Staff Software Engineer (R2249)

Introduction to Shield AIFounded in 2015, Shield AI is a venture-backed defense technology company whose mission is to protect service members and civilians with intelligent systems. In pursuit of this mission, Shield AI is building the world’s best AI pilot. Its AI pilot, Hivemind, has flown a fighter jet (F-16), a vertical takeoff and landing drone (V-BAT), and a quadcopter (Nova). The company has offices in San Diego, Dallas, Washington DC and abroad. Shield AI’s products and people are currently in the field actively supporting operations with the U.S. Department of Defense and U.S. allies. 
The Hivemind Test department (HMT) is a group of teams on a mission to build comprehensive and robust testing infrastructure that supports the development and deployment of the world’s best AI pilot. Hivemind Test is dedicated to ensuring the highest level of quality, reliability, and performance in our Hivemind software ecosystem -- including software for AI behaviors, embedded systems, system integration, and more. Our group is charged with validating and verifying the entire Hivemind software ecosystem meets reliability standards and is operationally ready to meet mission objectives.  The Platform Automation Engineering (PAE) function within HMT aims to optimize the introduction of new products and the transition from the design phase to the manufacturing and production phase. The PAE team has a broad scope that includes defining and driving test requirements for software provisioning, sensor calibration, and functional testing during aircraft manufacturing; and then also building user-facing software applications to automate production processes. The team is responsible for coordinating with design teams to ensure manufacturability of Hivemind software and production automation applications deployed to manufacturing environments. Working closely with functions across Hivemind and Platform engineering as well as Production teams, the PAE team ensures a seamless flow from design to production, enabling high-quality product releases and efficient manufacturing processes.  We are seeking an experienced engineer to join our growing PAE team, where you will play a critical role in driving manufacturability of Shield AI products, designing & building automation solutions, and sustaining Shield AI product lines.   We are looking for a technical expert, passionate about rigorous and efficient testing. Someone who is not afraid to take charge, make-decisions, and do what honor dictates to make things happen. Ideally someone with experience in building innovative test solutions relative to robotics or aircraft manufacturing. 

What you'll do:

• Develop, implement, and lead test strategies for software provisioning, sensor calibration, and functional testing, ensuring alignment with manufacturing needs. 
• Write and review software for high quality and sustainability.  
• Engage in and facilitate design reviews, code reviews, and software releases. 
• Design and develop user-facing applications for manufacturing environments. 
• Work closely with Autonomy Test (AT), Foundations Test (FT), Hardware NPI, and Production teams to facilitate a smooth transition from design to manufacturing stages. 
• Ensure that PAE products meet quality standards and manufacturing efficiency targets. 
• Provide technical guidance to junior engineers, fostering a culture of continuous improvement and innovation. 
• Stay abreast of industry trends, best practices, and technologies to continually refine and optimize the NPI process. 
• Ensure adherence to industry regulations and maintain comprehensive documentation of processes and procedures. 
• Collaborate with electrical engineering teams to develop or contract out PCBA test solutions.  
• Research and enforce industry best practices and standards for software engineering, robotics production, and sensor calibration.  

Projects that you might work on:

• Suite of tools/applications for configuring, testing, and calibrating V-BAT aircrafts during production.  
• Manufacturing acceptance requirements for V-BAT platforms.
• Build automation applications to test aircraft components. 
• Design and build an application to configure aircraft before leaving manufacturing.  
• Applications to automate common interactions with V-BAT platforms and Hivemind software.   
• Test infrastructure to enable automated integration testing of Hivemind software.  

Required qualifications:

• Requires a minimum of 8 years of related experience with a bachelor’s degree; or 5 years and a master’s degree; or a PhD with 3 years of experience. 
• Minimum of 3 years of real-world experience building test plans or automated test solutions for manufacturing. Ideally in the robotics, aviation, automotive, or defense industries. 
• Strong understanding