Technical Product Manager

Aquent is partnering with a pioneering company at the forefront of developing next-generation autonomous vehicle platforms. This organization is revolutionizing transportation through innovative engineering and a relentless pursuit of excellence, operating in the foundational stages of vehicle development where groundbreaking ideas become reality. Join a team where your contributions will directly shape the future of mobility, creating systems that are not just advanced, but truly transformative for users worldwide.

Are you ready to make a monumental impact in the autonomous vehicle space? We are seeking a visionary individual to step into a pivotal role, driving the very definition of our future vehicle platforms. This is an unparalleled opportunity to bridge the critical gap between user experience, complex hardware architecture, embedded systems, and cutting-edge software-defined features. You will be instrumental in translating bold visions into tangible product requirements, navigating intricate cross-functional trade-offs, and forging consensus across diverse engineering and design teams. Your work will directly influence the core functionality and user experience of our groundbreaking vehicles, defining what's possible from the ground up.

What You Will Do:

• Define and own critical product areas across current and future vehicle platforms, focusing on early requirements definition, user scenarios, and core customer use cases.
• Drive product requirements through initial concept development, rigorous feasibility analysis, and comprehensive cost/trade-off evaluations.
• Translate product vision into clear Product Requirement Documents (PRDs) and manage their evolution through review and maturation phases.
• Collaborate closely with Industrial Design and hardware engineering in early development stages to ensure optimal feature packaging, spatial feasibility, and alignment with cost targets.
• Work across Hardware, Firmware, Software, and Operations teams to align vehicle architecture, embedded systems, and software-defined feature development.
• Evaluate and navigate complex technical trade-offs, such as balancing cost targets against embedded controller memory limits, and adjust feature prioritization accordingly.
• Act as a strong, decisive Product Owner, adept at navigating complex stakeholder environments and driving decisions.
• Facilitate alignment and achieve consensus on compromised solutions when clear "win-win" outcomes are not present, always preserving the core product intent.
• Ruthlessly prioritize features and maintain transparent communication regarding priorities across all development phases.
• Balance long-term strategic vehicle roadmap objectives with immediate tactical milestones to ensure continuous progress.

Must-Have Qualifications:

• 6+ years of dedicated Product Management experience (not product-adjacent roles).
• Demonstrated track record of taking 0-to-1 products to market, ideally within the automotive or autonomous vehicle (AV) industry.
• Bachelor's degree in a technical discipline (Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field).
• Solid understanding of vehicle development, embedded software/systems, and software-defined feature development.
• High technical fluency, enabling credible challenge and effective collaboration with Hardware, Firmware, and Software engineering teams.
• Highly customer-centric with a clear product perspective and strong conviction.
• Proven ability to manage complex stakeholder dynamics, thoughtfully challenge assumptions, and drive decisions effectively.
• Thrives in hands-on, fast-moving, startup-like environments.
• Proficiency with requirements and task management tools such as Google Docs (for initial PRD drafting), Polarion (for requirements management), and Jira.
• Experience with design and collaboration tools like Figma and Google Workspace / Google Office Suite.

Nice-to-Have Qualifications:

• Experience gained at automotive OEMs or electric vehicle (EV) startups.
• Background in robotics or aerospace with strong experience in hardware/software integration.