Autonomy Lead for Defense Robotics & Field Deployment

Valinor; Cookeville (TN); Hybrid; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Equity packages

Health, dental, vision insurance

401(k)

Unlimited PTO

Company holidays

Fertility benefits

Mental health support

Job summary

Valinor Dispatch is seeking a Lead Robotics Engineer to own the autonomy stack end to end, from computer vision and flight control to robotic manipulation, for defense-focused UxS charging infrastructure. Lead a small team, set architectural direction, and drive from concept through field deployment.

You will collaborate with mechanical, electrical, and software teams to ensure seamless integration and establish technical standards for simulation, testing, and safe field operation, while

Qualifications

• 5+ years building robotics/autonomy systems
• 2+ years in a technical lead or team-lead role on fielded systems
• Strong proficiency in C++ and Python with real-time embedded systems fundamentals
• Experience across perception/CV, state estimation, motion planning, and control

Responsibilities

• Architect and own the full autonomy stack across aerial platforms and robotic manipulators
• Lead integration and tuning of flight control software
• Design, develop, and bring up robotic arm systems with sim-to-real validation
• Develop computer vision and sensor-fusion pipelines for navigation and docking
• Collaborate with mechanical, electrical, and software teams for seamless integration
• Establish standards for simulation, testing, and safe field operation
• Mentor a small team of robotics/software engineers and lead prototype bring-up

Skills

C++

Python

ROS/ROS2

Perception/CV

State estimation

Motion planning

Control systems

Mentoring/leadership

Education

Bachelor's or Master's in Robotics/EE/ME/Aerospace/Computer Engineering

Tools

PX4/ArduPilot

Gazebo/Isaac Sim

MoveIt/OMPL

CUDA

Job description

Valinor Dispatch is seeking a Lead Robotics Engineer to own the autonomy stack end to end, from computer vision and flight control to robotic manipulation, for defense-focused UxS charging infrastructure. Lead a small team, set architectural direction, and drive from concept through field deployment.

You will collaborate with mechanical, electrical, and software teams to ensure seamless integration and establish technical standards for simulation, testing, and safe field operation, while