Staff Software Engineer (Autonomy Behaviors)

Shield; Boston (MA); On-site; USD 170,000 - 210,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical coverage

Mental Health support

Parental leave

Pet insurance

Flexible hours

Onsite gym

Gym discount

Free parking

Stock benefits

401K match

Job summary

Shield AI is seeking a Staff Software Engineer for the Autonomy Behaviors team. You will lead development of autonomous behaviors across air, land, sea, and space platforms, steering architecture and lifecycle from concept to deployment.

We value extensive C++ experience, robotics systems expertise, and ability to mentor teams in a fast-paced, mission-centric environment. Expect collaboration with software, hardware, and test teams, with travel up to 20%.

Qualifications

• 7+ years in software or robotics related field.
• Experience leading multi-disciplinary teams.
• Eligible to obtain an active U.S. Secret security clearance.
• Experience with ROS/OMPL and optimization tools.

Responsibilities

• Develop autonomous behaviors for mission autonomy software.
• Lead end-to-end software development lifecycle across platforms.
• Collaborate with hardware, test engineering, and vehicle integration teams.
• Architect scalable software subsystems interfacing with sensors and actuators.
• Travel up to 20% to co-locate with end-users or teams.

Skills

C++

Autonomy software

Motion planning

Team leadership

System architecture

Education

BS/MS/PhD in Computer Science or Engineering

Tools

ROS

OMPL

Optimization solvers

Job description

• The Autonomy Capabilities team at Shield AI has assembled a diverse team of experts in software, robotics, control systems, optimization, and data analysis to create software solutions that greatly evolve the capabilities of our customers
• The team is responsible for developing autonomous behaviors within Shield AI’s industry-leading mission autonomy software stack and deploying them across a breadth of platforms, including the Anduril Fury, Northrup Grumman Talon, Shield AI V-Bat, and other first- and third-party autonomous vehicles
• We work in close coordination with specialist teams in software integration, hardware, and test engineering to solve some of the hardest problems facing our customers
• Staff Software Engineers on the Autonomy Behaviors team will lead the delivery of autonomous behaviors into our products, acting as technical leads, extremely senior individual contributors, and/or as team leads that are also hands-on contributors
• We expect Staff Engineers to demonstrate unparalleled end-to-end outcome ownership, driving the architecting, design, delivery, support, and evolution of safe and effective mission autonomy software throughout the entire product lifecycle
• Develop tactical autonomy software to enable unmanned platforms to perform complex missions across air, land, sea, and space domains with minimal human supervision
• Implement and test behaviors that enable multi-agent coordination, target engagement, reconnaissance, and survivability in contested scenarios
• Work throughout the entire of the software development lifecycle, from requirements capture through design, implementation, verification, and validation, utilizing tools and workflows consistent with collaborative high-quality software development
• Champion a product-line mindset in technology road-mapping and to enable reuse of behaviors across multiple projects and portfolios
• Utilize your software and systems expertise to architect behaviors as scalable software subsystems, that may interact directly or indirectly with a breadth of system components (e.g., sensor processing, state estimation, peer-to-peer communications, contingency management, actuation, and payload interfacing)
• Leverage internal product and program-specific engineering teams to rapidly deliver state-of-the-art capabilities to vehicle platforms (whether internally and externally owned), with a clear path towards architecture and capability evolution over time
• Collaborate with external teams, aligning on interfacing requirements between diverse systems, often working closely with vehicle integration teams and associated operational subject matter experts (e.g., fighter pilots, UAV operators, etc.)
• Act as a subject matter expert for software engineering, representing software equities in a multi-stakeholder environment including engineering, business and sales leadership
• Travel to co-locate with end-users and/or other teams up to 20% of the time

Benefits

• Excellent Medical Coverage
• Mental Health Employee Assistance Program
• Paid Parental Leave
• Pet Insurance
• Flexible Work Hours
• Onsite Gym (DC)
• Gym Discount (San Diego)
• Free Parking
• Competitive Compensation
• Stock Benefits
• 401K Services and Match

Proficient in production-level C++ software developmentAutomated red force vs blue force tacticsCollision avoidance, geofencing, and safety-monitoringEligible to obtain and maintain an active U.S. Secret security clearanceProven ability to lead multi-disciplinary teams, set technical direction, and manage full project lifecycles from concept to deploymentDesire to work in a highly collaborative, fast paced, enthusiastic, and mission-centric environmentMotion planning across a variety of vehicle classes, kinematic constraints, and team compositions7+ years’ experience in one or more of the following: software sub-system scheduling and integration, behavior planning, task and resource allocation, motion planning, optimization, or flight controlsExperience across a breadth of technology readiness levels (TRLs) and demonstration of bridging concepts from research-grade to operationally readyCapacity to act as the technical owner for an entire software system, including stakeholder engagement, requirements definition, roadmap management, team co-ordination, design, implementation, sustainment, and evolutionExperience with simulation tools and environments (e.g., AFSIM, NGTS) for testing and validationFamiliarity with practical aspects of navigation and communications systemsCapacity to learn and grow individually, while mentoring junior team members effectively, building team cohesion and capacityFamiliarity with systems engineering methodologiesExperience across a multitude of application areas, including but not limited to:Collaborative mission planning, behavior planning, synchronized teamingExperience with mission systems integration, and ideally, hands-on experience supporting integration events and/or flight demonstrationsBS/MS/PhD in Computer Science, Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Robotics, Mechanical Engineering, or a related fieldWeapons target assignment, Sensor target pairing, sensor-centric control lawsExperience with FOSS software that is commonly used in robotic systems (e.g., ROS, OMPL, optimization solvers, etc.)Experience in more than one operational effect (e.g., strike, air combat, surveillance, reconnaissance, etc.) and more than one associated domain (e.g., air, space, maritime, ground, etc.)Experience with collaborative software development tools for version control, issue tracking, code reviews, and release managementFamiliarity with high-assurance software development processes (e.g., DO-178C or equivalent MIL-STD’s)Experience across the product delivery lifecycle, from emerging opportunity through system acceptance, deployment, and sustainment