Drone Stack C++ Engineer — Autonomy & HW Integration

applied; Washington (District of Columbia); Hybrid; USD 140,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Applied Intuition, Inc. is seeking a Software Engineer for the Drone Stack to design and integrate autonomy and vehicle intelligence systems across hardware and software domains.

Join a team delivering complex autonomy on embedded Linux, UAVs, and OEM hardware. A strong C++ background, drone experience, and willingness to travel are preferred. In-office role with occasional remote work; U.S. citizenship and clearance eligibility required.

Qualifications

• BS or MS in Robotics, Computer Science or related engineering field
• 3+ years of hands-on experience working with robotic systems (hardware, software, and integration)
• Experience with software programming languages: C++ preferred
• Experience integrating autonomy/robotics products with Pixhawk autopilots (ArduPilot and/or PX4)
• Experience integrating with communication busses & protocols: UART/RS232/RS422/RS485, SPI/QSPI, I2C, Ethernet
• Experience developing in Docker, containerized deployment environments, and using Linux-based operating systems (e.g., RHEL, Ubuntu)
• Experience using Git, Visual Studio Code, GitLab
• Familiarity with real-time, edge computing, and safety-critical systems operating in SIL, HIL, test & operational environments
• Excellent communication skills and customer-oriented project delivery mindset
• Willingness to travel frequently for on-site integration and demonstrations (estimated 10–20%)
• Must be a U.S. Citizen
• Must be eligible to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance

Responsibilities

• Adapt and develop modular and agile autonomy capabilities across diverse defense problems
• Integrate and deploy autonomy solutions onto embedded Linux and other hardware platforms, including interfacing with sensors and data collection
• Troubleshoot complex integration and software issues to ensure high reliability and performance
• Integrate autonomy software into hardware in collaboration with autonomy engineers that supports integration with aircraft autopilots, datalinks, sensors, PNT/GPS/INS, ground control stations
• Support live flight test of autonomy software on group 1-5 UAVs
• Collaborate with 3rd party UAS vehicle vendors on the integration of autonomy software onto OEM hardware
• Conduct system-level setup, testing, and validation, including SIL and HIL evaluations
• Collaborate with autonomy engineers to implement service-oriented-architecture software and inter-process messaging systems for autonomous UASs
• Collaborate with DoD warfighter domain experts and 3rd party UAS vehicle vendors to develop and integrate autonomy software onto OEM hardware

Skills

C++

Robotics

Embedded Linux

Autonomy

SIL-HIL

Pixhawk

ArduPilot-PX4

UART/RS232/RS422/RS485

Ethernet

Docker

Git

VS Code

GitLab

Real-time systems

Security clearance

Willing to travel

Education

BS or MS in Robotics, Computer Science or related engineering

Tools

Pixhawk Autopilots

ArduPilot/PX4

Docker

Git

VS Code

GitLab

Job description

Applied Intuition, Inc. is seeking a Software Engineer for the Drone Stack to design and integrate autonomy and vehicle intelligence systems across hardware and software domains.

Join a team delivering complex autonomy on embedded Linux, UAVs, and OEM hardware. A strong C++ background, drone experience, and willingness to travel are preferred. In-office role with occasional remote work; U.S. citizenship and clearance eligibility required.