Abhijit Sonje

About Abhijit Sonje

Autonomy System V&V and Test leader with 7+ years of experience driving validation strategy for autonomous systems across simulation, closed-course, and on-road environments. Currently, I lead the Test and V&V Strategy Team at Motional, owning end-to-end design, development, and execution of vehicle-level V&V strategy for commercial L4 robotaxi deployment.I specialize in turning complex autonomy behaviors/features into structured, measurable, and releasable test evidence. I don\'t just run tests; I define what gets tested, why it matters, and how results translate into release decisions that leadership can defend.My work spans the full validation stack: scenario-based testing architectures that surface edge cases before they reach public roads, metrics-driven release criteria traced directly to acceptance criteria, and cross-functional execution across Systems, Software, Safety, and Product. I\'ve built a V&V team from the ground up and mentored engineers into independent technical contributors, while staying hands-on enough to shape the strategy myself.I thrive in the gap between \"it works in simulation\" and \"it\'s ready to ship\", and I know exactly what it takes to close it.

Experience

1. Principal Engineer, Team Lead Test Strategy

   Motional

   Jan 2024 — Present

   Own the end-to-end vehicle-level V&V strategy for autonomous driving features across simulation, closed-course, and on-road environments; defining test coverage scope, scenario prioritization, and release readiness criteria across the full autonomy stack- Lead and mentor a team of V&V and Test Engineers executing system-level validation campaigns, scenario coverage analysis, and safety-critical release assessments- Architect scenario-based validation campaigns targeting perception, prediction, planning, and control behaviors; expanding edge-case coverage and improving system robustness across diverse ODD conditions- Implement validation metrics tied to system requirements or acceptance criteria, enabling structured, data-driven release decisions- Partner cross-functionally with Systems Engineering, Software, and Safety teams to identify coverage gaps, prioritize risks, and drive root cause resolution across the autonomy stack- Present validation status and release readiness recommendations, highlighting risks and regressions

Education

• Birla Institute of Technology and Science, Pilani

  Bachelor of Engineering (BE), Mechanical Engineering

  2011 — 2015

• The Ohio State University

  Master’s Degree, Mechanical Engineering

  2016 — 2018

Skills

• Ncode
• Mechanical Engineering
• Catia
• Structural Analysis
• Simulations
• Ansys
• Cae
• Solidworks
• Ansa
• Microsoft Office
• Product Development
• Ptc Creo
• Autocad
• Simulink
• Matlab
• Pro Engineer
• Non-Linear Analysis
• Abaqus
• Automotive Engineering
• Workbench
• Hypermesh
• Microsoft Excel
• Product Design
• Engineering