Associate Director – AI Software, Applied Research & Technology – Defense Technologies (Onsite)

Date Posted:

2026-03-30

Country:

United States of America

Location:

US-IA-CEDAR RAPIDS-108 ~ 400 Collins Rd NE ~ BLDG 108

Position Role Type:

Hybrid

U.S. Citizen, U.S. Person, or Immigration Status Requirements:

The ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. government issued security clearance is required.​ U.S. citizenship is required, as only U.S. citizens are eligible for a security clearance

Security Clearance Type:

DoD Clearance: Top Secret

Security Clearance Status:

Active and existing security clearance required after day 1

Associate Director, Engineering – AI Software,  Applied Research & Technology – Defense Technologies (Onsite)

At RTX, the world largest aerospace and defense company, 185,000 great minds are united by purpose and inspired to make a difference solving the world’s most complex problems. With our three market leading businesses, world-class operations and investments in research and development, we offer capabilities and opportunity no one else can. Together, we push the boundaries of known science and find new ways to connect and protect our world.

Join a small, high‑impact team in Collins Aerospace’s Applied Research & Technology organization developing resilient connectivity and command and control technologies for next generation aerospace and defense systems. As a P6 Software Engineer, you will be on the cutting edge of Artificial Intelligence, bringing emerging and innovative solutions out of the lab and into our products in the field.

Collins Aerospace, an RTX business, is a leader in technologically advanced and intelligent solutions for the global aerospace and defense industry. Applied Research & Technology is Collins’ startup‑style innovation engine. Small, focused teams explore, prototype, and demonstrate new technologies for next‑generation aerospace and defense systems. You get the freedom to experiment and move fast, with access to world‑class labs, data, and the product teams that can field what you build.

The Defense Technologies segment turns emerging concepts into mission‑ready capabilities for contested environments. We build resilient communications and navigation solutions, secure and cyber‑resilient avionics, advanced sensing, and autonomous technologies for warfighters. You work close to real missions, with clear paths to prove ideas in the lab, at the range, and on platforms.

Why You’ll Love Working Here: 

• Develop technology rapidly on small teams that operate like a startup, backed by the labs, resources, and flight heritage of a major aerospace company. 
• Innovate end‑to‑end: from whiteboard concepts to prototypes, demos, and product transition.
• Work on hard, open‑ended problems at the intersection of embedded systems, command and control, RF, AI/ML, advanced networking
• Collaborate with sharp engineers and researchers across Collins, RTX, universities, labs, and innovative small businesses. 
• Help shape where the technology goes next by influencing architectures, roadmaps, proposals, patents, and publications.

What You Will Do: 

• Architect and implement AI software algorithms & pipelines that meet performance, SWaP, cost, reliability, and security targets. 
• Build and evolve software prototypes—in simulations, lab setups, and embedded devices. 
• Design and run experiments, analyze data and use the results to iterate fast on concepts, models, and implementations. 
• Mentor junior software engineers and lead software teams
• Capture architectures, designs, test results, and lessons learned so others can review, reuse, and extend your work. 
• Coordinate with project and program leads to manage technical risk, estimate effort, and communicate progress and tradeoffs. 
• Support integration, test, and demo events—lab, field, or flight—to show capability, collect feedback, and refine designs. 
• Contribute to proposals, white papers, and technical briefings that shape future research and development.

Qualifications You Must Have:

• Typically requires a degree in Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics (STEM) and minimum 12 years prior relevant experience or an Advanced Degree in a related field and minimum 10 years of experience
• Must have or be capable of obtaining a US Department of Defense (DoD) security clearance.  Candidate selected will be subject to a government security investigation/reinstatement and must meet eligibility requirements 
• Ability to work in multidisciplinary teams and explain complex technical ideas clearly to both specialists, non‑specialists, and senior leadership. 
• Experience planning and executing experiments or evaluation