Senior Robotics Engineer | Deep-Tech | Autonomous Systems

Reqiva; Melbourne; On-site; AUD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equipment budget

Conference funding

Job summary

Reqiva is partnering with an early-stage Australian Edge AI and Autonomous Systems startup to build a decentralised coordination platform for multi-drone systems. You will own the hardware and field operations backbone, initially as the sole anchor, then expand into leading a team as the fleet grows.

You will design the airframe, implement safety layers, and integrate the onboard runtime with ROS 2, C++, and high-fidelity simulation, contributing to field demonstrations and CASA compliance.

Qualifications

• Degree in robotics, aerospace, mechatronics, or related field, or equivalent hands-on experience.
• 5+ years building, integrating and flight-testing UAVs/multirotors.

Responsibilities

• Own the airframe and fleet, define build specs and BOM, lead procurement for drones.
• Design and validate an independent safety layer with geofencing, altitude separation, collision avoidance and return-to-home.
• Bridge simulation and reality by guiding RTK GPS and comms profiling, feeding results back to models.
• Stand up onboard runtime, run coordination stack on the companion computer (C++/ROS 2), contribute to high-fidelity simulation and hardware-in-the-loop.
• Lead field operations and safety for outdoor demonstrations; address GPS-denied and contested environments.
• Own field compliance, CASA approvals and defence test-range prep.
• Grow the team by establishing field procedures and recruiting robotics/field engineers.

Skills

UAV hardware

Flight testing

C++ / Python

ROS 2

Education

Engineering degree

Tools

PX4

ArduPilot

RTK GPS

Job description

We are partnered with a well-funded, early-stage Australian Edge AI and Autonomous Systems start-up in the early stages of building their team. You'll work directly with the founders and report to the CTO.

The company is building a decentralised coordination platform for multi-drone autonomous systems with use in defence and dual-use applications.

The role

You'll be the hardware, field operations and flight safety backbone of the programme. This is a hands-on, high-ownership role. Early on you'll be the sole field and hardware anchor, then build and lead your own team as the fleet grows. Responsibilities phase in over the programme, so you won't carry all of them on day one.

What you'll do

• Own the airframe and fleet. Take the prototype to a frozen build specification and bill of materials, document a repeatable assembly process, lead procurement for a fleet of drones.
• Be the safety authority. Design and validate an independent safety layer covering geofencing, altitude separation, collision avoidance and return-to-home. Maintain the failure-mode analysis and safety case, and hold manual-override authority in multi-drone flight.
• Bridge simulation and reality. Lead a staged, safety-gated ramp.Characterise RTK GPS and communications performance in real conditions, and feed the results back into the simulation models.
• Stand up the onboard runtime. Get the coordination stack running on the companion computer (C++ / ROS 2), and contribute to high-fidelity simulation (e.g. NVIDIA Isaac Sim) and hardware-in-the-loop design.
• Prove it in the field. Run field operations and safety for three outdoor demonstrations, then tackle the hard cases: mixed platforms, GPS-denied and comms-contested operations.
• Own field compliance. Lead CASA approvals, supply-chain provenance and preparation for defence test-range evaluation.
• Grow the team. Set up field procedures and help recruit and lead additional robotics and field engineers.

About you

• A degree in robotics, aerospace, mechatronics, electrical/electronic engineering or a related field, or equivalent hands-on experience
• Typically 5+ years building, integrating and flight-testing UAVs, multirotors or comparable field robotics
• Practical depth with flight controllers (PX4 / ArduPilot), RTK GPS, RF/comms links and end-to-end drone hardware integration
• Working knowledge of ROS / ROS 2 and C++ and/or Python
• Demonstrated ownership of field testing and flight safety: pre-flight procedures, failsafes, deconfliction, abort and return-to-home
• Comfortable defining process from scratch, working across hardware and software, and travelling to field sites

Nice to have

Multi-drone or swarm experience | Hardware-in-the-loop and simulation (Isaac Sim, Gazebo) | CASA RePL / ReOC | Sensor payload integration (thermal, multispectral) | GPS-denied navigation (VIO, UWB, sensor fusion) | Defence or dual-use experience | Master's or PhD in robotics

Why Apply

• A genuine ground-floor role, with a clear path to leading the field and hardware function
• Novel, decentralised autonomy work alongside the founding team
• A mix of lab and field work that shifts toward the field as the fleet scales
• An equipment and tooling budget, plus support for professional development and conferences

Eligibility:

Australian citizenship, or permanent residency with a clear pathway to citizenship, is required. You must be eligible to obtain and maintain a security clearance.