Embedded Drone Autonomy Engineer – Hardware-Software Fusion

Applied Intuition; Fort Walton Beach (FL); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Applied Intuition is seeking a Software Engineer (Drone Stack Team) to architect and field advanced autonomy and vehicle intelligence systems. You will stand up integrations, run SIL/HIL evaluations, and support live testing on UAV platforms, interfacing with sensors and autopilots on embedded Linux.

You will collaborate with autonomy engineers to ensure end-to-end hardware–software integration, conduct system bring-up and validation, and travel for on-site integrations.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Robotics, Computer Science, or related engineering, plus at least 3 years hands-on robotics experience spanning hardware, software, and systems integration.
• Proficiency in modern C++ with Docker, containerized deployments, and Linux (Ubuntu or RHEL), plus Git, GitLab, and Visual Studio Code.
• Hands-on integration of robotics or autonomy products with Pixhawk-family autopilots (ArduPilot and/or PX4), plus knowledge of UART/RS232/RS422/RS485, SPI/QSPI, I2C, Ethernet.
• Experience with real-time, edge, and safety-critical computing in SIL, HIL, test, and operational settings, with strong communication and customer‑facing delivery skills.
• Willingness to travel 10–20% for on-site integrations; U.S. citizenship and ability to obtain security clearance.

Responsibilities

• Build and deploy modular autonomy capabilities on embedded Linux and compute platforms, interfacing with sensors and data capture.
• Integrate autonomy software with vehicle hardware to achieve full end-to-end integration with autopilots, datalinks, sensors, and ground stations.
• Perform system bring-up, SIL/HIL testing, and participate in live flight testing across UAVs.
• Diagnose and resolve software and integration issues to keep systems reliable and performant.
• Collaborate with DoD domain experts and third-party vendors to deploy autonomy software on OEM aircraft hardware.

Skills

Robotics experience

Modern C++

Docker

Linux (Ubuntu/RHEL)

Git/GitLab/VS Code

Pixhawk autopilots

Education

Bachelor's or Master's in Robotics/CS

Tools

Pixhawk

ArduPilot/PX4

NVIDIA Jetson

UART/RS232/RS422/RS485

Ethernet

Job description

Applied Intuition is seeking a Software Engineer (Drone Stack Team) to architect and field advanced autonomy and vehicle intelligence systems. You will stand up integrations, run SIL/HIL evaluations, and support live testing on UAV platforms, interfacing with sensors and autopilots on embedded Linux.

You will collaborate with autonomy engineers to ensure end-to-end hardware–software integration, conduct system bring-up and validation, and travel for on-site integrations.