Staff Software Engineer, Autonomy Behaviors (R4588)

Shield; Boston (MA); On-site; USD 180,000 - 240,000; Full time

Job summary

Shield AI’s Autonomy Capabilities Team seeks a senior software professional to advance autonomous capabilities across air, land, sea, and space platforms. You will blend control theory with optimization to deliver real-world software integrated into diverse vehicle systems.

This role requires leading multi-disciplinary teams, owning software architecture, and maintaining an active U.S. Secret clearance. Travel up to 20% is expected.

Qualifications

• BS/MS/PhD in CS, Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Robotics, or a related field
• Proficient in production-level C++ software development.
• 7+ years’ experience in software sub-system scheduling, behavior planning, task and resource allocation, motion planning, optimization, or flight controls.
• Experience with collaborative software development tools for version control, issue tracking, code reviews, and release management.
• Proven ability to lead multi-disciplinary teams, set technical direction, and manage full project lifecycles from concept to deployment.
• Capacity to learn and grow individually, while mentoring junior team members effectively, building team cohesion and capacity.
• Eligible to obtain and maintain an active U.S. Secret security clearance.

Responsibilities

• Develop tactical autonomy software to enable unmanned platforms to perform complex missions across air, land, sea, and space 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 software development lifecycle, from requirements capture through design, implementation, verification, and validation, utilizing collaborative high-quality software workflows.
• Champion a product-line mindset in technology road-mapping and to enable reuse of behaviors across multiple projects and portfolios.
• Architect behaviors as scalable software subsystems interacting with sensors, state estimation, peer-to-peer communications, contingency management, actuation, and payload interfacing.
• Collaborate with internal teams to rapidly deliver state-of-the-art capabilities to vehicle platforms with evolving architecture.
• Collaborate with external teams to align interfacing requirements between diverse systems and vehicle integration teams.
• Act as SME for software engineering in a multi-stakeholder environment including engineering, business and sales.
• Travel to co-locate with end-users and/or other teams up to 20% of the time.

Skills

C++ development

System integration

Leadership

Team collaboration

Motion planning

Education

BS/MS/PhD in CS, AE, EE, Robotics, or related

Tools

ROS

OMPL

Optimization solvers

Version control

Issue tracking

Code reviews

Release management

Job description

Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BATaircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai. Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and YouTube.

The Autonomy Capabilities Team develops functionality to automate single- and multi-agent teams of platforms in pursuit of mission objectives and acts as a central discipline-aligned focal-point for encouraging consistent usage of technical approaches across business portfolios. This team operates at all levels of the command-and-control hierarchy (from advanced control laws, through motion planning, and up to advanced tactical behaviors and multi-agent coordination) and across a multitude of mission sets, platform types, and operational domains (e.g., air, sea, space). The team puts a strong emphasis on both fundamentals (e.g., aircraft kinematics/dynamics, trajectory design, optimization, information fusion, efficient algorithms, etc.) and software integration skillsets (e.g. structures, protocols, threading, interface management, etc.) to bring market-differentiating capabilities to customers that seamlessly operate within their integration contexts.

This position is perfect for an individual who enjoys solving complex problems across a diverse set of programs and integration contexts. An ideal candidate is expected to address operational system needs through a multitude of advanced methodologies that blend traditional control system approaches with advanced optimization. Developed solutions are expected to be integrated into real-world platforms with near-term program impacts and rewards and so balancing theory with practice and rigorous implementation is paramount.

What You’ll Do:

• 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

Required Qualifications:

• BS/MS/PhD in Computer Science, Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Robotics, Mechanical Engineering, or a related field

• Proficient in production-level C++ software development

• 7+ 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 controls

• Experience with collaborative software development tools for version control, issue tracking, code reviews, and release management

• Proven ability to lead multi-disciplinary teams, set technical direction, and manage full project lifecycles from concept to deployment

• Capacity to learn and grow individually, while mentoring junior team members effectively, building team cohesion and capacity

• Desire to work in a highly collaborative, fast paced, enthusiastic, and mission-centric environment

• Capacity 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 evolution

• Eligible to obtain and maintain an active U.S. Secret security clearance

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience across a breadth of technology readiness levels (TRLs) and demonstration of bridging concepts from research-grade to operationally ready

• Experience with mission systems integration, and ideally, hands‑on experience supporting integration events and/or flight demonstrations

• Experience across a multitude of application areas, including but not limited to:

• Collaborative mission planning, behavior planning, synchronized teaming

• Automated red force vs blue force tactics

• Motion planning across a variety of vehicle classes, kinematic constraints, and team compositions

• Weapons target assignment, Sensor target pairing, sensor‑centric control laws

• Collision avoidance, geofencing, and safety‑monitoring

• 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 FOSS software that is commonly used in robotic systems (e.g., ROS, OMPL, optimization solvers, etc.)

• Experience with simulation tools and environments (e.g., AFSIM, NGTS) for testing and validation

• Familiarity with practical aspects of navigation and communications systems

• Experience across the product delivery lifecycle, from emerging opportunity through system acceptance, deployment, and sustainment

• Familiarity with systems engineering methodologies

• Familiarity with high‑assurance software development processes (e.g., DO-178C or equivalent MIL‑STD’s)

Full‑time regular employee offer package:

Pay within range listed + Bonus + Benefits + Equity

Temporary employee offer package:

Pay within range listed above + temporary benefits package (applicable after 60 days of employment)

Salary compensation is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, licenses and certifications, and specific work location. All offers are contingent on a cleared background and possible reference check. Military fellows and part‑time employees are not eligible for benefits. Please speak to your talent acquisition representative for more information.

Shield AI is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed toequal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know.