Full-Time

Electrical Engineer

Space Kinetic

Space Kinetic

11-50 employees

Propellant-free payload deployment system for space

Compensation Overview

$97k - $125k/yr

+ Equity-Based Compensation + Bonus

No H1B Sponsorship

El Segundo, CA, USA

In Person

US Top Secret Clearance, UK Citizenship Required

Category
Electrical Engineering (1)
Required Skills
Printed Circuit Board (PCB) Design
Altium
Circuit Design
Requirements
  • Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering or a closely related STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematic) field.
  • A minimum of 3–5 years of hands-on electrical engineering experience, ideally involving prototype development.
  • Experience designing three phase field-oriented controllers for bidirectional motor drives.
  • Proficiency in circuit design, schematic creation, and component selection.
  • Experience working with Schematic / PCB design tools (e.g., Altium).
  • Demonstrated experience building and testing electrical systems or prototypes.
  • Strong understanding of electronics fundamentals, wiring practices, and system integration.
  • Ability to troubleshoot circuits, debug hardware, and iterate rapidly.
  • Experience collaborating with vendors for PCB fabrication and assembly.
  • Excellent documentation, communication, and cross-functional collaboration skill
  • Ability to build and maintain a network of talented individuals. Prioritizes organizational and planning skills.
  • To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii) U.S. lawful, permanent resident (aka green card holder).
  • Ability to maintain or obtain a Government Security Clearance.
Responsibilities
  • Design, develop, and build electrical prototypes for Space Kinetic’s core technology.
  • Refine and finalize and the current prototype's electrical design to support all phases of prototype maturation.
  • Undertake and complete circuit design tasks, generate detailed schematics, and perform component selection aligned with environmental and system requirements.
  • Apply detailed tolerancing, design-for-manufacture principles, and thorough documentation across all electrical prototype phases.
  • Support PCB layout design and coordinate with external vendors for fabrication and assembly of PCB components.
  • Collaborate closely with the Space Kinetic manufacturing and engineering team to integrate electrical systems into mechanical assemblies.
  • Verify and validate your electrical designs through testing, troubleshooting, debugging, and iteration to improve system reliability and performance.
  • Actively participate in design reviews, contribute to system-level engineering discussions, and ensure the electrical subsystem progresses toward flight-readiness.
  • Support the creation and maintenance of electrical documentation, including BOMs, wiring diagrams, interface control documents (ICDs), and test procedures.
  • Ensure each design iteration moves the system closer to a flight-ready prototype aligned with Space Kinetic’s 2-year flight demonstration goal.
Desired Qualifications
  • Experience developing hardware for aerospace, defense, robotics, or similarly rigorous applications.
  • Familiarity with design-for-manufacture (DFM), design-for-test (DFT), and tolerance analysis.
  • Knowledge of embedded systems, field oriented controls, microcontrollers, sensors, and power electronics.
  • Experience with environmental or functional testing of electrical systems.
  • Hands-on experience with lab equipment (oscilloscopes, multimeters, power supplies, logic analyzers).
  • Ability to work in a fast-paced startup environment with evolving requirements.

Space Kinetic develops dual-use space technology for national security, focusing on a propellant-free electromechanical deployment system called Longbow. The system uses a rotary mechanism to accelerate and release multiple payloads from a host satellite, delivering high-velocity, instantaneous changes in trajectory without firing thrusters. This creates a low-signature, flexible method for maneuvering assets in space and aims to bring space mobility and rapid in-space logistics to defense and commercial markets. The company differentiates itself through its propellant-free approach, a tested model built from a garage prototype, and close collaborations with national labs (Los Alamos and Sandia) and government programs (US Space Force, DARPA, NSF, SBIR with the Air Force). Its goal is to provide deployable payload deployment systems and in-space mobility solutions to support space superiority and missile defense, enabling proliferated drone-like capabilities in space.

Company Size

11-50

Company Stage

N/A

Total Funding

N/A

Headquarters

Albuquerque, New Mexico

Founded

2022

Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • US Space Force contracts drive responsive space operations demand in 2025.
  • DARPA programs expand in-space logistics opportunities for Longbow integration.
  • CerraCap Ventures' $12M seed in August 2025 accelerates Whirlwind development.

What critics are saying

  • Chinese Shijian-21 outpaces Longbow with robotic arms in 6-12 months.
  • Lockheed MX-10A's 15 km/s speeds defeat slower payloads by February 2026.
  • DARPA terminates SBIR Phase II over 40% overruns in 3-6 months.

What makes Space Kinetic unique

  • Longbow deploys payloads from host satellites using propellant-free rotary mechanism.
  • Brings drone economics to space with one-to-many operational flexibility.
  • Patented electromechanical system targets space superiority and missile defense.

Help us improve and share your feedback! Did you find this helpful?

Your Connections

People at Space Kinetic who can refer or advise you

Benefits

Health Insurance

Dental Insurance

Vision Insurance

Equity-Based Compensation

Unlimited Paid Time Off

Paid Vacation

Paid Holidays

Unique Performance-Based Bonus Structure

Health and Wellness Stipend

Commuter Benefits

Growth & Insights and Company News

Headcount

6 month growth

15%

1 year growth

0%

2 year growth

8%
FinSMEs
Aug 19th, 2025
Space Kinetic Receives Investment from CerraCap Ventures

Space Kinetic, an Albuquerque, NM-based U.S.-licensed national security operator, received an investment from CerraCap Ventures

PR Newswire
Aug 19th, 2025
CerraCap Ventures Invests in Space Kinetic, Driving Breakthrough - Space Superiority and Missile Defense Innovation

CerraCap Ventures invests in Space Kinetic, driving breakthrough - Space superiority and missile defense innovation.

SpaceNews
Apr 18th, 2023
AWS chooses 14 startups for its third space accelerator program

Amazon Web Services said April 18 it picked 14 U.S. and European startups to join its third annual space accelerator program kicking off in May to boost ventures with solutions for improving space sustainability.