Head of Autonomous Robotics & Software Architecture

Anduril-1; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 220,000 - 330,000; Full time

Job summary

Anduril Industries, a defense technology company, is seeking a Chief Engineer for the Air Dominance & Strike team to own the architectural design of onboard autonomy, command and control, and modular payloads for next‑gen autonomous platforms. You will guide lean, multi‑discipline teams from initial concept through deployment.

With a software‑heavy focus, you will bridge strategy and rigorous engineering, oversee hardware/software integration, and steer programs from 0-to-1 to deliver

Qualifications

• Proven track record directing technical architecture and guiding individual contributors as a lead engineer.
• Background in developing and fielding software-heavy robotics, autonomous systems, or aerospace products.
• Strong hardware/software integration skills, including robotics software architectures and tactical mission systems.
• Experience with autonomous systems, mission-critical Department of Defense systems, or tactical edge technologies.
• Travel: Ability to travel up to 25% to customer sites and field testing locations.
• Education: BS, MS, or PhD in Robotics, Aerospace, ME, EE, CS, or equivalent.
• Security Clearance: Eligible to obtain and maintain an active U.S. Secret clearance.

Responsibilities

• Lead systems engineering, requirements decomposition, and technical architecture for software-heavy robotics systems.
• Guide small, fast-moving groups of individual contributors through the design, implementation, and deployment phases of emerging programs.
• Oversee hardware/software integration and testing (simulation, hardware-in-the-loop, and field testing) to ensure perception, motion planning, and task allocation algorithms run seamlessly on physical platforms.
• Partner with Product Managers and Business Development to convert customer mission needs into concrete technical milestones.
• Decide technical trade-offs across concurrent programs, helping teams prioritize engineering efforts.

Skills

Lead engineer

Robotics software architectures

Hardware/software integration

Autonomous systems

Technical leadership

Education

BS/MS/PhD in Robotics / related fields

Job description

Anduril Industries, a defense technology company, is seeking a Chief Engineer for the Air Dominance & Strike team to own the architectural design of onboard autonomy, command and control, and modular payloads for next‑gen autonomous platforms. You will guide lean, multi‑discipline teams from initial concept through deployment.

With a software‑heavy focus, you will bridge strategy and rigorous engineering, oversee hardware/software integration, and steer programs from 0-to-1 to deliver