Full-Time

Software Engineer

Fullstack

Swarm Aero

Swarm Aero

51-200 employees

Autonomous UAV swarm manufacturing and software

Compensation Overview

$200k - $320k/yr

+ Equity + Wellness Stipend

San Francisco, CA, USA

In Person

On-site in San Francisco, California; no remote work.

Bachelor's

Category
Software Engineering (1)
Required Skills
UI/UX Design
React.js
Quality Assurance (QA)
DevOps

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Requirements
  • Degree in Computer Science or equivalent experience
  • 6+ years building complex full stack applications with real frontend and backend depth
  • Strong UI/UX instincts and the tools to back them up
  • Built production web interfaces with React or a comparable modern framework
Responsibilities
  • Help architect the frontend for the C2 system directing swarms of heterogeneous aircraft
  • Build distributed, collaborative real-time infrastructure for controlling large numbers of aircraft simultaneously, even when comms drop
  • Design and ship new UI concepts for representing vehicle telemetry, sensor data, scheduling, crew resources, data link management, and more, much of it with no existing playbook to follow
  • Own full stack features end to end, from design through deployment
  • Ship early, ship often, backed by strong CI/CD, QA, and DevSecOps
Desired Qualifications
  • Experience with both immediate mode (games, simulation) and retained mode UI paradigms
  • A track record with performance-sensitive application development
  • Familiarity with video streaming protocols
  • WebGL/OpenGL experience
  • Working fluency in C++
  • Experience with geospatial applications

Swarm Aero designs and builds large-scale autonomous UAV swarms along with the Legion command-and-control software that coordinates many drones. Its aircraft use mass-producible composite airframes (Group 5) intended to enable thousands of drones to operate together, even where communications are limited, mainly for U.S. military use. Legion handles distributed autonomy, tasking, and swarm coordination to execute complex missions. The goal is to provide a scalable, affordable air-power option by accelerating high-rate manufacturing as a successor to platforms like the MQ-9 Reaper.

Company Size

51-200

Company Stage

Series A

Total Funding

$43M

Headquarters

Oxnard, California

Founded

2022

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Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • August 10, 2026 AFRL awarded over $10 million for manufacturing R&D and aircraft parts.
  • June 30, 2026 FLEX validated Legion with 100% live-fire hits and rapid integrations.
  • March 11, 2026 Series A raised $35 million, funding headcount growth and production.

What critics are saying

  • May 19, 2026 Fayetteville zoning fight showed local political resistance to drone manufacturing.
  • Swarm depends on U.S. military buyers; one procurement delay starves revenue before 2027 flights.
  • If Legion or Group 5 aircraft miss operational needs, Anduril, Shield AI, and Kratos win programs.

What makes Swarm Aero unique

  • Legion orchestrated seven platforms and dozens of sensors at FLEX 2026 for one operator.
  • Its Fayetteville, Arkansas center mass-produces large composite UAVs, unlike boutique defense drone shops.
  • Swarm Aero pairs manufacturing with C2 software, targeting Group 5 swarms and kinetic missions.

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Benefits

Health Insurance

Dental Insurance

Vision Insurance

401(k) Retirement Plan

Paid Vacation

Paid Sick Leave

Paid Parental Leave

Remote Work Options

Hybrid Work Options

Wellness Program

Growth & Insights and Company News

Headcount

6 month growth

1%

1 year growth

-3%

2 year growth

-2%
UASweekly.com
Jul 1st, 2026
Swarm Aero demonstrates autonomous drone command-and-control with U.S. Navy during FLEX 2026.

Swarm Aero demonstrates autonomous drone command-and-control with U.S. Navy during FLEX 2026. Swarm Aero (Swarm), a developer of large uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) swarms, today announced the successful deployment of Legion, the company's command and control (C2) software, during the U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command/U.S. 4th Fleet's Fleet Experimentation (FLEX) 2026 event. At FLEX, Legion enabled a single operator to orchestrate heterogeneous air and sea assets in a full find, fix, track, target, engage, assess (F2T2EA) chain, ranging from exquisite systems on Group 5 UAS to expendable platforms within a unified operating environment. "We've yet again shown the level of orchestration customers demand - a single operator able to plan and command operations with dozens of heterogeneous, multi-domain assets and diverse autonomy profiles simultaneously executing a mission," said Peter Kalogiannis, CEO and co-founder, Swarm Aero. "FLEX showcased that Legion's unique approach to UXS orchestration is operational and that we move fast to meet existing and emerging mission demands." Held in Key West, Florida, FLEX is USNAVSOUTH/4th Fleet's premier experimentation campaign to evaluate advanced robotic and autonomous systems (RAS), addressing the challenge of patrolling vast maritime regions with a limited number of traditional naval assets. These Fleet Experiments focused on operationalizing AI alongside innovative multi-domain uncrewed platforms to accelerate the delivery of next-generation capabilities to the fleet. The event was attended by distinguished visitors, including Undersecretary of War for Research and Engineering Emil Michael; Gen. Francis L. Donovan, commander of U.S. Southern Command; and Vice Adm. John Dougherty IV, commander of Naval Air Systems Command alongside additional leaders from the U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard, Joint Interagency Task Force South, partner-nation militaries, and various industry partners. The FLEX exercise marks another successful demonstration of Legion's ability to enable a single operator to command and orchestrate heterogeneous assets at scale across complex, multi-domain operations. This achievement represents a significant milestone in Swarm Aero's growth and further validates Legion's readiness to support and scale with increasingly complex Department of War missions. "We made engineering and design choices around Legion's architecture to enable mass control before Replicator or Project Overmatch were even announced, and those decisions plus years of heavy warfighter-driven iteration have enabled Legion to quietly race forward as the leading C2 for UXS," said Oliver Palmer, CRO and co-founder, Swarm Aero. "Legion is highly intuitive, operators with a few hours of exposure can use this single interface to control full missions involving expendable to exquisite assets and leverage many different vendors' autonomy products that we easily integrate. We're incredibly proud of the outcomes at FLEX and excited for what comes next." Operational results for Legion within the FLEX exercise include: * Unified control and monitoring of seven unique platforms and dozens of sensors through Legion's Single Pane of Glass (SPoG) interface * Showcased rapid integration timelines, demonstrating Legion's ability to bring new autonomous platforms online in hours to days * Executed an autonomous maritime operation chain from organic sensing and track generation through target handoff, engagement, and battle damage assessment * Achieved 100% live-fire target hits (3/3) * Demonstrated peer-to-peer multi-user operations afloat and ashore * Enabled one operator to command heterogeneous UxS while maintaining vehicle state awareness, sensor feeds, and track management * Proved Legion's scalability from ISR to kinetic effects, supporting missions from maritime interdiction to live-fire engagement About Swarm Aero Swarm Aero was founded in 2022 and is headquartered in Oxnard, CA with locations in Spokane, WA, Fayetteville, AR, and Washington D.C... The team has extraordinary experience working with the Department of War to fulfill critical needs and requirements as well as decades of aerospace accomplishments across Scaled Composites, Blue Origin, Northrop Grumman, Boeing, Airbus, Archer, and others. The team has previously completed billions of dollars in contracts involving DOW, has built software platforms supporting billions of users, and employed cutting-edge AI in critical applications. Swarm is backed by leading venture firms including Deviation Capital, Silent Ventures, Khosla Ventures, Construct Capital, Coatue, MaC Venture Capital, a16z, and Founders Fund.

Yahoo Finance
Jul 1st, 2026
Swarm Aero's Legion software enables single operator to command multiple air and sea assets at US Navy FLEX 2026

Swarm Aero successfully deployed its Legion command and control software during the US Navy's Fleet Experimentation (FLEX) 2026 event in Key West, Florida. The system enabled a single operator to orchestrate multiple air and sea assets across complex operations, achieving 100% accuracy in live-fire exercises. During FLEX, Legion controlled seven unique platforms and dozens of sensors through a unified interface, executing autonomous maritime operations from target detection through engagement. The software demonstrated rapid integration capabilities, bringing new platforms online within hours to days. Founded in 2022 and headquartered in Oxnard, California, Swarm Aero is backed by investors including Khosla Ventures, a16z, Founders Fund and Coatue. The company develops software for large uncrewed aerial vehicle swarms, with Legion designed to support Department of Defense missions ranging from intelligence gathering to kinetic operations.

WPGX Fox 28
Jun 30th, 2026
Swarm Aero's Command and control software successfully completes manned-unmanned teaming exercises at U.S. Navy Fleet Experimentation (FLEX) 2026.

Swarm Aero's Command and control software successfully completes manned-unmanned teaming exercises at U.S. Navy Fleet Experimentation (FLEX) 2026. * 1 hr ago OXNARD, Calif., June 30, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) - Swarm Aero (Swarm), a developer of large uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV) swarms, today announced the successful deployment of Legion, the company's command and control (C2) software, during the U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command/U.S. 4th Fleet's Fleet Experimentation (FLEX) 2026 event. At FLEX, Legion enabled a single operator to orchestrate heterogeneous air and sea assets in a full find, fix, track, target, engage, assess (F2T2EA) chain, ranging from exquisite systems on Group 5 UAS to expendable platforms within a unified operating environment. Niall Horan is glad his final memory of Liam Payne is a 'happy' one "We've yet again shown the level of orchestration customers demand - a single operator able to plan and command operations with dozens of heterogeneous, multi-domain assets and diverse autonomy profiles simultaneously executing a mission," said Peter Kalogiannis, CEO and co-founder, Swarm Aero. "FLEX showcased that Legion's unique approach to UXS orchestration is operational and that we move fast to meet existing and emerging mission demands." Held in Key West, Florida, FLEX is USNAVSOUTH/4th Fleet's premier experimentation campaign to evaluate advanced robotic and autonomous systems (RAS), addressing the challenge of patrolling vast maritime regions with a limited number of traditional naval assets. These Fleet Experiments focused on operationalizing AI alongside innovative multi-domain uncrewed platforms to accelerate the delivery of next-generation capabilities to the fleet. The event was attended by distinguished visitors, including Undersecretary of War for Research and Engineering Emil Michael; Gen. Francis L. Donovan, commander of U.S. Southern Command; and Vice Adm. John Dougherty IV, commander of Naval Air Systems Command alongside additional leaders from the U.S. Navy, U.S. Coast Guard, Joint Interagency Task Force South, partner-nation militaries, and various industry partners. The FLEX exercise marks another successful demonstration of Legion's ability to enable a single operator to command and orchestrate heterogeneous assets at scale across complex, multi-domain operations. This achievement represents a significant milestone in Swarm Aero's growth and further validates Legion's readiness to support and scale with increasingly complex Department of War missions. "We made engineering and design choices around Legion's architecture to enable mass control before Replicator or Project Overmatch were even announced, and those decisions plus years of heavy warfighter-driven iteration have enabled Legion to quietly race forward as the leading C2 for UXS," said Oliver Palmer, CRO and co-founder, Swarm Aero. "Legion is highly intuitive, operators with a few hours of exposure can use this single interface to control full missions involving expendable to exquisite assets and leverage many different vendors' autonomy products that we easily integrate. We're incredibly proud of the outcomes at FLEX and excited for what comes next." Operational results for Legion within the FLEX exercise include: * Unified control and monitoring of seven unique platforms and dozens of sensors through Legion's Single Pane of Glass (SPoG) interface * Showcased rapid integration timelines, demonstrating Legion's ability to bring new autonomous platforms online in hours to days * Executed an autonomous maritime operation chain from organic sensing and track generation through target handoff, engagement, and battle damage assessment * Achieved 100% live-fire target hits (3/3) * Demonstrated peer-to-peer multi-user operations afloat and ashore * Enabled one operator to command heterogeneous UxS while maintaining vehicle state awareness, sensor feeds, and track management * Proved Legion's scalability from ISR to kinetic effects, supporting missions from maritime interdiction to live-fire engagement About Swarm Aero Swarm Aero was founded in 2022 and is headquartered in Oxnard, CA with locations in Spokane, WA, Fayetteville, AR, and Washington D.C... The team has extraordinary experience working with the Department of War to fulfill critical needs and requirements as well as decades of aerospace accomplishments across Scaled Composites, Blue Origin, Northrop Grumman, Boeing, Airbus, Archer, and others. The team has previously completed billions of dollars in contracts involving DOW, has built software platforms supporting billions of users, and employed cutting-edge AI in critical applications. Swarm is backed by leading venture firms including Deviation Capital, Silent Ventures, Khosla Ventures, Construct Capital, Coatue, MaC Venture Capital, a16z, and Founders Fund. To learn more please visit: https://www.swarm.aero/ Media Contact Kate Gundry 617-797-5174

Business Wire
Mar 11th, 2026
Swarm Aero Announces $35M Series A Financing Led by Two Sigma Ventures and Silent Ventures

Swarm Aero announces $35M Series A financing to accelerate the development and deployment of the company’s large UAV and swarm software.

Axios
Mar 11th, 2026
California's Swarm Aero raises $35M to build large missile-carrying drones

California-based Swarm Aero has raised $35 million to develop large, swarming drones capable of carrying missiles, electronic warfare payloads and cargo. The company plans to more than double its headcount by year-end. Chief executive Danny Goodman told Axios the drones occupy a middle ground in military aviation, designed to be neither expendable single-use systems like Switchblade drones nor high-cost platforms like the B-2 bomber or F-35 fighter jet. The funding will support development of the company's autonomous drone technology for military applications.