---
title: 'Recruiting Programs Lead at Applied Intuition'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/recruiting-programs-lead-applied-intuition-sunnyvale-0crbvjg763td'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-06'
---

# Recruiting Programs Lead at Applied Intuition

- **Company:** [Applied Intuition](https://feeny.ai/companies/applied-intuition)
- **Location:** Sunnyvale, CA
- **Compensation:** $130k–$180k
- **Employment:** full-time
- **Work type:** onsite
- **Posted:** 2026-07-09
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-06
- **Apply:** https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/applied/cdd26c4b-1130-47d1-a970-d72a9f26043d

## Job description

Applied Intuition, Inc. is powering the future of physical AI. Founded in 2017 and now valued at $15 billion, the Silicon Valley company is creating the digital infrastructure needed to bring intelligence to every moving machine on the planet. Applied Intuition services the automotive, defense, trucking, construction, mining and agriculture industries in three core areas: tools and infrastructure, operating systems, and autonomy. Eighteen of the top 20 global automakers, as well as the United States military and its allies, trust the company’s solutions to deliver physical intelligence. Applied Intuition is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, with offices in Washington, D.C.; San Diego; Ft. Walton Beach, Florida; Ann Arbor, Michigan; London; Stuttgart; Munich; Stockholm; Bangalore; Seoul; and Tokyo. Learn more at applied.co http://applied.co.

We are an in-office company, and our expectation is that full-time employees primarily work from their Applied Intuition office 5 days a week. However, we also recognize the importance of flexibility and trust our employees to manage their schedules responsibly. This may include occasional remote work, starting the day with morning meetings from home before heading to the office, or leaving earlier when needed to accommodate family commitments. This in-office expectation does not apply to contractor positions

## ABOUT THE ROLE

Applied Intuition is looking for a Recruiting Programs Lead to own two distinct but connected programs: our early career talent programs and our contingent workforce program. You will build the structure, compliance rigor, and scalability behind how we hire and manage talent outside the traditional full-time pipeline — from the students and new grads who become future full-time hires, to the contractors, temps, and agency workers who help the business flex and scale.

This role requires real depth in both areas, not just program management generalist skills: you should already know how to run a university relations and internship pipeline, and you should already know the compliance landscape around contingent labor, particularly in California. You will also be a trusted advisor to stakeholders across the business — someone who can defend a process because it is the right process, not simply implement whatever is asked.

## AT APPLIED INTUITION, YOU WILL:

- Own and scale our early career talent program, including university relations, new grad hiring, and internship programs, building consistent, high-quality experiences across teams and locations
- Manage the full early career recruiting lifecycle — from campus and university partnerships through offer and onboarding handoff — treating it as a cohesive, repeatable program
- Build and manage our contingent worker program end to end, including vendor and staffing agency management, to ensure consistent, compliant, high-quality engagements across the business.
- Bring working knowledge of the compliance landscape around contingent labor in California, including how different worker classifications (contractors, temp, temp-to-hire, and other contingent types) need to be structured and managed to stay compliant
- Manage contingent talent through a Vendor Management System (VMS), including requisitions, worker tracking, and spend visibility
- Bring or build knowledge of other worker types and how to work with Employers of Record (EORs), extending the contingent workforce model beyond the U.S. as needed
- Partner cross-functionally with Legal, Finance, internal applications, and Engineering teams to ensure early career and contingent programs align with business objectives and regulatory requirements
- Analyze program data and metrics — time-to-fill, pipeline health, contingent workforce spend and compliance risk — to identify trends, bottlenecks, and opportunities for improvement
- Drive automation across both programs (requisition approvals, candidate communications, vendor onboarding, training/compliance tracking, reporting) to reduce manual work and increase accuracy

WE'RE LOOKING FOR SOMEONE WHO HAS:

- Bachelor’s degree and 6+ years of experience in recruiting operations and other teams including talent acquisition, or people program management roles with demonstrated stakeholder management experience
- Proven track record of building and scaling an early career talent program, including university relations, new grad hiring, and internship programs
- Proven success building and managing a contingent worker program, including vendor/staffing agency management and day-to-day use of a VMS
- Solid understanding of employment law and compliance requirements as they relate to contingent workforce management, particularly in California
- Strong program management background with the ability to design and optimize processes, integrate feedback, and communicate outcomes across all levels
- Strong analytical mindset with experience using recruiting and workforce data to drive program improvements and decision-makin

## NICE TO HAVE:

- Experience with VMS platforms; Flextracks is preferred
- Knowledge of other contingent worker types and experience working with Employers of Record (EORs)
- Experience in high-growth technology companies, particularly in automotive or autonomous vehicle industries
- Direct involvement in scaling recruiting or talent operations from early-stage startups to larger organizational structures
- Experience with ATS platforms that translate data to insights and actions
- Background in change management or organizational development

Don’t meet every single requirement? If you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

Applied Intuition is an equal opportunity employer and federal contractor or subcontractor. Consequently, the parties agree that, as applicable, they will abide by the requirements of 41 CFR 60-1.4(a), 41 CFR 60-300.5(a) and 41 CFR 60-741.5(a) and that these laws are incorporated herein by reference. These regulations prohibit discrimination against qualified individuals based on their status as protected veterans or individuals with disabilities, and prohibit discrimination against all individuals based on their race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or national origin. These regulations require that covered prime contractors and subcontractors take affirmative action to employ and advance in employment individuals without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status or disability. The parties also agree that, as applicable, they will abide by the requirements of Executive Order 13496 (29 CFR Part 471, Appendix A to Subpart A), relating to the notice of employee rights under federal labor laws.

FOR US-BASED ROLES: Applied Intuition is committed to providing an accessible and inclusive application and interview experience to applicants who are disabled veterans and other applicants with disabilities or medical conditions. Reasonable accommodations are available, requesting an accommodation will not affect your candidacy in any way, and you are not required to disclose the nature of your disability or medical condition in order to make a request. If you require an accommodation please contact careers@applied.co. We will work with you!

## About Applied Intuition

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Applied Intuition builds software and digital infrastructure to bring physical AI — autonomous driving and robotics — to every moving machine on the planet.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Series C; $1.5B total funding raised)
- **Headquarters**: Sunnyvale, California, United States
- **Founded**: 2017
- **Founders**: Qasar Younis (CEO) and Peter Ludwig (CTO)

## Core Business
- **Primary industry/industries**: Autonomous driving, robotics, defense technology, simulation and validation software for ADAS/AD systems.
- **Target customers**: B2B — automotive OEMs (18 of top 20 global automakers), trucking, construction, mining, agriculture, and the U.S. Department of Defense and its allies.
- **Mission or purpose statement**: “To build physical AI that creates a safer, more prosperous world.”

## Products & Services
- **Tools for Vehicle Intelligence**: Simulation, validation, and data management platforms for ADAS and autonomous vehicle development. SaaS and software tools for engineers building intelligent machines.
- **Vehicle OS**: An operating system for vehicles that manages over-the-air updates, data pipelines, and in-vehicle software, enabling automakers to deploy and maintain software-defined vehicles at scale.
- **Self-Driving Systems / Autonomy Stack**: End-to-end autonomous driving solutions, including perception, planning, and control, designed for cars, trucks, and off-road machinery.
- **NextGen OS & Infrastructure**: Platforms for defense, robotics, and next-generation physical AI applications, including solutions used by the U.S. military.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation**: ~$15 billion (as of 2024/2025, per LinkedIn profile)
- **Key Metric**: Total funding of $1.5 billion; 1,153 employees (+55% YoY); 396 active job postings
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Andreessen Horowitz, General Catalyst, Floodgate, NVIDIA, Databricks; partners include 18 of top 20 global automakers and U.S. defense agencies.
- **Growth Signals**: 
  - Acquired EpiSci (Feb 2025), Caliber Data Labs, and entities in Germany/UK.
  - Headcount grew 55% YoY; 1,000+ engineers.
  - Office expansion to 12 countries (US, UK, Germany, Sweden, South Korea, Japan, India, etc.).
  - Active hiring — job postings up 117.6% YoY.

## Competitive Advantages
- **Deep domain expertise**: Founded by YC alum/former GM engineer (Qasar Younis) and ex-Google Maps/Android Automotive engineer (Peter Ludwig).
- **Talent density**: 1,000+ engineers, 40+ ex-CTOs, and 30+ former founders on staff — a unique concentration of senior, founder-level talent.
- **Breadth of industry coverage**: Serves automotive, defense, trucking, mining, agriculture, and construction — rare diversification in physical AI.
- **Trusted by government and top OEMs**: U.S. military and 18 of top 20 global automakers rely on their stack, creating high switching costs and deep moats.
- **End-to-end platform**: Covers simulation, validation, OS, and full autonomy stack — not just a point solution.

## Strategic Focus
- **Expansion into defense**: Heavy investment in defense AI, including acquisitions and dedicated government offices in Washington D.C., San Diego, and Ft. Walton Beach.
- **Scaling physical AI beyond automotive**: Driving autonomy into mining, agriculture, construction, drones, and satellites.
- **Growing global footprint**: Opening offices in Europe and Asia to serve local OEM and defense clients.
- **Deepening the research lab**: Building a world-class AI research team focused on real-world intelligence.

## Why Work Here
- **Culture**: “1,000 engineers, 40 ex-CTOs, and 30 former founders” — a high-agency, high-trust environment where engineers take ownership of hard problems from day one.
- **Impact**: Work on technology that goes from sports cars to fighter jets to mining trucks — real-world physical AI that saves lives and reshapes industries.
- **Benefits**:
  - 100% employer-paid medical, dental, vision, and life insurance
  - 50% 401(k) matching
  - Up to 12 weeks fully paid parental leave
  - Learning stipend for education and training
  - Fitness and wellness stipend
  - 25 free Lyra coaching/therapy sessions per year
  - Catered lunches and expensed dinners, snacks, and drinks at offices
  - Alumni network for long-term professional connections
- **Work model**: Office-first culture with global hubs (12 offices across US, Europe, and Asia). Not fully remote — roles are generally tied to a specific office location.

## Sources
1. [appliedintuition.com — About](https://www.appliedintuition.com/about)
2. [appliedintuition.com — Homepage](https://www.appliedintuition.com/)
3. [linkedin.com — Applied Intuition Company Page](https://www.linkedin.com/company/applied-intuition-inc)
4. [appliedintuition.com — Careers](https://www.appliedintuition.com/careers)
5. [appliedintuition.com — Jobs](https://www.appliedintuition.com/jobs)

## Other roles at Applied Intuition

- [Recruiter](https://feeny.ai/job/recruiter-applied-intuition-tokyo-wpgvs03mbr80) — Tokyo, Japan
- [Sensor Validation Engineer (Sunnyvale, CA)](https://feeny.ai/job/sensor-validation-engineer-sunnyvale-ca-applied-intuition-sunnyvale-x8sn1vgksqpw) — Sunnyvale, CA
- [Senior Validation Engineer (Sunnyvale, CA)](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-validation-engineer-sunnyvale-ca-applied-intuition-sunnyvale-c9f3d44nqsjy) — Sunnyvale, CA
- [Recruiting Coordinator (Contract)](https://feeny.ai/job/recruiting-coordinator-contract-applied-intuition-sunnyvale-nhqnqj542y3h) — Sunnyvale, CA
- [Cybersecurity Software Engineer - New Grad (December 2027)](https://feeny.ai/job/cybersecurity-software-engineer-new-grad-december-2027-applied-intuition-e3gzwk0hrp11) — Sunnyvale, CA
- [Forward Deployed Engineer - New Grad (December 2026)](https://feeny.ai/job/forward-deployed-engineer-new-grad-december-2026-applied-intuition-sunnyvale-kzjq7ww8cwpb) — Sunnyvale, CA
- [Electrical Integration Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/electrical-integration-engineer-applied-intuition-bengaluru-pnpt5qsx5f3m) — Bengaluru, India
- [Enterprise Security Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/enterprise-security-engineer-applied-intuition-sunnyvale-qs4527s8ge70) — Sunnyvale, CA
- [Technical Program Manager - Trucking Operations](https://feeny.ai/job/technical-program-manager-trucking-operations-applied-intuition-sunnyvale-m8dmkrbas0t9) — Sunnyvale, CA
- [Engineering Manager - Defense Physical AI](https://feeny.ai/job/engineering-manager-defense-physical-ai-applied-intuition-washington-bfs8784c9g0k) — Washington, DC