Shield AI
Senior Manager, Perception (R5914)
Washington, D.C. · Manager · Full-time · Posted Sep 23, 2026
- Experience
- Typically 10 years related experience with a Bachelor’s degree; or 9 years and a Master’s degree; or 8 years with a PhD; or equivalent work experience. 2+ years managing technical teams.
- Education
- BS/MS in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, and/or similar degree, or equivalent practical experience.
About the job
Leads a technical team developing, integrating, and testing perception and state-estimation software for aerospace, defense, and robotics systems, including deployment on aerial platforms.
What you'll do
- Lead cross-functional autonomy, integration, and testing efforts while providing technical oversight and stakeholder communication.
- Develop production C++ software and extend state-estimation capabilities for new sensors, platforms, and missions, including A-PNT for GNSS-degraded or denied environments.
- Validate algorithms using simulated and real-world data, hardware testing, analysis tools, and high-fidelity simulation.
What they ask for
- BS/MS in a relevant engineering or computer science field, or equivalent practical experience.
- Typically 10 years related experience with a Bachelor’s degree, 9 years with a Master’s degree, 8 years with a PhD, or equivalent work experience; 2+ years managing technical teams.
- Demonstrated experience integrating sensor payloads in the DoD space and proficiency in sensor fusion for noisy, high-bandwidth exteroceptive sensors on compute-constrained systems.
- Ability to obtain a SECRET clearance.
Nice to have
- Understanding of autonomous robotics, unmanned systems, or high-fidelity simulation and sensor modeling.
- Experience with estimator fundamentals, computer vision/OpenCV, object detection pipelines, sensor effects algorithms, UCI or OMS Standards; active SECRET clearance.
Tools
C++, Unix, OpenCV, Kalman Filter, Factor Graphs, UCI, OMS Standards
AI focus
Develops and deploys perception, sensor-fusion, state-estimation, and object-detection technologies on real aerospace and robotic systems.
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