We determine fair compensation for each position by considering market rates, qualifications, experience, and location.

This job posting reflects a salary range based on different levels within the position, which are primarily determined by location. Your interview performance will help us determine your base salary offer within this range.

Keep in mind that salary is just one piece of Hayden's total compensation package. We also offer equity and a company-wide bonus plan. Additional benefits are shared as part of this job posting.

Benefits and Perks

There are endless learning and development opportunities from a highly diverse and talented peer group, including experts in a wide range of fields (AI, Computer Vision, Government Contracting, Systems & Device Engineering, Operations, Communications, and more!)

• Options for medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees and dependents (for US employees)

• Flexible Spending Account (FSA) and Dependent Care Flexible Spending Account (DCFSA)

• 401(k) with 3% company matching

• Unlimited PTO

• Daily catered lunches in our San Francisco office

At Hayden AI, we are committed to creating an inclusive and diverse workplace where everyone is treated with respect and dignity. We believe that our differences make us stronger and drive innovation. As an equal opportunity employer, we do not discriminate against any employee or applicant based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected status. We are dedicated to fostering a work environment that celebrates diversity and ensures that every individual has the opportunity to contribute to our mission and achieve their full potential.

Please do not forward resumes to our jobs alias, Hayden AI employees or any other company location. Hayden AI is not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes.

About Us

At Hayden AI, we are on a mission to harness the power of computer vision to transform the way transit systems and other government agencies address real-world challenges.

From bus lane and bus stop enforcement to transportation optimization technologies and beyond, our innovative mobile perception system empowers our clients to accelerate transit, enhance street safety, and drive toward a sustainable future.

What the job involves

The Principal Technical Program Manager will own cross-functional visibility and delivery accountability across Hayden’s full engineering and business portfolio. Working directly with executive leadership and business partners across Engineering, Growth, Finance, and Operations, this role translates competing business commitments into a coherent, executable plan, holding the line when capacity and demand diverge. They operate across the full technical stack: hardware, embedded software, edge AI, cloud, computer vision, fleet systems, and government deployment - fluent enough in each domain to surface the right risks and drive the right conversations.

Responsibilities:

• Portfolio Governance: Own the company-level program portfolio — maintaining a single source of truth for commitments, capacity, dependencies, and status across all active lines of work.

• Business-Engineering Translation: Serve as the primary interface between executive leadership and engineering teams, translating business commitments (contracts, growth targets, customer deployments) into engineering capacity plans and surfacing tradeoffs before they become misses.

• Executive Reporting: Design and maintain the dashboards, cadences, and reporting frameworks that give the senior leadership clear, accurate visibility into portfolio health without noise.

• Capacity Planning & Demand Management: Partner with engineering leads across Hardware, Perception, Platform/Cloud, and Eng Ops to maintain a real-time view of capacity versus committed demand, and drive prioritization decisions when they conflict.

• Cross-Functional Program Delivery: Drive end-to-end delivery of strategic programs that span multiple engineering pillars and business functions, including customer-facing deployments, new product launches, and operational scaling initiatives.

Required Qualifications:

• B.S., M.S., or Ph.D. in an engineering discipline

• 12+ years in Technical Program Management, Engineering Program Management, or a related role

• Demonstrated track record managing a portfolio of concurrent, cross-functional programs in a fast-moving environment

• Experience navigating business-engineering tension: translating contracts, revenue commitments, or customer obligations into engineering capacity and sequencing decisions

• Technical fluency across multiple domains — enough to engage credibly with hardware, embedded, cloud, and AI engineering teams without domain specialists present

• Strong executive communication skills: structured, direct, and able to distill complex program status into clear decisions

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with on-vehicle, edge-deployed, or ruggedized systems (hardware, embedded, edge AI)

• Background in computer vision, autonomous systems, robotics, or AI/ML programs

• Experience delivering technology to government or municipal clients (procurement cycles, compliance requirements, deployment constraints)

• Familiarity with fleet management, secure transaction systems, or sensor hardware platforms

• Experience in a high-growth startup or scale-up environment where process didn’t exist before you built it

Compensation Range: $213,743 - $277,866