A natural match if you have experience in space domain autonomy and leading technical delivery.
Derived from job-description analysis by Serendipath's career intelligence engine.
Original posting from Shield AI via Lever
Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai. Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and YouTube.
About The Team
The Autonomy Capabilities team at Shield AI has assembled a diverse team of experts in software, robotics, control systems, optimization, and data analysis to create software solutions that greatly evolve the capabilities of our customers. The team is responsible for developing autonomous behaviors within Shield AI’s industry-leading mission autonomy software stack and deploying them across a breadth of platforms, including the Anduril Fury, Northrup Grumman Talon, Shield AI V-Bat, and other first- and third-party autonomous vehicles. We work in close coordination with specialist teams in software integration, hardware, and test engineering to solve some of the hardest problems facing our customers.
About the Job::
Focusing on the space portfolio, you’ll be creating autonomy capabilities for satellites and missile defense applications that span large-scale distributed optimization, automated tasking and scheduling, track fusion, RPO operations, and space vehicle motion/behavior planning. In many of these applications, you’ll have the opportunity to build capabilities from the ground up and be the first to integrate them onto new platforms. You’ll traditionally start with shorter-term R&D efforts or aligned customer programs but with the intent that successful efforts will grow into larger, multi-year programs. In many cases, the capabilities you will develop are at the cutting-edge and so demonstrating the ability to operate in grey space and at the intersection of the state-of-the-now and the state-of-the-possible is both exciting and crucial.
As a Staff engineer, you will lead the technical delivery of complex autonomy capabilities and demonstrate the ability to operate in significantly more grey space than more junior engineers, helping customers shape their requirements, define technical approaches for the team, and drive technical execution throughout the development process. You will combine your deep technical expertise with systems-level thinking to deliver scalable and operationally ready autonomy solutions.
What You'll Do::
Multi-Objective Optimization – Use advanced optimization strategies to perform large-scale distributed decision making, task allocation, and resource scheduling in multi-satellite coordinated missions
Weapons Target Assignment – Employ cutting edge approaches for weapons target assignment and motion planning for fleets of space vehicles and interceptors that have critical roles in our national defense
Advance the State of the Art – Pioneer advanced topics in low-SWaP optimal control, tactical behavior management in cooperative and adversarial contexts, and information-aware planning
Rigorous Software Development – Develop high-performance software modules that are well-tested, have clear interfaces and span-of-control, and are ready for mid-to-high Technology Readiness Level (TRL) insertions
Cross-Functional Collaboration – Collaborate with cross-functional teams including perception, planning, simulation, hardware, and flight test to ensure seamless integration of autonomy solutions on real-world platforms
Deployment & Test Support – Deploy autonomy capabilities to real space vehicles, supporting analysis of mission logs to verify software performance and validate system operational effect
R&D and Road-mapping – Contribute to autonomy roadmaps by researching and prototyping new algorithms, identifying tactical capability gaps, and proposing novel solutions that advance Shield AI’s mission
Travel Requirement – Members of this team typically travel around 10-15% of the year (to different office locations, customer sites, and flight integration events).
Required Qualifications::
Typically requires a minimum of 7 years of related experience with a Bachelor’s degree; or 6 years and a Master’s degree; or 4 years with a PhD; or equivalent work experience
Proficiency in programming languages such as C++ and Python, and familiarity with real-time operating systems (RTOS)
Significant background in one or several robotic technology areas related to control systems, motion planning, optimization, tactical behaviors, and/or distributed decision-making
Significant experience with unmanned system technologies and accompanying algorithms (ideally in the space domain specifically)
Experience with simulation tools and environments (e.g., AFSIM, NGTS, or similar) for testing and validation
Strong problem-solving skills, with the ability to troubleshoot and optimize system performance
Excellent communication and teamwork skills, with the ability to work effectively in a collaborative, multidisciplinary environment
Ability to obtain a SECRET clearance or higher
Preferred Qualifications::
Experience in multiple aerospace domains (e.g., air, land, sea, space)
Experience across a breadth of methodologies from classical control through optimization and applied ML/RL
Background in collaborative behaviors and swarm robotics
Familiarity with domain-relevant DoD or government programs
Hands-on experience supporting integration events, customer demos, and/or live exercises
Full-time regular employee offer package:
Pay within range listed + Bonus + Benefits + Equity
Temporary employee offer package:
Pay within range listed above + temporary benefits package (applicable after 60 days of employment)
Salary compensation is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, licenses and certifications, and specific work location. All offers are contingent on a cleared background and possible reference check. Military fellows and part-time employees are not eligible for benefits. Please speak to your talent acquisition representative for more information.
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Shield AI is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know.
Source: Shield AI careers (Lever)