Prototyping Engineer

Helsing; Oxford; On-site; GBP 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Relocation support

Learning allowance

Health & wellness

Social events

Parental leave

Remote work option during pregnancy

Infraduction onboarding program

Job summary

Helsing in Oxford is seeking a Rapid Prototyping Engineer to bridge mechanical design, electrical integration and hardware iteration for cutting‑edge drone platforms.

You will own the build cycle from concept to field testing, refining assemblies, validating structures, and delivering flight‑ready solutions that accelerate learning and platform performance.

Qualifications

• Experience taking unmanned aerial systems through full cycle from concept to field testing.
• Proficiency in 3D CAD and structural validation techniques (FEA) with GD&T knowledge.
• Hands‑on fabrication with composites, metals, 3D printing, and soldering for aerospace hardware.

Responsibilities

• Design, fabricate, and assemble flight‑ready prototypes for Helsing's drone platforms.
• Modify airframes, fabricate wiring harnesses, and integrate power and avionics systems for rapid iteration.
• Integrate flight control platforms, flash firmware, calibrate sensors, and resolve bench and pre‑flight issues.

Skills

UAS experience

3D CAD

FEA

Workshop fabrication

Flight control integration

Tools

SolidWorks

Siemens NX

Teamcenter

CAD data management

Job description

Who We Are

Helsing is a defence AI company. Our mission is to protect our democracies. We aim to achieve technological leadership, so that open societies can continue to make sovereign decisions and control their ethical standards. As democracies, we believe we have a special responsibility to be thoughtful about the development and deployment of powerful technologies like AI. We take this responsibility seriously. We are an ambitious and committed team of engineers, AI specialists and customer‑facing programme managers. We are looking for mission‑driven people to join our European teams and apply their skills to solve the most complex and impactful problems. We embrace an open and transparent culture that welcomes healthy debates on the use of technology in defence, its benefits and its ethical implications.

The role

As a Rapid Prototyping Engineer, you will sit at the intersection of mechanical design, electrical integration, and hardware iteration. You will translate complex concepts and incomplete designs into functional, flight‑ready physical prototypes for Helsing's advanced drone platforms. Working closely with design and test engineers, you will own the full build cycle from concept through to field testing, identifying integration bottlenecks, developing custom hardware solutions, and keeping Helsing's developmental fleet operational and ready for flight. Your work directly enables faster learning cycles and more capable platforms, with tangible impact on the pace and quality of Helsing's hardware development programme.

The day‑to‑day

• Design, fabricate, and assemble flight‑ready prototypes, covering complex folding structures, deployment mechanisms, and integrated avionics bays, translating incomplete or evolving designs into testable hardware on short timescales.
• Modify airframes, build custom electrical wiring harnesses, and integrate power distribution and avionics systems to sustain rapid iteration across Helsing's developmental drone fleet.
• Integrate and configure flight control platforms (PX4, ArduPilot, or equivalent autopilots), flash firmware, calibrate onboard sensors, and resolve system anomalies during bench and pre‑flight testing.
• Plan and execute functional and lifetime test campaigns in the field, using telemetry data to close the loop between physical results and CAD model refinement, maturing prototypes through successive iterations.
• Collaborate with design and test engineers to surface integration risks early, delivering targeted hardware solutions that keep the developmental fleet on schedule and mission‑ready.

You should apply if

• Have taken unmanned aerial systems (multicopter, fixed‑wing, FPV, or ISR platforms) or highly complex mechanical or robotic systems through the full cycle from concept to physical assembly to field testing.
• Are proficient in 3D CAD (SolidWorks/PDM or Siemens NX/Teamcenter) and have applied structural validation techniques, including FEA, to aerospace or UAV hardware, with a solid understanding of GD&T.
• Are skilled in workshop fabrication, with hands‑on experience working with composites, metals, 3D printers, precision hand tools, and soldering stations to build, modify, and reinforce structures.
• Have practical experience integrating and troubleshooting flight control platforms, payload electronics, and power distribution systems on UAV or similarly complex platforms.
• Are comfortable working with incomplete documentation and evolving requirements, taking end‑to‑end ownership of outcomes and applying sound engineering judgement to keep work moving forward.

Note: We operate in an industry where women and other minority groups are under‑represented. We encourage you to apply even if you don't meet all the listed qualifications; ability and impact cannot be summarised in a few bullet points.

Nice to have

• Practical background flying, testing, and operating drones in field environments (multicopter, fixed‑wing, or FPV), including familiarity with Hardware‑in‑the‑Loop (HIL) test environments and automated telemetry or data‑logging hardware.
• Hands‑on knowledge of structural composites, including carbon fibre layup and vacuum bagging, and experience with advanced aerospace materials.

Join Helsing and work with world‑leading experts in their fields

• Helsing’s work is important. You’ll be directly contributing to the protection of democratic countries while balancing both ethical and geopolitical concerns.
• The work is unique. We operate in a domain that has highly unusual technical requirements and constraints, and where robustness, safety, and ethical considerations are vital.
• Our work frequently takes us right up to the state‑of‑the‑art in technical innovation, be it reinforcement learning, distributed systems, generative AI, or deployment infrastructure. The defence industry is entering the most exciting phase of technological development.
• In our domain, success is a matter of order‑of‑magnitude improvements and novel capabilities. We take bets, aim high, and focus on big opportunities. Despite being a relatively young company, Helsing has already been selected for multiple significant government contracts.
• We actively encourage healthy, proactive, and diverse debate internally about what we do and how we choose to do it. Teams and individual engineers are trusted and encouraged to practise responsible autonomy and critical thinking, and to focus on outcomes, not conformity. At Helsing you will have a say in how we work, the opportunity to engage on what does and doesn’t work, and to take ownership of aspects of our culture that you care deeply about.

What we offer

• Competitive salary and VSOP options.
• Relocation support: up to €2,500 and 4 weeks temporary accommodation.
• Learning allowance: €500/£450 yearly.
• Health & wellness: gym membership and mental health support (Nilo.health).
• Social: regular company events and monthly social allowances.
• Enhanced parental leave: 22 weeks fully paid for primary caregivers & 6 weeks for secondary caregivers.
• Family support: 5 days of paid family emergency leave, 100% remote work option during pregnancy and phased return to work.
• A hands‑on onboarding program (“Infraduction”), in which you will build tooling and applications to be used across the company, learning our tech stack and exploring the company from day one.

Helsing is an equal opportunities employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability or gender identity. Please do not submit personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade union membership, data concerning your health, or data concerning your sexual orientation. Helsing's Candidate Privacy and Confidentiality Regime can be found here.