QA & Test Engineer
Witney, Oxfordshire (hybrid, 3 days on site)
We're working with an early-stage UK deeptech start-up building the trust layer for autonomous systems and physical AI. Their software gives drones, ground vehicles and other autonomous platforms an assured, real-time safety layer that runs on the edge with no need for a comms link back to base. The kind of work that, done properly, unlocks the safe deployment of AI in domains where today it cannot be trusted.
They're now hiring a QA & Test Engineer to set up and run verification for the platform from the ground up, reporting directly to the CTO. This is not a maintenance seat. Whoever joins will design the test infrastructure, write the automation, build the rigs, and shape how a safety-critical product is assured against standards like DO-178C as the company scales.
What you'll be doing
* Designing and building test infrastructure for embedded software running across multiple hardware platforms and real-time operating systems
* Writing automated test pipelines in Python, wired into CI/CD (Jenkins, GitLab, GitHub Actions or similar)
* Setting up Software-in-the-Loop and Hardware-in-the-Loop environments, including automated deployment across multiple targets
* Building performance and integration test coverage across simulation tools such as Gazebo and rosbag
* Defining and maintaining test cases, procedures and frameworks with full traceability
* Working closely with hardware engineers, systems architects and AI/ML engineers to bake quality into the product from day one
* Leading defect reporting, tracking and resolution through structured QA processes
* Preparing test results, coverage metrics and assurance evidence for internal and external reviews
* Exploring next-generation verification techniques (fuzz testing, property-based testing, constrained random, formal methods) and bringing the best of them into production
What they're looking for
* Bachelor's or Master's in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering or a related field, or equivalent commercial experience
* 3+ years of Python in a commercial or academic setting
* Hands-on embedded software testing and QA experience
* Experience with CI/CD pipelines and modern git-based workflows (GitLab, GitHub or similar)
* Practical SIL and HIL experience, including automated deployment to multiple platforms
* Experience with at least one test framework and with infrastructure / automation tooling
* Comfortable working across simulation tools (Gazebo, rosbag) and integrating performance testing into the wider pipeline
* Strong problem-solving, analytical and debugging skills
* Agile, CI and TDD as everyday practice
Nice to have
* Experience developing and executing test strategies for safety-critical software
* Hands-on with industry tooling such as Rapita RVS, LDRA, VectorCAST, Polyspace, ADA / SPARK or GNATFuzz
* Working knowledge of DO-178C, ISO 26262, IEC 61508 or DEF STAN 00-55
Practicalities
* Hybrid, 3 days a week on site at the company's own office and test facility in Witney, Oxfordshire. A proper office and rig site, not a co-working space.
* Salary sacrifice pension with 5% matched company contribution, generous holiday allowance, EV car scheme, cycle to work
* Right to work in the UK without sponsorship is required, the company is not able to sponsor visas
* Candidates must be eligible to obtain and maintain UK security clearance. Existing clearance is not required, but the route to it must be open.
Who this is for
This is a start-up at the early end of its growth curve, with ambitious goals and the pace to match. The team is small, the problems are hard, and the people who thrive here take ownership, switch context fast, and care more about progress than process for its own sake.
If you want to slot into a defined seat in a mature org, this isn't it. If you want to build the QA function for a serious safety-critical product from the foundations up, with direct reach to the CTO and the founding team, this is the seat for you.
To apply, send your CV through or reach out directly.