Senior Software Engineer - Autonomous Cargo Aircraft

Pyka; Alameda (CA); On-site; USD 166,000 - 205,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health, dental, and vision insurance

401(k)

Paid holidays and generous PTO

Voluntary disability and lifeInsurance

Pre-tax commuter benefits

Free catered lunch and snacks

Job summary

Pyka is hiring a Senior Software Engineer to own the Dropship and Cargo software stack, spanning path planning, airframe controls, sensor integration, and powertrain state-of-charge management. You will drive software design, collaborate with propulsion, hardware, product, and flight ops, and set readiness for flight tests.

You will write production-quality code in C++17 and Python, mentor engineers, and help translate operational feedback into software improvements for autonomous electric

Qualifications

• 5+ years of professional experience with C++ (ideally C++11 or newer).
• Professional experience with Python.
• Depth in at least one of: path planning, controls, state estimation, sensor integration, or embedded and powertrain control.
• A track record of taking ownership of unfamiliar technical domains.
• Experience owning software for a subsystem across multiple teams.
• Experience working on real-world robotic or vehicle systems, especially where software interacts with hardware.
• Exposure to energy management, hybrid or electric powertrains, or engine control is a plus.
• Comfort working across the stack from low-level systems to user-facing tools.
• Working knowledge of trigonometry and linear algebra.
• Willingness to travel to flight test and field sites.

Responsibilities

• Own the software for the Dropship and Cargo programs: collect requirements from our test teams and commercial and military customers, define what the aircraft needs to do, build most of it, and specify the remainder clearly enough for others to build against
• Delegate work when scope requires it, and stay accountable for the result either way
• Break down ambiguous problems (e.g., new aircraft capabilities, energy and range tradeoffs, operational tooling) into plans, and adapt them as flight test and operations produce new information
• Write production-quality code in C++17 and Python across the aircraft stack, including testing and validation
• Support flight testing directly: be present for tests, review flight data, and diagnose what the aircraft did and why
• Work with propulsion, hardware, product, and flight operations to make practical tradeoffs between range, payload, reserve, and schedule
• Represent software in program-level decisions, including giving the program an honest read on what is and is not ready
• Provide technical leadership through design reviews, debugging support, and mentorship of other engineers

Skills

C++

Python

Path planning

Controls

State estimation

Sensor integration

Embedded systems

Job description

Pyka is hiring a Senior Software Engineer to own the Dropship and Cargo software stack, spanning path planning, airframe controls, sensor integration, and powertrain state-of-charge management. You will drive software design, collaborate with propulsion, hardware, product, and flight ops, and set readiness for flight tests.

You will write production-quality code in C++17 and Python, mentor engineers, and help translate operational feedback into software improvements for autonomous electric