Senior Autonomy Engineer, Data Curation

Skydio Inc.; San Mateo (CA); On-site; USD 170,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid vacation time

Sick leave

Holiday pay

401(k) savings plan

Job summary

Skydio Inc. in San Mateo, California, is seeking a full-time Software Engineer to build and optimize data pipelines and ensure high-quality datasets for their autonomous drone technology. Candidates should have over 5 years of experience, strong programming skills in Python or C++, and a commitment to reliability engineering.

The position offers a competitive salary ranging from $170,000 to $240,000, equity options, and comprehensive benefits including health insurance, paid vacation, and more.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of professional software engineering experience (or equivalent).
• Hands-on experience building data pipelines for large-scale datasets.
• Strong proficiency in programming, especially in Python/C++.

Responsibilities

• Build and operate pipelines for transforming raw autonomy logs into curated datasets.
• Improve dataset quality with versioning and automated checks.
• Apply privacy and security requirements throughout processes.

Skills

Software engineering experience

Proficiency in Python/C++

Data pipeline construction

Reliability engineering understanding

Decision making across interfaces

Job description

San Mateo, California, United States - Full-time

About the Role

Skydio is the leading US drone company and the world leader in autonomous flight, the key technology for the future of drones and aerial mobility. The Skydio team combines deep expertise in artificial intelligence, best-in-class hardware and software product development, operational excellence, and customer obsession to empower a broader, more diverse audience of drone users, from utility inspectors to first responders, soldiers in battlefield scenarios, and beyond.

How you'll make an impact

• Build and operate pipelines that transform raw autonomy logs & media into curated datasets with strong observability and clear ownership to make curated data more broadly reusable.
• Build tooling that makes data discovery and slicing fast and self‑serve for Autonomy teams. For example: media search tooling and hard mining loops with infra for auto‑routing data to annotation.
• Improve dataset quality and repeatability: versioning, provenance, and automated checks.
• Apply privacy and security requirements throughout our processes (access controls, retention, redaction/anonymization).
• Build with a data‑driven and impact‑forward mindset with dashboards highlighting cost, dataset balance, and audit details.

What makes you a good fit

• 5+ years of professional software engineering experience (or equivalent), with significant ownership of production systems.
• Strong proficiency in programming, demonstrable in at least one of our most frequently used languages (Python/C++).
• Hands‑on experience building data pipelines for large‑scale datasets (ETL/ELT, streaming or batch, orchestration).
• Experience with data modeling, schema evolution, and dataset/version management.
• Solid understanding of reliability engineering: monitoring, incident response, backfills, and operational rigor.
• Ability to work across ambiguous interfaces (data + tooling + model consumers) and drive decisions.
• Obtaining FAA Part 107 certification within the first 60 days of employment is strongly encouraged for all Skydio employees and required for certain positions.

Nice to have

• Experience with autonomy/robotics data: flight logs, self‑driving car data, sensor fusion traces, video, geospatial metadata.
• Experience with labeling workflows, annotation tooling, and labeling QA at scale.
• Familiarity with privacy concepts (PII handling, redaction, access control, audit logs).
• Experience with vector/semantic search over media or telemetry.

Compensation & Benefits

At Skydio, our compensation packages for regular, full‑time employees include competitive base salaries, equity in the form of stock options, and comprehensive benefits packages. Compensation will vary based on factors, including skill level, proficiencies, transferable knowledge, and experience. Relocation assistance may also be provided for eligible roles. The annual base salary range for this position is $170,000 - $240,000. Skydio is committed to ensuring all regular, full‑time employees have the opportunity to significantly benefit from the company’s success. Regular, full‑time employees are eligible to enroll in the company’s group health insurance plans. Regular, full‑time employees are eligible to receive the following benefits: paid vacation time, sick leave, holiday pay and 401(k) savings plan. This position and all associated benefits are subject to applicable federal, state, and local laws, as well as the company’s policies and eligibility criteria.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or other characteristics protected by federal, state or local anti‑discrimination laws.

Skydio provides equal employment opportunities to applicants and employees without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, or disability.

Skydio is a federal contractor or subcontractor subject to certain governmental record‑keeping and reporting requirements for the administration of civil rights laws and regulations.