Senior Test Engineer

Arxlight Pictures; Oakland (CA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 190,000; Full time

Job summary

Arxlight Pictures seeks a hands-on Senior Test Engineer to build the test infrastructure for its drone hardware from the ground up. You will develop tools, fixtures, automation, and test systems to quickly assess component, subsystem, and drone performance as production evolves.

You will work with Hardware, Software, Manufacturing, and Flight Test to translate product requirements into practical, repeatable tests.

Qualifications

• 7+ years hands-on hardware test experience.
• Experience building test fixtures and data acquisition systems.
• Strong Python programming and automation with hardware interfaces.
• Broad electronics and embedded systems knowledge.
• Experience developing test plans and pass/fail criteria.
• Hands-on lab work and ability to adapt as product evolves.

Responsibilities

• Design and build test infrastructure for drones and subsystems, including fixtures and data acquisition systems.
• Develop automated test software and scripts to run tests and analyze results.
• Build test coverage across electronics, sensors, batteries, motors, and flight systems.
• Develop environmental, stress, endurance, and lifecycle tests reflecting real-world use.
• Own test methods from prototypes through production, creating repeatable systems.
• Collaborate with Engineering and Manufacturing to investigate failures and drive improvements.

Skills

Test engineering

Python automation

Test fixtures

Data acquisition

Debugging hardware

System validation

Lab troubleshooting

Tools

Hardware-in-the-loop (HIL)

CAN

Ethernet

Test equipment

APIs

Job description

ABOUT THE JOB

We're looking for a hands-on Senior Test Engineer to build the test infrastructure behind Arxlight's hardware products from the ground up.

You'll develop the tools, fixtures, automation and test systems that tell us quickly whether our hardware works, where it fails and whether it's ready to ship. That spans individual components, subsystems, fully assembled drones and production units. There's no existing test lab or set of procedures to inherit. You'll decide what gets built first and build it, often while the hardware it's testing is still changing.

You'll work closely with Hardware, Software, Manufacturing and Flight Test to turn product requirements and real-world failure modes into practical, repeatable tests. When a flight test turns up something unexpected or a build needs to be cleared to ship, you'll be the one who gets the answer, without waiting for a ticket. This role suits someone who likes building things, breaking things and digging into data, and who wants testing to keep pace with a team that moves fast.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

• Design and build test infrastructure for drones and their subsystems, including test fixtures, automated test equipment, data acquisition, and hardware-in-the-loop test setups.

• Develop automated test software and scripts to run tests, collect data, analyze results, and quickly identify failures and performance issues.

• Build test coverage across electronics, sensors, cameras, batteries, motors, communications, flight systems, and fully assembled drones.

• Develop environmental, stress, endurance, reliability, and lifecycle tests that represent how the product will actually be used in the field.

• Own test methods from early prototypes through NPI and production, turning engineering tests into repeatable systems that can be used across the company.

• Work directly with Engineering and Manufacturing to investigate failures, find root causes, improve designs, and make sure test results lead to real product improvements.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• 7+ years of hands-on experience in hardware test, systems test, validation, reliability, or test engineering for complex hardware products.

• Strong experience building test fixtures, automated test equipment, data acquisition systems, instrumentation, and hardware/software test setups.

• Strong programming and automation skills using Python or similar languages, with experience working with test equipment, APIs, serial interfaces, CAN, Ethernet, or other hardware communication protocols.

• Broad understanding of electronics, embedded systems, sensors, batteries, motors, communications, and electromechanical systems, with the ability to troubleshoot across disciplines.

• Experience developing test plans, defining pass/fail criteria, analyzing large amounts of test data, and turning failures into actionable engineering feedback.

• Comfortable working hands-on in the lab, building your own test setups, troubleshooting unfamiliar problems, and moving quickly when the product or requirements are changing.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Experience testing drones, robotics, autonomous systems, aerospace hardware, or other complex electromechanical products.

• Experience with hardware-in-the-loop (HIL), software-in-the-loop (SIL), flight simulation, or automated system-level testing.

• Experience with environmental and reliability testing including thermal cycling, vibration, shock, ingress, drop, endurance, and accelerated life testing.

• Experience testing batteries, power systems, motors, ESCs, cameras, sensors, radios, GPS/GNSS, and other common drone subsystems.

• Experience developing production test systems and transitioning engineering test methods into reliable, repeatable manufacturing tests.

• Experience in a startup or fast-moving hardware company where you're expected to build the test infrastructure, not just run an established test process.