Lead Functional Safety Engineer
Dexterity
Redwood City, CA · $186k–$232k a year · Posted October 17, 2026
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Where Redwood City, CA ranks
Where Redwood City, CA placed in our monthly rankings, month by month. Each month stays online at its own address.
November 2026
- #2Best cities for director and executive jobs in the West Coast32% · of 71
- #3Cities with the most hybrid jobs28% · of 100
- #3Cities with the most hybrid jobs in the West Coast28% · of 66
- #8Best all-round cities for remote workers in the West Coast68 / 100 · of 39
- #9Cities that post pay most often44% · of 100
- #10Best cities for entry-level jobs that want AI skills in the West Coast17% · of 54
Rankings about engineering jobs
- Best cities for software and engineering jobs #1 San Francisco (3,412 openings)
- Best cities for engineering pay after cost of living #1 San Mateo ($216k)
- Most requested AI skills in engineering jobs #1 AI tools in daily work (6.1%)
- AI tools named most often in engineering jobs #1 Claude (1.7%)
- Employers with the most engineering jobs #1 Amazon (2,992 roles)
How AI is used in this kind of work
AI use among health and safety engineers, except mining safety engineers and inspectors is little observed so far. Measured exposure for health and safety engineers, except mining safety engineers and inspectors: 0% (little observed).
Share of this job’s tasks that AI is already used for at work, from real usage. It is not a forecast of job loss, and a low number means no use seen yet. Source: Anthropic Economic Index.
Skills this job asks for
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About the job
About Dexterity Dexterity is the enterprise Physical AI company building intelligent robots for complex industrial work. Dexterity's Mech systems combine the Foresight World Model, robotics, and a Physical AI platform to perform demanding logistics workflows - including trailer loading, trailer unloading, and airport baggage handling - at the speed, reliability, and safety levels required for high-volume operations. Dexterity's Foresight World Model powers real-time perception, planning, and execution across physical environments with the interpretability required for industrial deployment. Dexterity is headquartered in Redwood City, California. Dexterity is backed by world-class investors such as Kleiner Perkins, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and Obvious Ventures. We are a diverse and multidisciplinary team with a culture built on passion, trust, and dedication. About the Role Lead functional safety engineering for industrial robots, autonomous mobile systems, and motion-control and drivetrain architectures. Own the full safety lifecycle — from hazard and risk analysis through requirements, architecture, implementation, verification, and validation — to support compliant deployment in North American, European, and Japanese markets. Responsibilities Own the functional safety lifecycle for industrial robots, autonomous mobile systems, and drivetrains—from risk assessment and safety requirements through architecture, implementation, verification, and validation. Establish safety processes and governance, including the Functional Safety Management Plan, integration with the Quality Management System, documentation, reviews, approvals, and audits. Define and validate safety architectures, including safe states, PLr/SIL targets, protective functions, and interfaces across controllers, drives, brakes, sensors, and safety-rated networks. Perform system and component safety analyses, including FMEA/FMEDA, fault tree analysis, and mechanical failure analysis; translate findings into traceable requirements and design evidence. Lead safety verification and validation, using quantitative reliability analysis, fault injection, and testing of stopping performance, fault detection, and safe-state behavior. Guide implementation and global compliance, partnering with engineering teams, certification bodies, and external assessors to meet applicable standards and market requirements. Support safe deployment and customer operations through technical guidance, operating procedures, training, and troubleshooting. Regulatory requirements Machinery risk and functional safety: ISO 12100, ISO 13849-1/-2, IEC 62061, and IEC 61508. Electrical and protective systems: IEC 60204-1, NFPA 79, and IEC 61496. Industrial and mobile robot safety: ISO 10218-1/-2, ANSI/RIA R15.06 and R15.08, ISO 3691-4, ANSI/ITSDF B56.5, UL 1740, and UL 3100, as applicable. Market compliance: Applicable EU machinery and EMC requirements and North American certification requirements. Qualifications Required Bachelor’s degree in Electrical, Mechanical, or a related engineering discipline. 10+ years of functional safety experience in robotics, automation, autonomous systems, or other safety-critical industries. Proven ownership of the full safety lifecycle, from risk assessment and PLr/SIL determination through implementation, verification, and validation. Hands-on experience with motion controls, safety PLCs, sensors, brakes, safety-rated networks, and PLC or embedded programming. Ability to assess robotic and drivetrain hazards, define fault detection and safe-state behavior, and quantitatively demonstrate required PL/SIL performance. Functional safety certification (TÜV, CFSE, CFSP, or CMSE) preferred. What Makes You Successful Strong ownership and communication skills, with the ability to explain safety decisions to technical and non-technical audiences. Ability to create clear compliance documentation, safety procedures, and customer guidance. Willingness to travel domestically and internationally to customer site as needed to support safety assessments, validation, deployment, and troubleshooting.