Robotics Engineer

Minerva Defence; Worcester; On-site; GBP 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Share options vesting over three years

Bupa private health insurance

6% employer pension contribution

25 days leave plus bank holidays

AI tooling access

Relocation support / home office

Job summary

Minerva Defence is seeking a robotics engineer to join a hands-on, end-to-end platform team in the UK. You will own hardware integration, software development, and flight validation, with hands-on flight testing in the short term.

You will work closely with users to understand needs, develop capabilities from concept to field use, and contribute to autonomy and sensing roadmaps as the team grows.

Qualifications

• Solid, applied experience in robotics engineering, not just academic familiarity.
• Hands-on work with robotic navigation, SLAM, or computer vision in a real system.
• Comfortable working across hardware and software, the full stack of a physical system.

Responsibilities

• Own the development of new platform capabilities end to end, from requirement through to field validation
• Integrate hardware including sensors, camera systems, and communications equipment into the platform
• Develop software across perception, navigation, and communications, with real accountability for what ships
• Work on robotic navigation challenges including SLAM and localisation in GPS-constrained environments
• Take part in flight testing and validation.
• Work directly with users; their feedback is your brief
• Contribute to the long-term autonomy and sensing roadmap for the platform

Skills

Robotics engineering

ROS

Python

SLAM

Tools

Cameras

Sensors

Job description

Combine hardware, software,UAVsand piloting for a real-world hands-on role where no two days are the same.

Minerva Defence is one of the fastest-growing defence technology companies in Europe. We create the software, hardware and networking that make unmanned systems effective on the modern battlefield, all ideated, designed and manufactured end-to-end in the UK, and in active use today. We are deliberately low-profile: a team of around 60, small in headcount and outsized in effect. We look for people who are not just talented but genuinely committed to the work, the team, and the purpose behind it.

This role sits at thecentreof the platform's capability development, working directly with the users to understand what they need and then building it.You'llown the full arc: hardware integration, software development, flight validation. In the short term there's hands-on flight testing involved, and most engineers here would tell youthat'sone of the better parts of the job. Over time, as the team grows,you'llhave more say over where you focus.

Responsibilities

• Own the development of new platform capabilities end to end, from requirement through to field validation
• Integrate hardware including sensors, camera systems, and communications equipment into the platform
• Develop software across perception, navigation, and communications, with real accountability for what ships
• Work on robotic navigation challenges including SLAM and localisation in GPS-constrained environments
• Take part in flight testing and validation.
• Work directly with users; their feedback is your brief
• Contribute to the long-term autonomy and sensing roadmap for the platform

Combine hardware, software,UAVsand piloting for a real-world hands-on role where no two days are the same.

Minerva Defence is one of the fastest-growing defence technology companies in Europe. We create the software, hardware and networking that make unmanned systems effective on the modern battlefield, all ideated, designed and manufactured end-to-end in the UK, and in active use today. We are deliberately low-profile: a team of around 60, small in headcount and outsized in effect. We look for people who are not just talented but genuinely committed to the work, the team, and the purpose behind it.

This role sits at thecentreof the platform's capability development, working directly with the users to understand what they need and then building it.You'llown the full arc: hardware integration, software development, flight validation. In the short term there's hands-on flight testing involved, and most engineers here would tell youthat'sone of the better parts of the job. Over time, as the team grows,you'llhave more say over where you focus.

Responsibilities

• Own the development of new platform capabilities end to end, from requirement through to field validation
• Integrate hardware including sensors, camera systems, and communications equipment into the platform
• Develop software across perception, navigation, and communications, with real accountability for what ships
• Work on robotic navigation challenges including SLAM and localisation in GPS-constrained environments
• Take part in flight testing and validation.
• Work directly with users; their feedback is your brief
• Contribute to the long-term autonomy and sensing roadmap for the platform

• Contribute to the long-term autonomy and sensing roadmap for the platform

Requirements

Minimum:

• Solid, applied experience in robotics engineering, not just academic familiarity
• Hands-on work with robotic navigation, SLAM, or computer vision in a real system
• Comfortable working across hardware and software, the full stack of a physical system
• Python proficiency; experience with ROS or similar frameworks a strong plus
• Eligible for UK security clearance (SC): UK citizen or 5+ years UK residency
  

Preferred:

• Experience with UAV, UAS, or autonomous aerospace systems
• Familiarity with PX4 or ArduPilot
• Knowledge of RF, radio, or communications systems integration
• Track record of taking a capability from prototype to something that actually gets used
• Comfortable in a role where the scope is real and the priorities occasionally shift with a phone call

Benefits

The job is demanding enough, so we try to take the everyday pressures off your plate. The benefits are built around that, starting with a genuine stake in what we are building.

• Share options vesting over three years, so you own a real piece of it
• Bupa private health, fully funded from day one
• 6% employer pension contribution
• 25 days leave plus bank holidays, and properly enhanced cover for both parents
• Enterprise level AI tooling, with as many tokens as you need to accelerate your work
• Relocation support if you are moving to join us, or a home office budget if you work remotely

The full detail comes with your offer.