STR
Lead Autonomy Software Engineer
$174K–$225K
San Diego, CA +4 · Full-time · Posted May 8, 2026
- Location
- San Diego, CA
Arlington, Virginia, United States
Atlanta, Georgia, United States
San Diego, California, United States
Woburn, Massachusetts, United States - Experience
- Minimum 2 years relevant experience with a PhD, 5 years with an MS, or 7 years with a BS.
- Education
- PhD, MS, or BS (experience requirement varies by degree).
- Visa sponsorship
- U.S. citizenship is needed to obtain and maintain a Secret security clearance.
About the job
Leads development, integration, and testing of real-time autonomy software and mission systems for defense customers.
What you'll do
- Integrate mature hardware systems and develop software, working with subject-matter experts on advanced algorithms.
- Coordinate system testing across modeling and simulation and live-test environments, including LVC infrastructure.
- Lead small teams building and testing real-time applications using open architecture principles and Modern C++.
What they ask for
- Proficiency in modern C++ development, including multithreaded applications.
- Experience with test-driven development, CI/CD, cross-platform development, version control, and hardware/software integration.
- Ability to obtain and maintain a Secret security clearance; U.S. citizenship is required by the U.S. government.
Nice to have
- Active Secret or Top Secret clearance; 5+ years of C++ programming with open architecture systems.
- Experience with safety-critical or real-time software, algorithm optimization, network protocols, open standards, or software quality tools.
Pay
$174,000 - $225,000 USD base salary
Tools
Modern C++, MATLAB, Windows, Linux, iOS, CI/CD, Live-Virtual-Constructive (LVC), OMS/UCI
AI focus
Develops autonomy capabilities and integrates algorithms for uncrewed systems and sensor-data collection, fusion, and understanding.
Model-written summary · the original posting is authoritative