Shield AI
Staff Software Engineer, Autonomous Pilot Integration – Weapons (R5400)
$195K–$293K
Washington, D.C. +4 · On-site · Staff · Full-time · Posted Jul 21, 2026
- Location
- Washington, D.C.
San Diego, California
Boston, Massachusetts
Dallas, Texas
San Mateo, California - Experience
- Typically 7+ years of relevant experience.
- Education
- BS/MS in a relevant engineering discipline or equivalent practical experience.
About the job
Leads development, integration, validation, and field deployment of autonomy software for launched-effects platforms and multi-agent fleets.
What you'll do
- Lead technical delivery and cross-team integration of autonomy capabilities, including platform, autopilot, and command-and-control interfaces.
- Prepare and support releases, flight tests, customer demonstrations, and operational deployments; troubleshoot software and hardware issues.
- Guide architecture, design reviews, documentation, and improvements to integration tools and engineering processes.
What they ask for
- BS/MS in a relevant engineering discipline or equivalent practical experience.
- Expert C++ and Linux development experience.
- Experience leading complex autonomy or embedded software integration efforts and influencing technical direction across engineering teams.
- Experience supporting operational test events or customer deployments; ability to obtain a SECRET clearance.
Nice to have
- Experience with launched effects or distributed autonomous systems, autopilots such as PX4 or ArduPilot, or fleet-scale operations.
- Experience with disconnected or air-gapped deployments, mentoring engineers, or standards including UCI, OMS, MOSA, WOSA, or TAK/CoT.
Pay
USD 195,200–292,800 per year (base salary)
Tools
C++, Linux, HivemindSDK, PX4, ArduPilot, UCI, OMS, TAK/CoT
AI focus
Develops and integrates autonomy software, including mission behaviors, platform-specific control, multi-agent coordination, executive autonomy, and fleet-scale operations.
Model-written summary · the original posting is authoritative