---
title: 'Senior People Business Partner at Applied Intuition'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/senior-people-business-partner-applied-intuition-sunnyvale-h5n37gtc1gxg'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-10-25'
---

# Senior People Business Partner at Applied Intuition

- **Company:** [Applied Intuition](https://feeny.ai/companies/applied-intuition)
- **Location:** Sunnyvale, CA
- **Compensation:** $155k–$241k
- **Employment:** full-time
- **Work type:** onsite
- **Posted:** 2026-10-20
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-10-25
- **Apply:** https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/applied/0d7df447-d7a5-49d2-8923-792fafe140e4

## 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

We're looking for a Senior People Business Partner to be the people strategist for some of the most technically demanding teams in physical AI. You'll partner directly with Senior Leadership at a company where decisions are made in days, priorities shift, and orgs change. You'll lead through influence, building trust with leaders and bringing in the right partners to get to the best answer. We expect our PBPs to lead with high agency. You'll own People strategy for your client groups the way a Chief People Officer would own a company’s people strategy: setting the agenda, making the calls, and driving outcomes. Client groups: This role is part of a shared hiring pathway for PBPs. Rather than hiring for a single client group, we evaluate candidates holistically first, then identify the best fit across the company as you advance, aligning your skills and interests with where the business needs you most.

At Applied Intuition, you will:

- Be the business and people strategist for your leaders. Start with where the business is going and bring leaders a clear point of view, with the tradeoffs of each option laid out. Translate business goals into talent decisions: org design, workforce planning, leveling, and succession. Use data to spot attrition risk, capability gaps, and structural problems before the business feels them, and treat your leaders as customers whose success is your measure.
- Lead organizations through change. Own reorganizations, leadership transitions, and shifting priorities from design through landing: the plan, the narrative, the sequencing, and the follow-through with managers and teams. Keep headcount and resources disciplined along the way.
- Increase talent density. Lead calibration, promotion, and talent review for your groups. Identify and develop top talent, coach managers to raise the bar on their teams, and handle performance and employee relations issues with judgment, discretion, and dignity. Move fast and move safe.
- Shape People programs through the business lens. Heavily influence and lead the development of company-wide programs such as the compensation cycle, performance and talent processes, and succession planning, making sure they work for the businesses they serve. Be scrappy when the moment calls for it: if a program doesn't exist yet or the timeline is short, build a working version yourself and refine it as you go.
- Raise the bar on the PBP team. Take on the most complex client groups, help shape how the team operates, and raise the bar for the PBPs around you.

We are looking for someone who has:

- 8+ years of HR business partner experience, with at least 3 years partnering directly with C-suite or SVP-level leaders, preferably in a high-tech environment.
- Bachelor’s or advanced degree in Human Resources, Organizational Psychology, or a related field
- Strong business acumen. You understand how the business makes money, where the constraints are, and how talent decisions affect outcomes, and you can speak that language with executives.
- Strong judgment. You know when to move fast, when to slow down, and when to bring in partners, and leaders trust your read on sensitive, ambiguous situations.
- High agency and ownership. You've run a client group or a major initiative with minimal direction, made decisions with incomplete information, and are energized by owning the outcome end to end.
- A record of leading change, not just supporting it: org design, workforce planning, and reorganizations through rapid growth or shifting priorities, with outcomes you can point to.
- A track record of influencing executive decisions with data and a clear point of view, not just supporting them.
- Fluency with data. You pull your own analysis, find the signal in headcount, attrition, and performance data, and turn it into a recommendation a leader can act on.
- Experience with talent processes (calibration, compensation, promotion) and complex employee relations, including investigations, performance management, and terminations.
- Clear, concise, direct communication, and the discipline to prioritize ruthlessly and follow through on every commitment.

Nice to have:

- Experience supporting engineering, research, or other highly technical organizations.
- Experience partnering with founders or scaling through an IPO.
- Experience supporting international teams, particularly in Germany, Japan, Middle East or Australia.

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

- [Shift Lead](https://feeny.ai/job/shift-lead-applied-intuition-tokyo-awvvb8ygdf0j) — Tokyo, Japan
- [Sr. People Operations Generalist](https://feeny.ai/job/sr-people-operations-generalist-applied-intuition-sunnyvale-vvhn6mmn88t4) — Sunnyvale, CA
- [System Validation Engineer - Autonomous Driving](https://feeny.ai/job/system-validation-engineer-autonomous-driving-applied-intuition-tokyo-x6k5159ma257) — Tokyo, Japan
- [Global People Compliance & ER Partner](https://feeny.ai/job/global-people-compliance-er-partner-applied-intuition-sunnyvale-tkgbbzb0v755) — Sunnyvale, CA
- [Senior People Business Partner - EMEA](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-people-business-partner-emea-applied-intuition-munich-9vjrvbsx47m8) — Munich, Germany
- [Engineering Manager - Autonomy Storage Infra](https://feeny.ai/job/engineering-manager-autonomy-storage-infra-applied-intuition-sunnyvale-y23xdszmba7j) — Sunnyvale, CA
- [Compensation Lead](https://feeny.ai/job/compensation-lead-applied-intuition-sunnyvale-1hq5eq945qkg) — Sunnyvale, CA
- [Autonomy Integration Software Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/autonomy-integration-software-engineer-applied-intuition-ann-arbor-f5wat6z98tw4) — Ann Arbor, MI
- [Application Engineer - Trucking](https://feeny.ai/job/application-engineer-trucking-applied-intuition-sunnyvale-hdwhn9jc9v0w) — Sunnyvale, CA
- [Full-Stack Software Engineer, People Intelligence](https://feeny.ai/job/full-stack-software-engineer-people-intelligence-applied-intuition-sunnyvale-vvmneaepdhbw) — Sunnyvale, CA