Staff Software Engineer (Autonomy Capabilities)

The Autonomy Capabilities Team develops functionality to automate single- and multi-agent teams of platforms in pursuit of mission objectives and acts as a central discipline-aligned focal-point for encouraging consistent usage of technical approaches across business portfoliosThis team operates at all levels of the command-and-control hierarchy (from advanced control laws, through motion planning, and up to advanced tactical behaviors and multi-agent coordination) and across a multitude of mission sets, platform types, and operational domains (e.g., air, sea, space) The team puts a strong emphasis on both fundamentals (e.g., aircraft kinematics/dynamics, trajectory design, optimization, information fusion, efficient algorithms, etc.) and software integration skillsets (e.g. structures, protocols, threading, interface management, etc.) to bring market-differentiating capabilities to customers that seamlessly operate within their integration contextsThis position is perfect for an individual who enjoys solving complex problems across a diverse set of programs and integration contexts. An ideal candidate is expected to address operational system needs through a multitude of advanced methodologies that blend traditional control system approaches with advanced optimizationDeveloped solutions are expected to be integrated into real-world platforms with near-term program impacts and rewards and so balancing theory with practice and rigorous implementation is paramountTactical Autonomy Design – Design tactical autonomy algorithms to enable unmanned aircraft to perform complex missions across air, land, and sea domains with minimal human supervisionHigh-Performance Software Development – Develop high-performance software modules that incorporate planning, decision-making, and behavior execution strategies for dynamic and adversarial environmentsBehavior Architecture Implementation – Implement and test behavior architectures that enable multi-agent coordination, target engagement, reconnaissance, and survivability in contested scenariosHybrid 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 behaviorCross-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 platformsDeployment & Field Testing – Deploy autonomy capabilities to real platforms and participate in field tests and flight demos, validating performance in operationally relevant conditionsMission Data Analysis – Analyze mission logs and performance data to diagnose failures, optimize behavior models, and inform iterative developmentR&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 missionProgram Support & Adaptation – Support defense-focused programs and customer needs by adapting autonomy solutions to evolving mission sets, compliance requirements, and operational feedbackTravel Requirement – Members of this team typically travel around 10-15% of the year (to different office locations, customer sites, and flight integration events)