.
  • Work well in small, collaborative teams where software, hardware, controls, and AI are in constant conversation.
  • Care about what perception enables: awareness, responsiveness, and the feeling that the robot is alive.

The early team becomes the DNA of the company. We set ourselves and others to a high standard, and we respond with kindness when things get hard but keep everyone accountable. This requires us to be curious, creative, and diverse in our thinking and approach.
We're proud to be an equal opportunity employer and consider all qualified applicants regardless of race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status. Even if you don't meet every single requirement, we encourage you to apply. Studies show that women and underrepresented groups often hold back unless they meet 100% of the criteria - we don't want that to be the reason we miss out on great talent.

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