Staff Robotics Software Engineer, CUAS, Omen

Anduril Industries; Costa Mesa (CA); On-site; USD 200,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity grants

Comprehensive benefits

Health insurance

Job summary

Anduril Industries is seeking a Staff Software Engineer to own end-to-end software integration for Omen’s airborne counter-UAS payload and build a team around it. You will lead autonomy, perception collaboration, and fire-control interfaces to ensure robust, field-ready systems.

You’ll work with multidisciplinary teams, manage simulation and live flight tests, and drive V&V, release, and safety considerations for a critical defense platform.

Qualifications

• 6+ years building software for robotic or autonomous systems, including at least one system deployed to field
• Strong engineering background in Robotics, CS, Aerospace, or Electrical Engineering
• Experience leading multidisciplinary software teams, including hiring
• Strong Rust or C++ for real-time/embedded systems, plus Python for tools
• Deep experience in target tracking and sensor fusion: state estimation, filtering, data association

Responsibilities

• Own autonomy architecture for Omen’s cUAS mission end to end from prototype to fielded software
• Collaborate to develop target tracking and perception; fuse data from multiple sensors
• Design intercept guidance and pursuit planning within vehicle limits
• Work with Autonomy team—embed engineers for tactics development
• Own fire control software, ballistic solutions, and timing/command logic
• Maintain sensor-to-shot latency budget and track millisecond usage
• Interface software with payload, vehicle, and mission compute; manage timing and commands
• Build simulation to prove engagement; lead flight test campaigns and root-cause analysis
• Lead verification/validation, release, configuration, and sustainment; write SEIT/V&V requirements

Skills

Robotics

Autonomous systems

C++

Python

Sensor fusion

State estimation

Real-time systems

Target tracking

Test & field deployment

Education

Engineering degree in Robotics / CS / Aerospace / EE

Tools

ROS 2

DDS

Embedded Linux

Gazebo / AirSim

Job description

Anduril Industries is a defense technology company with a mission to transform U.S. and allied military capabilities with advanced technology. By bringing the expertise, technology, and business model of the 21st century’s most innovative companies to the defense industry, Anduril is changing how military systems are designed, built and sold. Anduril’s family of systems is powered by Lattice OS, an AI-powered operating system that turns thousands of data streams into a realtime, 3D command and control center. As the world enters an era of strategic competition, Anduril is committed to bringing cutting-edge autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion, and networking technology to the military in months, not years.

About The Team

The Maneuver Dominance team at Anduril develops operationally relevant, multi-asset autonomy. Omen is Anduril’s hover-to-cruise autonomous air vehicle (AAV) that packs the endurance, payload, and mission flexibility of much larger airplanes into a novel runway-independent Group 3 platform. Omen can operate from ship decks, beaches, or remote island clearings, providing true runway independence and freedom of maneuver across defense and civilian domains. Omen is the first tail-sitter aircraft with a mass-production contract, with an order of 50 systems representing a decisive investment that anchors production and accelerates the development of future systems.

About The Job

Small drones are hard to hit. Hitting them from a moving aircraft is harder. We need a Staff Software Engineer to own software integration of Omen’s airborne counter-UAS effector payload end to end, and to build the team around it.

What You’ll Do

• Own and lead the autonomy architecture for Omen’s cUAS dogfighting mission end to end, from first prototype to fielded software. Find the target, fly the fight, take the shot.
• Collaborate with the Omen Perception team to develop target tracking and perception. Architect the optimal approach to combine data from multiple sensor sources to meet demanding mission objectives.
• Design the intercept guidance and pursuit planning that puts the aircraft in a firing position against a maneuvering target, within the vehicle’s operational limits.
• Work alongside the Omen Autonomy team which owns core autonomy systems and will embed autonomy engineers on your team for specific tactics development.
• Own fire control software. Lead and ballistic solutions, targeting commands, and the logic that decides when to shoot.
• Hold the sensor-to-shot latency budget and know where every millisecond goes.
• Own software interfaces with the payload, vehicle, and mission compute. Message definitions, timing, time sync, and command authority.
• Build the simulation that proves the engagement works before flight. Then plan and run flight test campaigns, including live range events, and lead the root-cause work when results don’t match prediction.
• Take it to the field. Verification and validation, release and configuration control, and the sustainment path for fielded software. Write requirements for SEIT and V&V engineers to test and validate your system.

Required Qualifications

• 6+ years building software for robotic or autonomous systems, including at least one system you carried from concept to field deployment
• Strong engineering background, ideally in Robotics, Computer Science, Aerospace, or Electrical Engineering
• Experience leading multidisciplinary software teams, including hiring
• Strong Rust or C++ for real-time and embedded systems, plus Python for tools and analysis
• Deep experience in target tracking and sensor fusion: state estimation, filtering, data association, and track quality on small, maneuvering targets
• Experience with guidance, motion planning, or control for fast-moving vehicles, and a working grasp of the latency and bandwidth tradeoffs that come with it
• Experience integrating and characterizing perception sensors in software.
• Experience building closed‑loop simulation for algorithm validation, and using flight or field data to close the gap between sim and reality
• Hands‑on field test experience, from test planning and instrumentation through the data analysis that closes a design question
• Experience as the technical owner of a safety‑critical autonomy system: requirements, architecture, V&V, and release. Familiarity with US Export regulations as it applies to weapon system software
• Ability to travel about 25% with potential surges for test and demonstration events
• Eligible to obtain and maintain an active U.S. Secret security clearance

Preferred Qualifications

• Direct experience with fire control, weapon, or effector software, including weapon release logic and safe and arm
• Counter‑UAS experience, whether engagement chains, fire control, or targeting small unmanned aircraft
• Air‑to‑air autonomy, pursuit‑evasion, or adversarial planning, including reinforcement learning or game‑theoretic methods
• VTOL, tail‑sitter, or rotorcraft autonomy, and familiarity with the flight envelope limits they impose
• Experience with gimbal or turret pointing software, stabilization, boresighting, or targeting chains
• Familiarity with lead and ballistic solutions and sensor‑to‑effector latency
• Software safety standards for weapon or flight systems (MIL‑STD‑882E, DO‑178C, or equivalent)
• Real‑time operating systems, embedded Linux, middleware such as ROS 2 or DDS, and time‑synchronized systems
• Simulation tools such as Gazebo, Unreal, or AirSim, and Monte Carlo engagement analysis

Benefits

The salary range for this role is an estimate based on a wide range of compensation factors, inclusive of base salary only. Actual salary offer may vary based on (but not limited to) work experience, education and/or training, critical skills, and/or business considerations. Highly competitive equity grants are included in the majority of full time offers; and are considered part of Anduril's total compensation package. Additionally, Anduril offers top‑tier benefits for full‑time employees, including:

At Anduril, we invest in our people. Our comprehensive, competitive benefits package (available at little to no cost to employees) ensures you’re supported in health, recovery, and whatever comes next. For more information, Explore Our Benefits.

Data Privacy

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By submitting your application, you consent to Anduril Industries using a third‑party service provider to conduct pre‑employment risk, integrity, and due diligence screening and assessing potential risks as part of your application process. This third‑party service provider provides risk‑intelligence services that may include analysis of sanctions and watchlists, adverse media, public‑record information, and other lawful open‑source or commercial data sources. This third‑party service provider does not act as a consumer reporting agency. Use of this provider helps to ensure compliance with applicable laws and protect technology, intellectual property, and organizational security.