Controls Engineer, Vehicle Controls

About Harbinger

Harbinger is an American commercial electric vehicle (EV) company on a mission to transform an industry starving for innovation. Harbinger’s best-in-class team of EV, battery, and drivetrain experts have pooled their deep experience to bring a first-of-its-kind EV platform to support the growing demand for medium-duty EVs and Hybrids. Harbinger: Familiar Form, Revolutionary Foundation.

Role Overview

Harbinger is looking for a Controls Engineer to join our Vehicle Controls team and help develop, validate, and debug the control algorithms that run our medium-duty EV and hybrid platforms. Working primarily on supervisory controls (vehicle state management, powertrain and energy management, torque arbitration, and fault handling), you will turn system requirements into production-quality Simulink/Stateflow models, verify them through model-in-the-loop (MIL) testing, and debug them on real vehicles using CAN data. You will also support other control domains as program needs evolve. You will work closely with systems, EE, and vehicle test teams, and your work will directly shape how our vehicles drive, protect themselves, and perform for fleet customers.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop, maintain, and improve control algorithms in MATLAB, Simulink, and Stateflow, with a primary focus on vehicle supervisory controls (vehicle state machine, charging controls, thermal management, drive modes, torque request and arbitration, energy management, and diagnostics/fault reactions).
• Write, review, and refine software requirements derived from system-level requirements; maintain traceability between requirements, models, and test cases.
• Develop and execute model-in-the-loop (MIL) test cases and test harnesses; analyze results, report coverage, and drive issues to closure.
• Develop and maintain CI pipelines (e.g., Jenkins, GitLab CI) that automate model checks, code generation, and regression testing.
• Generate production code from models and review the generated C code to support integration with the embedded software team.
• Develop and integrate OBD/UDS diagnostic functions, including DTC definition, fault detection and debounce, fault reactions, and DIDs; maintain diagnostic definitions in CDD/ODX and verify them on bench and vehicle using Vector tools.
• Calibrate, tune control parameters and debug control behavior on bench, HIL, and vehicle by capturing and analyzing CAN logs with Vector tools (CANalyzer, CANape, vSignalyzer).
• Perform root-cause analysis on issues found in vehicle testing and in customer fleets using field data and logs, and implement and verify fixes in the model.
• Participate in hands-on vehicle testing at test sites and customer locations, including occasional travel.
• Support model reviews, modeling guideline checks (e.g., MAB/MISRA-style guidelines), and configuration management of models and test artifacts.
• Collaborate with systems, calibration, embedded software, and vehicle test engineers to define interfaces (signals, CAN messages) and support vehicle integration and validation activities.
• Support other control domains beyond supervisory controls (e.g., chassis, body, and auxiliary systems ) as program needs require.

Required Skills & Experience

• 2-5 years of experience developing automotive or vehicle control software using model-based design.
• Strong hands-on proficiency in MATLAB, Simulink, and Stateflow for control algorithm development and debugging.
• Experience applying control theory techniques such as PID control, LQR/optimal control, and Kalman filtering/state estimation to real systems. 
• Experience writing software requirements and developing and executing MIL test cases.
• Working knowledge of C, including the ability to read and debug auto-generated or hand-written embedded code.
• Experience with CAN communication and analyzing CAN logs using Vector tools such as CANalyzer, CANape, and/or vSignalyzer, including working with DBC files.
• Experience calibrating control parameters on bench or vehicle (e.g., CANape with XCP and A2L files).
• Solid understanding of control systems fundamentals and vehicle systems (powertrain, high-voltage battery, inverter/motor, or vehicle state management).
• Experience with version control (e.g., Git) and working in a structured software development process.
• Comfortable working hands-on with vehicles and safely around high-voltage systems (HV safety training provided).
• Valid driver's license and willingness to travel occasionally to test sites and customer locations.
• Strong problem-solving, debugging, and communication skills; comfortable working in a fast-paced startup environment.
• Bachelor's degree in Electrical, Mechanical, Computer, Mechatronics, or Controls Engineering, or equivalent practical experience.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with EV or hybrid vehicle supervisory controls, energy management, or powertrain controls.
• Experience with SAE J1939 and commercial vehicle networks.
• Experience with automotive diagnostics: OBD, UDS (ISO 14229), DTCs, DIDs, and diagnostic description formats (CDD, ODX/PDX) using tools such as Vector CANdelaStudio.
• Familiarity with AUTOSAR and its toolchain (e.g., Vector DaVinci Developer/Configurator, Simulink AUTOSAR Blockset), including integrating model-generated code as AUTOSAR software components.
• Experience with Embedded Coder, Simulink Test,, Model Advisor, or Polyspace, and with SIL/HIL testing (e.g., dSPACE, NI, Vector VT System).
• Experience building CI pipelines for model-based development (e.g., Jenkins, GitLab CI, MATLAB CI/CD tools).
• Familiarity with EV charging standards (SAE J1772, CCS, ISO 15118).
• Familiarity with ISO 26262 functional safety and ASPICE.
• Experience with requirements management tools (e.g., Jama, Polarion, DOORS) and scripting for data analysis or test automation (MATLAB scripting, Python, CAPL).
• Experience analyzing field or fleet data to resolve customer issues.
• Master's degree in Controls, Electrical, or Mechanical Engineering, or a related field.

Key Benefits & Perks:

• Comprehensive Health, Dental & Vision (HDV) – 100% employee covered
• Early-stage Stock Options
• Robust Retirement Savings (401k, HSA, FSA)
• Generous Paid Time Off (PTO) & Parental Leave
• Annual Vacation Bonus
• Wellness & Fertility Benefits
• Cell Phone Stipend
• Complimentary Meals & Stocked Kitchens

California Pay Range

$120,000—$160,000 USD

Equal Opportunity

Harbinger is an equal opportunity employer and complies with all applicable federal, state, and local fair employment practices laws. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information or characteristics, physical or mental disability, marital/domestic partner status, age, military/veteran status, medical condition, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Harbinger is committed to ensuring that our hiring process is accessible for persons with disabilities. If you have a disability or limitation, such as those covered by the Americans with Disabilities Act, that requires accommodations to assist you in the search and application process, please email us at [email protected].

Candidate Data Privacy

Harbinger may collect, use and disclose your personal information or personal data (within the meaning of the applicable data protection laws) when you apply for employment and/or participate in our recruitment processes (“Candidate Personal Data”). This data includes contact, demographic, communications, educational, professional, employment, social media/website, network/device, recruiting system usage/interaction, security and preference information. Harbinger may use your Candidate Personal Data for the purposes of (i) tracking interactions with our recruiting system; (ii) carrying out, analyzing and improving our application and recruitment process, including assessing you and your application and conducting employment, background and reference checks; (iii) establishing an employment relationship or entering into an employment contract with you; (iv) complying with our legal, regulatory and corporate governance obligations; (v) recordkeeping; (vi) ensuring network and information security and preventing fraud; and (vii) as otherwise required or permitted by applicable law.

Harbinger may share your Candidate Personal Data with (i) internal personnel who have a need to know such information in order to perform their duties, including individuals on our HR, legal, and finance teams, and the team(s) with the position(s) for which you are applying; (ii) Harbinger affiliates; and (iii) Harbinger’s service providers, including providers of background checks, staffing services, and cloud services.

Harbinger may transfer or store internationally your Candidate Personal Data, including to or in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and the European Union and in the cloud, and this data may be subject to the laws and accessible to the courts, law enforcement and national security authorities of such jurisdictions.

Please note that we are currently not accepting applications from third party application services. Any unsolicited resumes or candidate profiles submitted in response to our job posting shall be considered the property of Harbinger and are not subject to payment of referral or placement fees if any such candidate is later hired by Harbinger unless you have a signed written agreement in place with us which covers the applicable job posting.