Software Engineer: Perception

Lodestar Space; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 115,000 - 180,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity incentives

Flexible PTO

Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage

401(k) retirement plan with company match

Job summary

Lodestar Space in Los Angeles seeks a Software Engineer – Perception to develop algorithms for autonomous spacecraft. This role focuses on detecting and classifying space targets in real-time using computer vision and machine learning.

Ideal candidates have a background in AI/ML, a solid grasp of software engineering in C++, and experience with image processing libraries. Benefits include competitive salaries, equity incentives, and comprehensive health coverage.

Qualifications

• 2+ years of industry experience in machine learning, robotics, or computer vision.
• Strong DNN/ML background with experience in computer vision and image-processing libraries.
• Broad understanding of modern perception systems and their architecture.

Responsibilities

• Scope architecture for the perception system core of Lodestar’s autonomy software.
• Research and adapt novel perception algorithms.
• Design, develop, and optimize ML algorithms from the ground up.

Skills

Software engineering in C++

Machine learning algorithms

Computer vision

Python

Image processing libraries (OpenCV, CUDA)

Education

Bachelor’s or Master’s in AI/ML, Computer Science, Robotics, or related field

Tools

OpenCV

CUDA

TensorRT

Docker

Kubernetes

Job description

About Lodestar

Lodestar’s mission is to develop the first "Protect and Defend" capability for high‑value space assets in orbit. Our flagship product, MITHRIL, is the critical hardware and software necessary to augment any off‑the‑shelf spacecraft with the ability to autonomously detect, characterise, and reversibly neutralise orbital threats. By building on proven space heritage and fully integrating MITHRIL as a single platform, we deliver a fully autonomous end‑to‑end protection spacecraft service.

About the Job

As a Software Engineer – Perception at Lodestar, you’ll join the perception and machine‑vision teams to rapidly grow our vision and perception models at MITHRIL’s center. You’ll focus on researching and building algorithms to detect, classify, and understand unknown space targets in real time. By combining computer vision, image processing, and machine learning, you’ll develop custom models that provide the foundation for autonomous decision‑making in complex and uncertain space environments.

What You’ll Do

• Scope architecture for the perception system core of Lodestar’s autonomy software suite
• Research and adapt novel perception algorithms—everything from literature review to training, evaluation, optimisation, and deployment
• Design, develop, and optimise ML algorithms from the ground up, and build on existing edge‑computing models
• Further develop robust methods for predicting the relative pose of dynamic space targets in harsh and unpredictable visual environments
• Integrate perception models into mission simulation environments and real‑time autonomy pipelines
• Contribute to the design of realistic sensor models and digital twins to improve perception fidelity in mission scenarios
• Own perception tooling, model‑training infrastructure, and evaluation frameworks for ongoing development and deployment
• Collaborate across autonomy, estimation, and mission software teams to ensure perception fidelity, performance, and scalability

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in AI/ML, Computer Science, Robotics, a related field, or equivalent experience
• 2+ years of distinguished industry experience in machine learning, robotics, computer vision, or a related field
• Excellent software engineering skills in C++ and Python
• Strong DNN/ML background and experience in computer vision and image‑processing libraries (OpenCV, CUDA‑accelerated vision, PCL)
• Broad understanding of modern perception systems and their architecture
• Experience developing and deploying ML models to real‑time systems

Preferred Skills & Experience

• Experience processing sensor measurements from a variety of sensors—including RADAR, electro‑optical sensors, RF sensors, or LIDAR
• Familiarity with image‑processing techniques (feature extraction, segmentation, filtering, stereo matching) to support 3D reconstruction and target classification
• Track record of optimising neural networks and geometric algorithms using CUDA kernels, TensorRT, or other GPU acceleration frameworks
• Experience with distributed training and cloud‑based scaling of ML models (AWS, GCP, or Azure)
• Experience with Linux, Git, and CI/CD pipelines
• Comfortable with containerisation tools such as Docker and Kubernetes
• Strong understanding of networking and communication protocols for distributed autonomy systems

ITAR Requirements

To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorisations from the U.S. Department of State.

Compensation & Benefits

• Pay Range:
  • (E1) Junior Software Engineer: $115,000 – $140,000 / year
  • (E2) Software Engineer: $140,000 – $180,000 / year
  • (E3) Senior Software Engineer: Competitive
• Meaningful equity incentives as part of our employee option pool
• Flexible PTO with generous paid vacation, holidays, and sick leave
• Comprehensive medical, dental and vision coverage
• 401(k) retirement plan with company match
• Los Angeles

Additional Information

Compensation bands are determined by role, level, location, and alignment with market data. Individual level and base pay are determined on a case‑by‑case basis and may vary based on job‑related skills, education, experience, technical capabilities and internal equity. In addition to base salary, for full‑time hires, you may also be eligible for long‑term incentives, in the form of stock options, and for medical, vision, and dental coverage, as well as access to a 401(k) retirement plan.

Lodestar is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Lodestar is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.