Senior Staff Software Engineer, Autonomy - Software Autonomy

Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai. Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and YouTube. 

Job Description:

The Senior Staff Software Engineer, Autonomy will function as a hands on technical lead / subject matter expert and collaborate with Shield AI teammates / customers to build edge-AI and autonomy software for platforms across sea, air, and space. This role involves working closely with customers to understand their requirements, writing code, developing new capabilities and ensuring successful software/hardware integration, and mentoring teammates.

What you'll do:

• Examples of Projects You will Work On: 

  • Autonomous teaming drones.

  • Teaming between helicopters and drones.

  • Autonomy on Robodogs.

  • AI Pilots for Fighter Jets

  • and more!

• Learn Hivemind: Become an expert user of the Hivemind Enterprise Autonomy Software Development Kit.

• Tactical Autonomy Design – Design tactical autonomy algorithms to enable unmanned aircraft to perform complex missions across air, land, and sea domains with minimal human supervision.

• High-Performance Software Development – Develop high-performance software modules that incorporate planning, decision-making, and behavior execution strategies for dynamic and adversarial environments.

• Behavior Architecture Implementation – Implement and test behavior architectures that enable multi-agent coordination, target engagement, reconnaissance, and survivability in contested scenarios.

• Hybrid Autonomy Integration – Work at the intersection of classical autonomy and machine learning, blending rule-based systems with learning-based methods such as reinforcement learning to achieve robust, adaptive behavior.

• Hardware Software Integration:

• Cross-Functional Collaboration – Collaborate with cross-functional teams including perception, planning, simulation, hardware, and flight test to ensure seamless integration of autonomy solutions on real-world platforms.

• Deployment & Field Testing – Deploy autonomy capabilities to real platforms and participate in field tests and flight demos, validating performance in operationally relevant conditions.

• Mission Data Analysis – Analyze mission logs and performance data to diagnose failures, optimize behavior models, and inform iterative development.

• R&D and Roadmapping – Contribute to the autonomy roadmap by researching and prototyping new algorithms, identifying tactical capability gaps, and proposing novel solutions that advance Shield AI’s mission.

• Program Support & Adaptation – Support defense-focused programs and customer needs by adapting autonomy solutions to evolving mission sets, compliance requirements, and operational feedback.

• Handover / Training: Provide software handover and training to customers for their autonomy development efforts.

• Documentation: Develop and maintain technical documentation for customer as well as internal use.

• Travel Requirement – Members of this team typically travel around 10-15% of the year (to different office locations, customer sites, and flight integration events).Travel to and stay at customer sites as required for deployment / training / flight testing etc. (~30% travel).

Required qualifications:

• Bachelor’s and Masters degree in Aerospace, AI, Computer Science, Robotics or a related engineering field. 

• 12+ years of experience of industry experience

• Ability to travel and stay deployed at customer sites across India/Asia.

• 3+ years of experience hands on writing software for autonomy/robotics applications.

• 2+ years of experience working in a startup environment. 

• Strong technical background in software engineering. 

• Strong proficiency in writing modern C++ code. 

• Intermediate proficiency in writing Python code. 

• Excellent problem-solving and analytical skills. 

• Strong communication and interpersonal skills. 

• Ability converse fluently in Hindi and English.

Preferred qualifications:

• Experience in the defense aviation or robotics industry.  

• Ability to travel to USA for up to 3 months at a time for training.

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Total package details for U.S. based positions:

- Regular employee positions: Salary within range listed above + Bonus + Benefits + Equity

- Temporary employee positions: Hourly within range listed above + temporary benefits package (applicable after 60 days

of employment)

- Interns/Military Fellows/Part-time not eligible for bonus, benefits or equity

Total package details for International positions which are roles based outside of the United States (where applicable):

- International premium, hardship differential, cost of living differential, living quarters allowance, foreign service transfer

allowance, equity, international benefits, visa assistance, and relocation assistance.

Salary compensation is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, licenses and certifications, and specific work location. All offers are contingent on a cleared background and possible reference check.

Shield AI is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know.