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Sky Spy

Drone-mounted SIGINT for RF geolocation

FPGA Engineer

Full-TimePosted on 10/20/2026
No salary listed
Senior
Warsaw, Poland
Hybrid
Hardware EngineeringSilicon & ASIC Design

About the job

Requirements
  • At least 5 years of commercial experience in FPGA development.
  • Strong knowledge of VHDL and/or Verilog; experience with both is a plus.
  • Hands-on experience with Xilinx FPGA/SoC platforms, including 7-Series, UltraScale/UltraScale+, and Zynq SoC.
  • Solid understanding of digital design and RTL development.
  • Practical experience implementing DSP algorithms on FPGAs.
  • Understanding of RF signal processing and SDR architectures.
  • Experience with Xilinx Vivado and Xilinx IP.
  • Good understanding of timing analysis, clock-domain crossing (CDC), reset strategies, and FPGA constraints.
  • Experience debugging FPGA designs on real hardware.
Responsibilities
  • Design and develop FPGA/SoC solutions based on Xilinx 7-Series and UltraScale/UltraScale+ devices.
  • Develop RTL designs using VHDL and Verilog.
  • Implement and optimize DSP algorithms, including FIR/IIR filters, FFT, DDC/DUC, decimation/interpolation, mixers, NCOs, and other signal-processing blocks.
  • Develop digital signal-processing chains for RF/SDR systems.
  • Work with high-speed data paths and streaming architectures.
  • Integrate FPGA logic with Xilinx SoC and embedded processor subsystems.
  • Perform RTL simulation, verification, and hardware debugging.
  • Optimize FPGA designs for timing closure, resource utilization, and performance.
  • Work with Xilinx Vivado, synthesis, implementation, constraints, and Xilinx IP cores.
  • Analyze and resolve timing, clock-domain, and hardware-related issues.
  • Collaborate with hardware, embedded software, DSP, and RF engineers.
Desired Qualifications
  • Experience with Zynq-7000/Zynq UltraScale+ MPSoC.
  • Knowledge of AXI4/AXI-Stream.
  • Experience with high-speed interfaces such as JESD204, Ethernet, PCIe, and DDR.
  • Experience implementing FFT, DDC/DUC, channelizers, beamforming, and other DSP blocks.
  • Experience with ADC/DAC interfaces and RF transceivers.
  • Knowledge of SystemVerilog, Tcl, Python, or C/C++.
  • Experience with hardware/software co-design.
  • Strong understanding of fixed-point arithmetic and FPGA-oriented DSP optimization.

About the company

Sky Spy develops compact onboard SIGINT systems for contested electromagnetic environments, selling to defense and allied customers through direct sales and partnerships with defense contractors and UAS manufacturers. Its flagship Agent 001 is a drone-mounted module (over 500 g) that processes signals onboard to detect, classify, and geolocate radio emitters in real time, even in GPS-denied conditions. It combines RF processing with visual confirmation to deliver emitter coordinates and photos to command systems, turning small drones into signal-hunting platforms. The company focuses on frontline testing and tight integration with drone platforms to provide real-time electromagnetic spectrum awareness for NATO and allied support, with plans to scale production and capabilities.

Company Size

1-10

Company Stage

Seed

Total Funding

$1.6M

Headquarters

Tallinn, Estonia

Founded

2024

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Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • May 2026 French and Kyiv trials created credible NATO sales evidence.
  • July 2026 Estonia exercise with Orqa widened Sky Spy’s addressable defense pipeline.
  • Sky Spy’s 2025 funding and partnership momentum suggest hiring and production expansion through 2026.

What critics are saying

  • Sky Spy remains pre-scale; $1.6 million limits manufacturing, sales, and certification through 2026.
  • Rivals like Evolve Dynamics can absorb SIGINT quickly, commoditizing Sky Spy’s payload advantage.
  • Russian electronic warfare adaptation can blunt Agent 001, threatening battlefield relevance within months.

What makes Sky Spy unique

  • Sky Spy’s Agent 001 runs onboard, enabling GPS-denied geolocation on small drones.
  • French COMCYBER’s GALENE exercise validated Sky Spy against real emitters in May 2026.
  • Evolve Dynamics and Orqa integrations expand Sky Spy across allied UAS platforms.

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Benefits

  • Remote Work Options
  • Hybrid Work Options
  • Flexible Work Hours
  • Company Equity

Company News

Unmanned Airspace
May 29th, 2026
Sky Spy, Evolve Dynamics develop drone-based detection of hostile drone and jammer RF activity.

Sky Spy, Evolve Dynamics develop drone-based detection of hostile drone and jammer RF activity. Sky Spy and Evolve Dynamics have announced a partnership to integrate and test UAS-based SIGINT systems that enhance RF spectrum awareness for military users, following a successful demonstration with the French Armed Forces earlier this month. According to Tom Redman, CEO of Evolve Dynamics, said: "In embarking on this partnership with Sky Spy, we combine shared frontline experience from Ukraine with our expertise integrating new capabilities into UAS for modern operators. Through joint trials led from our Kyiv facility and recent NATO demonstrations, we've integrated advanced electronic sensing capabilities onto our platforms, enabling operators to detect and locate hostile RF activity, including drone operators and jammers. The result is a new layer of battlefield awareness for forces operating in contested environments." The recent exercise, organised by France's Cyber Defence Command, saw Sky Spy's autonomous portable SIGINT system, SkyAgent 001, integrated with Evolve Dynamics' Sky Mantis 2 rotary-wing UAS in an electromagnetic 'capture the flag' scenario. During the exercise, French personnel observed the system detecting, classifying and geolocating all high-priority emitters in the scenario, demonstrating how airborne RF sensing can extend collection range and help users detect emitters deeper into the battlespace than ground-based systems alone, said the companies in a press release. The demonstration forms part of a wider partnership to integrate Sky Spy's family of SIGINT systems across Evolve Dynamics' UAS portfolio. The companies will now begin integrating the capability onto smaller tactical UAS such as Wolfe-NATO, alongside continued demonstrations and testing to support personnel seeking greater awareness and control of the electromagnetic spectrum. Sky Spy's systems are designed to feed RF intelligence into wider ISR and command-and-control workflows, supporting integration with other battlefield management systems.

Vestbee
Dec 4th, 2025
Sky Spy raises $1.6M to launch first battle-proven portable SIGINT system for contested environments

The firm plans to commercialize, manufacture, and scale their battle‑proven SIGINT system, while expanding the team to support broader deployment.