Senior Software Engineer Autonomy Capabilities
Shield AI is a U.S. defense-technology company developing mission-autonomy software and autonomous aircraft for military and allied operations.
Funding history
Investors
About Shield AI
Founded in 2015, Shield AI builds Hivemind autonomy software and V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft for operations in contested, GPS- and communications-denied environments. Its current site also presents Aechelon synthetic-reality simulation and Vision Systems detection and tracking products.
Skills
Candidate Availability
Required and preferred rules are kept separate and reflect the wording in the original posting.
About the Role
You will design, implement, test, and deploy tactical autonomy algorithms for unmanned aircraft. You will develop planning, decision-making, behavior execution, and multi-agent coordination capabilities, combining classical autonomy with reinforcement learning. You will validate performance in field tests, analyze mission data, and adapt capabilities to evolving program needs.
Requirements
- BS or MS in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a similar field, or equivalent practical experience
- Minimum 5 years of related experience with a bachelor's degree, 4 years with a master's degree, or 2 years with a PhD
- C++ and Python proficiency
- Familiarity with real-time operating systems
- Background in control systems, motion planning, optimization, tactical behaviors, or distributed decision-making
- Experience with unmanned system technologies and algorithms
- Experience with simulation tools such as AFSIM or NGTS
- Ability to obtain a Secret clearance or higher
Responsibilities
- Design tactical autonomy algorithms for unmanned aircraft
- Develop high-performance planning, decision-making, and behavior-execution software
- Implement and test multi-agent behavior architectures
- Combine rule-based autonomy with reinforcement learning methods
- Integrate autonomy solutions with perception, planning, simulation, hardware, and flight test teams
- Deploy capabilities and participate in field tests and flight demonstrations
- Analyze mission logs and performance data
- Research and prototype algorithms for autonomy roadmaps
- Adapt autonomy solutions to evolving mission, compliance, and operational requirements
- Travel around 10–15% of the year
Benefits
- Bonus
- Equity
- Temporary benefits package after 60 days of employment