Chief CV/ML Engineer for Autonomous Drone Defense

Allen Control Systems; Austin (TX); On-site; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

ACS Equity Package

Health, Dental, Vision Insurance

Paid Time Off

Job summary

Allen Control Systems seeks a Chief Engineer, Computer Vision/Machine Learning to own the technical direction and architecture for the CV/ML stack powering our autonomous anti-drone turret.

This senior leadership role will lead a small team of CV/ML engineers, set strategic technical goals, review designs, and ensure real-time, field-ready performance across sensor and compute platforms, with a focus on safety-critical deployment.

Qualifications

• 15+ years of experience in machine-learning-based computer vision and signal processing, ideally in robotics.
• Ownership of architecture for complex perception/autonomy systems over multiple years and releases.
• Ability to set technical direction that other teams follow and influence across domains.
• Experience mentoring senior engineers, including formal or principal-level leadership.
• Bachelor's degree in CS/EE with ML/CV focus; strong fundamentals in ML and CV.
• Proficiency in Python and C++ with modern ML frameworks (PyTorch/TensorFlow) and ability to guide across the stack.
• Comfort in fast-moving, engineering-first environments where architecture decisions impact real-world outcomes.

Responsibilities

• Own the CV/ML stack roadmap and architecture, guiding teams to execute.
• Document and decide on sensor/compute architecture, model strategy, and real-time performance tradeoffs.
• Drive the hardest technical problems from concept to field validation.
• Lead a small group of senior CV/ML engineers and mentor staff across the team.
• Collaborate with VP of AI and Engineering Managers to align technical strategy with product goals and hiring plans.
• Maintain high technical quality through architecture/design reviews and validation standards.

Skills

Computer Vision

Machine Learning

Python

C++

PyTorch

TensorFlow

Leadership

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or Electrical Engineering

PhD in Computer Vision / ML

Tools

Python

C++

PyTorch

TensorFlow

Job description

Allen Control Systems seeks a Chief Engineer, Computer Vision/Machine Learning to own the technical direction and architecture for the CV/ML stack powering our autonomous anti-drone turret.

This senior leadership role will lead a small team of CV/ML engineers, set strategic technical goals, review designs, and ensure real-time, field-ready performance across sensor and compute platforms, with a focus on safety-critical deployment.