Senior Software Engineer, Autonomy Capabilities – Maritime (R5339) Software

Front Door Defense; Northern (KY); Hybrid; USD 160,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonus

Benefits

Equity

Job summary

Shield AI in the United States seeks a Senior Software Engineer to develop and deploy end‑to‑end maritime autonomy features for USVs, UUVs, and cooperating UAVs. Location options include Boston, MA; Washington, DC; San Diego, CA; and Dallas, TX.

Compensation ranges from $160,000 to $240,000 USD per year. The Autonomy Capabilities team integrates advanced control, motion planning, and multi‑agent coordination, with strong emphasis on real‑world integration and TRL progress.

Qualifications

• BS/MS in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, and/or similar degree, or equivalent practical experience
• Proficiency in programming languages such as C++ and Python
• Significant background in robotic technology areas related to control systems, motion planning, optimization, tactical behaviors, and/or distributed decision-making
• Experience with unmanned system technologies and accompanying algorithms (ideally in the maritime domain)
• Experience with simulation tools and environments (e.g., AFSIM, NGTS, or similar) for testing and validation

Responsibilities

• Robust Motion Planning – Automate unmanned surface vehicle (USV) and/or unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) maneuvering through advanced motion planning and adherence to safety constraints including keep-out volumes, cooperative and uncooperative vehicles, and depth limitations
• Localization and Tracking – Employ cutting edge approaches for passive and active localization by defining fusion modalities, sensor requirements, and observability-aware maneuvering capabilities to maximize information gleaned from single- or multi-agent sensor networks
• Safe Maritime Operations – Keep vehicle safety as a central focus within autonomous behavior architectures to provide run-time assurance, ensure COLREGS adherence, and build operator trust in advanced mission autonomy
• Heterogeneous Multi-Agent Collaboration – Develop distributed optimization and task allocation approaches for heterogenous teaming in order to accomplish mission objectives by maximally utilizing the diverse capabilities of agents to overall team advantage
• Rigorous Software Development – Develop high-performance software modules that are well-tested, have clear interfaces and span-of-control, and are ready for mid-to-high Technology Readiness Level (TRL) insertions
• Cross-Functional Collaboration – Collaborate with cross-functional teams including perception, planning, simulation, hardware, and operational test to ensure seamless integration of autonomy solutions on real-world platforms
• Deployment & Attention – Deploy autonomy capabilities to real surface vehicles, supporting integration and demonstration events as well as analysis of mission logs to verify software performance and validate system operational effect
• R&D and Road-mapping – Contribute to autonomy roadmaps by researching and prototyping new algorithms, identifying tactical capability gaps, and proposing novel solutions that advance Shield AI's mission
• Travel Requirement – Members of this team typically travel around 25% of the year (to different office locations, customer sites, and flight integration events)

Skills

C++

Python

Robotics

Clearance eligibility

Education

BS/MS in CS/EE/ME/AE or equivalent

Tools

AFSIM

NGTS

Job description

Senior Software Engineer, Autonomy Capabilities – Maritime (R5339)

Develop and deploy end-to-end maritime autonomy features for USVs/UUVs/UAVs

Location: Boston, Massachusetts Washington, District of Columbia San Diego, California Dallas, Texas

Compensation: $160,000 - 240,000 USD / year

About The Role

Senior Engineer Autonomy Capabilities

Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI's technology actively supports operations worldwide.

The Autonomy Capabilities Team develops functionality to automate single- and multi-agent teams of platforms in pursuit of mission objectives and acts as a central discipline-aligned focal-point for encouraging consistent usage of technical approaches across business portfolios. This team operates at all levels of the command-and-control hierarchy (from advanced control laws, through motion planning, and up to advanced tactical behaviors and multi-agent coordination) and across a multitude of mission sets, platform types, and operational domains (e.g., air, sea, space). The team puts a strong emphasis on both fundamentals (e.g., aircraft kinematics/dynamics, trajectory design, optimization, information fusion, efficient algorithms, etc.) and software integration skillsets (e.g. structures, protocols, threading, interface management, etc.) to bring market-differentiating capabilities to customers that seamlessly operate within their integration contexts.

This position is perfect for an individual who enjoys solving complex problems across a diverse set of programs and integration contexts. An ideal candidate is expected to address operational system needs through a multitude of advanced methodologies that blend traditional control system approaches with advanced optimization. Developed solutions are expected to be integrated into real-world platforms with near‑... ... near-term program impacts and rewards and so balancing theory with practice and rigorous implementation is paramount.

Focusing on the maritime portfolio, you'll be creating autonomy capabilities for USVs, UUVs, and cooperating UAVs that enable them to perform advanced single- and ... ...

What You’ll Do:

• Robust Motion Planning – Automate unmanned surface vehicle (USV) and/or unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV) maneuvering through advanced motion planning and adherence to safety constraints including keep-out volumes, cooperative and uncooperative vehicles, and depth limitations
• Localization and Tracking – Employ cutting edge approaches for passive and active localization by defining fusion modalities, sensor requirements, and observability-aware maneuvering capabilities to maximize information gleaned from single- or multi-agent sensor networks
• Safe Maritime Operations – Keep vehicle safety as a central focus within autonomous behavior architectures to provide run-time assurance, ensure COLREGS adherence, and build operator trust in advanced mission autonomy
• Heterogeneous Multi-Agent Collaboration – Develop distributed optimization and task allocation approaches for heterogenous teaming in order to accomplish mission objectives by maximally utilizing the diverse capabilities of agents to overall team advantage
• Rigorous Software Development – Develop high-performance software modules that are well-tested, have clear interfaces and span-of-control, and are ready for mid-to-high Technology Readiness Level (TRL) insertions
• Cross-Functional Collaboration – Collaborate with cross-functional teams including perception, planning, simulation, hardware, and operational test to ensure seamless integration of autonomy solutions on real-world platforms
• Deployment & Test Support – Deploy autonomy capabilities to real surface vehicles, supporting integration and demonstration events as well as analysis of mission logs to verify software performance and validate system operational effect
• R&D and Road-mapping – Contribute to autonomy roadmaps by researching and prototyping new algorithms, identifying tactical capability gaps, and proposing novel solutions that advance Shield AI's mission
• Travel Requirement – Members of this team typically travel around 25% of the year (to different office locations, customer sites, and flight integration events).

Required Qualifications:

• BS/MS in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, and/or similar degree, or equivalent practical experience
• Typically requires a minimum of 10 years of related experience with a Bachelor's degree; or 9 years and a Master's degree; or 7 years with a PhD; or equivalent work experience
• Proficiency in programming languages such as C++ and Python
• Significant background in one or several robotic technology areas related to control systems, motion planning, optimization, tactical behaviors, and/or distributed decision-making
• Significant experience with unmanned system technologies and accompanying algorithms (ideally in the maritime domain specifically)
• Experience with simulation tools and environments (e.g., AFSIM, NGTS, or similar) for testing and validation
• Strong problem-solving skills, with the ability to troubleshoot and optimize system performance
• Excellent communication and teamwork skills, with the ability to work effectively in a collaborative, multidisciplinary environment
• Ability to obtain a SECRET clearance or higher

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience in multiple domains (e.g., air, land, sea, space)
• Experience across a breadth of methodologies from classical control through optimization and applied ML/RL
• Background in collaborative behaviors and swarm robotics
• Familiarity with domain-relevant DoD or government programs
• Hands‑on experience supporting integration events, customer demos, and/or live exercises
• Experience in applied research and development

$160,000 - $240,000 a year

Full-time regular employee offer package:

Pay within range listed + Bonus + Benefits + Equity

Temporary employee offer package:

Pay within range listed above + temporary benefits package (applicable after 60 days of employment)

Salary compensation is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, licenses and certifications, and specific work location. All offers are contingent on a cleared background and possible reference check. Military fellows and part-time employees are not eligible for benefits. Please speak to your talent acquisition representative for more information.

Shield AI is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know.