---
title: 'Mission Operator - Palo Alto, CA - Third Shift (Contractor) at Latitude AI'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/mission-operator-palo-alto-ca-third-shift-contractor-latitude-ai-palo-alto-sn9y18v207ay'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-06'
---

# Mission Operator - Palo Alto, CA - Third Shift (Contractor) at Latitude AI

- **Company:** Latitude AI
- **Location:** Palo Alto, CA
- **Posted:** 2026-08-28
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-06
- **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/latitude/jobs/8164699

## Job description

Latitude AI ([lat.ai](http://lat.ai)) is building the future of Ford’s autonomy roadmap to make travel safer, less stressful, and more enjoyable for everyone. Bringing this vision to scale, our fully in-house developed hands-free ADAS platform will debut on the all-new Ford Fathom in 2027.

When you join the Latitude team, you’ll work alongside leading experts across machine learning and robotics, cloud platforms, mapping, sensors and compute systems, test operations, systems and safety engineering – all dedicated to redefining the relationship between people and their vehicles for millions of customers.

As a Ford Motor Company subsidiary, we operate independently to develop automated driving technology at the speed of a technology startup. Latitude is headquartered in Pittsburgh with engineering centers in Dearborn, Mich., and Palo Alto, Calif.

Meet the team:

As a Latitude AI Test Specialist I, you will be responsible for the duties of prototype vehicle operations from both the left seat and the right seat. You will be responsible for the safe, compliant operation of an automated driving system, efficient completion of testing and data collection missions, and succinct escalation of system performance feedback.

What you’ll do:

- Operate a Latitude Test Vehicle; safely and compliantly
- Perform all vehicle inspection, start-up, launch, and shutdown tasks
- Follow procedures and processes to the highest standard
- Escalate potential safety and performance issues; promptly and clearly
- Document events throughout the day to aid in development of driving technology
- Clearly communicate feedback on system performance; strengths and improvement areas
- Partner closely with cross-team stakeholders to execute operations to meet developer needs
- May be required to lead a small team of individual contributors or manage a small second shift for fleet operations

What you'll need to succeed:

- High School Diploma or GED equivalent with one to two years of employment experience required.
- Must have valid driver’s license and ability to meet Latitude AI’s minimum driving record requirements, as verified by Motor Vehicle Record background checks prior to hire and periodically thereafter
- Enjoyment of driving for extended periods of time.
- Ability to monitor and test software via laptop in a moving vehicle and type proficiently
- Experience in a professional work environment where safety, honesty, procedure and/or software testing are emphasized
- Strong desire to learn new skills related to technology and software
- Capacity to navigate ambiguity and complexity while still producing results
- Ability to balance and keep track of multiple projects at once
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to span a large and varied audience: downward/lateral communication to peers through upward communication to supervisors and engineering stakeholders
- Varied skill set in a technical environment training and/or managing teams
- Have a passion to motivate, engage, and inspire others
- Detail oriented mindset with a focus on safety and procedure
- Ability to work in close quarters in a professional manner for extended periods of time
- Ability to work independently or with minimal supervision
- Ability to pass ten-panel drug screen and criminal background checks conducted prior to employment
- Willingness to travel to remote offices and test facilities as needed, including initial operator training
- Flexibility to work various shifts as required

Nice to have:

- Vehicle or technical product development experience
- Working knowledge of Atlassian Jira basics

Learn more about Latitude’s team, mission and career opportunities at [lat.ai](https://lat.ai/)!

Candidates for positions with Latitude AI must be legally authorized to work in the United States on a permanent basis. Verification of employment eligibility will be required at the time of hire.

## #LI-NC1

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to a culturally diverse workforce. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, age, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability status or protected veteran status.

## About Latitude AI

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Latitude AI is a wholly owned Ford subsidiary developing automated driving technologies to democratize autonomy and transform travel to be safer, less stressful, and more enjoyable.
- **Entity Type**: Private (wholly owned subsidiary of Ford Motor Company)
- **Headquarters**: Pittsburgh, PA, USA
- **Founded**: 2023
- **Founders**: Sammy Omari (CEO) and Peter Carr (CTO) are key leaders; the company was formed by Ford from its earlier autonomous driving assets.

## Core Business
- Primary industry: Automotive / Autonomous Driving (Technology, Information and Internet)
- Target customers: B2B – Ford Motor Company, with the goal of integrating ADAS into Ford vehicles for millions of consumers across all price points.
- Mission: Democratize autonomy and transform travel to be safer, less stressful, and more enjoyable for everyone.

## Products & Services
- **Next-Generation ADAS Platform**: A unified L2-to-L3 automated driving system built entirely in-house, from ML training on internal GPU data centers to optimized on-vehicle compute. The platform will debut on Ford’s all-new Universal Electrical Vehicle Platform in 2027.
- **Full-Stack Autonomy Software**: Includes perception, prediction, motion planning, behavior planning, multi-object tracking, and safety systems.
- **Off-Vehicle ML Ecosystem**: Proprietary tools for data collection, labeling, testing, and validation to support rapid iteration and scaling.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not publicly available (private subsidiary of a public company)
- **Key Metric**: Headcount of approximately 550 employees (LinkedIn reports 514 as of mid-2026, with +7.6% YoY growth)
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Sole owner is Ford Motor Company. Partners include Ford’s internal engineering and manufacturing teams.
- **Growth Signals**: Active hiring with 36–39 open job postings (178.6% YoY increase in postings); new offices in Greenville, SC and Allen Park, MI; plan to launch first product on Ford’s 2027 EV platform; headcount growing at 7.6% annually.

## Competitive Advantages
- **Best of both worlds**: Operates with the speed and agility of a startup while backed by Ford’s scale, manufacturing expertise, and capital.
- **Full-stack ownership**: Develops everything in-house (compute, ML, on-vehicle software, sensor hardware, test infrastructure), enabling tightly integrated, cost-optimized systems.
- **Focus on affordability**: Building autonomy for all price points – not just luxury vehicles – by reducing system complexity and cost.
- **Experienced team**: Led by robotics and ML experts with backgrounds at Waymo, Motional, Zoox, Aurora, and other autonomy leaders.

## Strategic Focus
- Deliver a unified L2-to-L3 automated driving platform for Ford’s next-generation electric vehicles (starting 2027).
- Scale the platform across millions of vehicles, making hands-free and eventually point-to-point autonomy accessible to a mass market.
- Maintain an aggressive, startup-style development cadence within a stable corporate parent.

## Why Work Here
- **Culture**: Mission-driven, inclusive, and collaborative. Emphasizes solving hard real-world AI problems with real impact on millions of drivers.
- **Autonomy & ownership**: Engineers own the full lifecycle – from ML training to vehicle integration – giving them massive technical influence.
- **Work-life balance**: Unlimited vacation, 15 company holidays, monthly wellness stipends, and initiatives to rest and recharge.
- **Office perks**: Daily lunches, snacks, and beverages at all locations.
- **Family support**: Paid medical and parental leave, adoption/surrogacy support, backup child/elder care, pet insurance.
- **Vehicle perks**: Discount and reimbursement programs for Ford vehicle purchase or lease.
- **Professional development**: Career planning, formal mentorship, 360° feedback, and a professional development reimbursement program.
- **Compensation**: Highly competitive pay, employer-matched 401(k) with immediate vesting, health/dental/vision insurance.
- **Diversity & inclusion**: Employee Resource Groups (Immigrants, Veterans, Women, Parents, REM, Neurodiversity, etc.) to ensure diverse perspectives shape the technology.
- **Work model**: Hybrid/office presence expected; offices in Pittsburgh (HQ), Dearborn/Metro Detroit, Palo Alto, and Greenville. Some roles may offer remote flexibility.

## Sources
1. [lat.ai](https://lat.ai/)
2. [lat.ai/about](https://lat.ai/about)
3. [lat.ai/careers](https://lat.ai/careers)
4. [Greenhouse job board](https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/latitude)
5. [LinkedIn - Latitude AI](https://www.linkedin.com/company/latitudeai)

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