Finite State partners with product security teams, the guardians of our connected world, to create transparency for their connected devices and supply chains. Our platform handles connected devices and embedded systems across all industries, including those found in enterprises, healthcare, utilities, connected vehicles, manufacturing facilities, critical infrastructure, and government entities.
We are a fast-growing series-B company with a fully distributed workforce. Led by a team of seasoned experts, we are a mission-driven team passionate about arming our customers with the actionable insights, critical vulnerability data, and remediation guidance necessary to mitigate product risk and protect the connected attack surface. We are committed to a remote first culture.
QA Lead Engineer (AI-First Engineering Organization)
Overview
We are seeking an experienced QA Lead Engineer to drive quality strategy and execution within an AI-first development organization. This is not a traditional QA lead role — we are looking for a hands-on technical leader who can architect and implement an automated, AI-first quality framework that scales with modern software development.
In our environment, AI is a first-class partner in software creation. The QA Lead Engineer will define how quality is engineered into the product using automation, AI agents, and deep collaboration with Product and Engineering.
If you have over a decade of QA automation experience and are excited about redefining what quality means in an AI-native development lifecycle, we want to talk to you.
What You’ll Do
Quality Strategy & Technical Leadership
- Define and own the end-to-end QA strategy for an AI-first engineering team.
- Architect scalable, fully automated testing frameworks across backend, frontend, APIs, and AI-powered features.
- Lead the transition from traditional QA practices to AI-driven quality engineering.
- Establish quality metrics, SLAs, and measurable standards across the product lifecycle.
- Serve as the technical authority on testing architecture, tooling, and best practices.
AI-Driven QA & Automation
- Design and implement AI-agent-driven QA workflows (e.g., autonomous test generation, regression validation, autonomous testing agents).
- Integrate LLM-based or AI-assisted tooling into CI/CD pipelines.
- Leverage AI to improve test coverage, defect detection, root cause analysis, and release confidence.
- Evaluate and introduce emerging AI QA tooling and frameworks.
- Develop strategies for testing AI-based product features (e.g., model behavior validation, output consistency, guardrail enforcement).
Cross-Functional Quality Ownership
- Partner closely with Product to define acceptance criteria, quality gates, and risk assessments.
- Work with Engineering leadership to embed quality earlier in the development lifecycle.
- Drive a culture where developers co-own quality and automation.
- Lead post-incident quality reviews and implement systemic improvements.
- Define and standardize quality processes across squads.
Hands-On Execution
- Leverage AI to build autonomous QA systems that understand the context of product decisions, and use that context to drive the highest quality
- Build frameworks and reusable testing infrastructure.
- Mentor engineers on best practices in automation and AI-driven testing.
What We’re Looking For
Required Experience
- 10+ years of experience in QA engineering, with deep expertise in automation.
- Demonstrated thought leadership and hands on implementation experience with creating AI-driven Agentic quality systems.
- Proven experience designing and implementing automated test frameworks at scale.
- Strong programming skills (e.g., Python, JavaScript/TypeScript, Java, or similar).
- Experience with Cloud based CI/CD systems and modern DevOps practices.
- Demonstrated technical leadership in cross-functional teams.
AI & Modern QA Experience
- Experience using AI tools and agents in development workflows.
- Deep experience with AI Agents and LLMs and how to test AI-driven systems.
- Experience with autonomous test generation or AI-assisted test maintenance is highly desirable.
- Understanding of challenges specific to testing AI systems (non-determinism, hallucination, evaluation frameworks).
Leadership & Influence
- Strong communication skills with the ability to influence Product and Engineering leaders.
- Experience driving process improvements across teams.
- Ability to operate strategically while remaining hands-on.
- A mindset focused on systems thinking, scalability, and continuous improvement.
What Success Looks Like
- QA is largely automated and AI-driven.
- Quality metrics are visible, measurable, and improving.
- Developers rely on AI-driven test systems as part of daily workflows.
- Release confidence is high with reduced regression rates.
- Quality is embedded into the product lifecycle, not bolted on.
Why This Role Is Unique
You will help define what QA looks like in an AI-first organization. This role goes beyond writing tests — it is about designing a quality system where AI agents collaborate with engineers to proactively identify, prevent, and fix defects.
This is an opportunity to lead the evolution of quality engineering.
Compensation
Our salary ranges are categorized into two tiers based on geographic location:
- Tier 1 (San Francisco, New York, Seattle): $175,000 - $187,000
- Tier 2 (All Other Locations): $163,000 - $180,000
The final base salary will be determined by experience, skill set, and specific location. In addition to base pay, this role is eligible for equity and benefits.
About Finite State
At Finite State, we're on a mission to secure the connected world. Our platform empowers product security teams to detect vulnerabilities, manage software supply chain risks, and ensure compliance across complex device ecosystems. From IoT to critical infrastructure, we provide unparalleled visibility into firmware and software components, helping organizations protect their products and customers.
We move with urgency and intent — we’re transparent, own outcomes, put customers first, speak up, and learn fast — turning evidence into action. CLARITY is how we move fast without breaking trust.
- C - Customer first - Learn from customers. Ship with urgency.
- L - Leverage - Outsource the routine. Own the result.
- A - Agency - We take responsibility—end to end.
- R - Results - Ship value. Improve fast.
- I - Integrity - Speak up. Experiment boldly. Be kind.
- T - Transparency - Clear context. Faster decisions.
- Y - "Why" - Our mission—securing the connected products humanity depends on—is the reason Finite State exists. CLARITY is how we make that mission real, every day, at speed
Bold Innovation – We push boundaries, explore new ideas, and take initiative to solve complex problems.
The Finite State platform brings visibility and control to the supply chains that create connected devices and embedded systems—all in a simple to use platform and at the scale manufacturers need to keep device production on time and on budget. After unpacking and analyzing every file, configuration, and setting in a firmware build, the platform generates a complete bill of materials for software components, identifies known and 0-day vulnerabilities, shows a contextual risk score, and provides actionable insights that product teams can use to secure their software
We are proud to be an Equal Employer Opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based upon race, religion, color, national origin, gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, age, status as a protected veteran, status as an individual with a disability, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. Finite State is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with physical and mental disabilities.
