Senior Embedded Software Engineer (Avionics SW)

Zipline; San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

Zipline is seeking an experienced engineer to own avionics subsystems end-to-end, delivering flight- and safety-critical embedded software on embedded Linux. You will develop drivers, real-time interfaces, fault management, and deterministic test tooling for large-scale robotic systems.

You will collaborate across hardware, systems, and operations to ensure robust validation, field readiness, and reliable fleet deployment with measurable outcomes.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in EE/CS or equivalent experience.
• 5+ years in embedded/flight-critical systems or equivalent proven impact.
• Experience shipping embedded production code in C++ or Rust.
• Experience with embedded Linux environments; bare-metal/RTOS experience is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Own avionics subsystems (e.g., GNSS, Cellular, IMU) end-to-end.
• Develop and maintain flight- and safety-critical embedded software on Linux.
• Create and run deterministic test, logging, and regression suites.
• Lead HW-in-the-loop, bench, and field validation with cross-functional teams.
• Drive RCAs, fixes, and ensure metrics show fleet-wide improvement.

Skills

C++/Rust

Embedded Linux

Flight-critical systems

Deterministic RTOS/RT communications

Hardware bring-up

Education

Bachelor's degree in EE/CS

Tools

JTAG

Job description

• You will have experience in implementing proven reliable and deterministic software components for hardware peripherals for use in robotics or autonomous applications, particularly in systems deployed at scale
• The role sits at the hardware/software boundary: you will be responsible for flight- and safety-critical embedded software running on an embedded Linux system, and for the diagnostics and validation infrastructure that proves the performance and reliability of that software in the field
• Your work directly affects aircraft reliability, mission completion rate, and field-maintenance load across a distributed fleet
• Own one or more end-to-end avionics subsystems, such as GNSS, Cellular, IMU and be the primary technical owner for design, implementation, and production readiness
• Deliver and maintain flight- and safety-critical code on embedded Linux: drivers, device bring-up, real-time data interfaces, fault management, and graceful degradation logic
• Define and ship measurable reliability and observability outcomes (in-field fault rates, test coverage targets). Instrument systems so flight-data can be used to detect regressions and prioritize fixes
• Lead hardware-in-the-loop, bench, and field validation for changes you introduce; partner with systems, hardware, test engineering, and operations to create repeatable test plans and failure-insertion exercises
• Build and extend tooling for deterministic test, logging, post-flight analysis, and automated regression tests to accelerate safe deployments across the fleet
• Triage and resolve high-severity field incidents: drive RCA, implement fixes, and own follow-through until fleet metrics demonstrate resolution
• Collaborate closely with avionics hardware, systems engineering, manufacturing, and flight operations to set integration boundaries, certification inputs, and release criteria for software changes

Education & experience: bachelor’s degree in EE/CS or equivalent experience; typically 5+ years in embedded/flight-critical systems OR equivalent demonstrated impact

Logistics & intensity: comfortable with field testing cadence, occasional travel to flight-test sites, and participating in incident response outside standard hours when critical fleet incidents occur

Debugging & hardware bring-up: demonstrated ability to read schematics, bring up peripherals from datasheets, and debug hardware/software interaction using oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, JTAG, and in-field telemetry

Ownership & outcomes: history of owning subsystem delivery end-to-end, shipping repeatable test suites, and meeting quantified reliability targets (provide examples in interview)

Production & safety experience: proven track record deploying and operating embedded software in safety- or mission-critical systems (aviation, robotics, industrial controls, or similar). Experience with fault management, deterministic real-time requirements, and validation strategies is required

Must-have technical skills: substantial systems-level experience shipping embedded production code in C++ or Rust; Experience with embedded Linux environments is required; experience with bare-metal or RTOS environments is nice to have