Staff Product Manager, Applied AI

JOB SUMMARY

You will focus on driving the product vision, ensuring seamless execution across the complex hardware/software divide, and translating market demands into user oriented, executable product roadmaps.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES / KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

• Own and maintain the physical AI model roadmap: product vision, milestones, and release cycles for the core model stack
• Drive the integration, adaptation, and fine-tuning of foundation models into Apollo's autonomy stack. Sequence which capabilities graduate into the shipping model, balancing capability velocity against reliability and safety.
• Translate customer use cases into model capability requirements and acceptance criteria
• Partner with our data collection and evaluation team on benchmarks, real-world evaluation, and the success criteria that gate real-world deployment.
• Own the data strategy that feeds model development: define what to collect and why, the target tasks and behaviors, and the quality bar.
• Align data technology and operations teams on collection techniques, tooling, and quality expectations.
• Define and prioritize use cases based on business impact, feasibility, and customer needs.
• Ensure that product development efforts align with real-world economic value for customers.
• Synthesize insights from user research, customer meetings, usage data, and sales feedback into a strategy that delivers business objectives and customer benefits.
• Work with industrial design, user experience, and engineering teams to conceptualize and implement interactive features.
• Define product features/enhancements and communicate requirements to engineering teams via clearly written requirements documents, diagrams, and concise verbal communication.
• Support product marketing initiatives, partner relationships, and other opportunities to accelerate the adoption of our products.

SKILLS AND REQUIREMENTS

• 7+ years of experience in product management
• Strong understanding of modern robot learning techniques including imitation learning, reinforcement learning
• Demonstrated experience integrating, adapting, or fine-tuning models
• Strong familiarity with the constraints of running large neural networks on physical edge devices
• Strong analytical skills with experience in performance tracking and data-driven decision-making.
• Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written, enabling translation of technical insights into business impact.
• You make decisions in uncertainty, prioritizing velocity over perfection
• You prioritize user feedback, promoting and advocating for that voice to internal teams.

NICE TO HAVE

• Experience with autonomous robots or autonomous vehicles.
• Experience using simulation tools to improve user experience.
• Hands-on experience training or fine-tuning foundation
• Experience with data collection operation (teleoperation fleets, annotation and curation pipelines).
• Experience working with customers in light and heavy duty industrial environments
• Experience with robotics and functional safety standards (ISO 10218, ISO/TS 15066, ISO 13482, RIA 15.08).

EDUCATION and/or EXPERIENCE

• Bachelor's degree (or equivalent) in mechanical, electrical, systems, or robotics engineering, or a related field; advanced degree or MBA helpful.
• At least 10 years of experience in product management or engineering

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS

• Prolonged periods of sitting at a desk and working on a computer.
• Ability to spend time on lab and manufacturing floors, and to travel to supplier and manufacturing sites as needed.
• Must be able to lift 15 pounds at times.
• Vision to read printed materials and a computer screen; hearing and speech to communicate.

Salary range for CA: $275,000 - $350,000