Senior Staff Engineer, Autonomous Platforms & Emerging Domains

Shield; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

Shield AI in Washington, DC is seeking a Senior Autonomous Systems Engineer to define technical direction for Emerging Domains, guiding autonomy across space, maritime, and other platforms.

You will lead architecture, collaborate with platform teams, and mentor engineers, shaping long-term programs while delivering on-site demonstrations and field deployments. Travel up to 20% and SECRET clearance eligibility is required.

Qualifications

• BS/MS in a relevant engineering discipline or equivalent practical experience; typically 10+ years experience.
• Expert-level C++ and Linux systems development experience.
• Demonstrated experience defining technical strategy across multiple programs or engineering organizations.
• Proven track record solving highly complex systems integration challenges in ambiguous environments.
• Experience mentoring senior engineers and influencing engineering direction without formal authority.
• Ability to obtain a SECRET clearance.

Responsibilities

• Define the technical strategy and stand up autonomy on entirely new platforms and mission areas.
• Lead engineering through evolving customer needs with vision.
• Define long-term technical direction across Emerging Domains, establishing architecture, integration strategies, and engineering patterns.
• Guide development and deployment of autonomy across space, maritime, contested logistics, and future emerging platforms.
• Build deep technical partnerships with platform organizations and influence interface evolution and integration strategy.
• Coordinate architecture across Autonomy Capabilities, Perception, GCS, platform teams, engineering leadership, customers, and partners.
• Lead architecture reviews, engineering standards, ICDs, and best practices across multiple organizations.
• Guide release strategy, mission validation, and operational readiness across multiple programs.
• Provide senior technical leadership during critical demonstrations, operational exercises, and customer events.
• Lead resolution of autonomy integration problems spanning software, hardware, embedded systems, and interfaces.
• Drive organizational learning from mission data and debriefs to shape future investments.
• Drive long-term improvements to engineering processes and testing infrastructure.
• Define technical strategy for command-and-control interoperability and platform standards adoption.
• Grow R&D into scalable programs by partnering with leadership and customers.
• Help define the technical hiring bar and mentor future technical leaders.
• Travel 10–20% of the year to various offices, sites, and flight tests.

Skills

C++ development

Linux development

Mentoring engineers

Leadership without authority

Clearance eligibility

Education

BS/MS in engineering

Job description

Shield AI in Washington, DC is seeking a Senior Autonomous Systems Engineer to define technical direction for Emerging Domains, guiding autonomy across space, maritime, and other platforms.

You will lead architecture, collaborate with platform teams, and mentor engineers, shaping long-term programs while delivering on-site demonstrations and field deployments. Travel up to 20% and SECRET clearance eligibility is required.