Director of Engineering, Processing Core

Who We Are: 

Eras of humanity can often be defined by a dominant transportation mode - horse drawn carriage, ocean faring boats, or aircraft. These were spurred by a small group of people rigorously focused on building technology to achieve faster access to more of the world.  We seek to usher in a new era of humanity defined by universal access to the whole globe free of borders and the presence of a routine way from space to Earth. To do this, we are building highly maneuverable re-entry vehicles that can loiter in orbit before precision landing back on Earth.     

What You’ll Do: 

As the head of Inversion’s Processing Core team, you will spearhead the creation, design, and leadership of one of Inversion’s most crucial systems: the software and hardware for our flight computer and control systems for our next-generation spacecraft. Inversion’s spacecraft are capable of both operating as a satellite on orbit for long durations as well as reentering Earth’s atmosphere and autonomously and accurately landing anywhere in the world. The Processing Core team consists of the software, firmware, electrical, and mechanical systems that are the foundational platform for the entire software and avionics running on the vehicle. You will own the technical development of the software stack, flight computer board design, encryption, and operating system (OS) from conceptual design through continuous testing to deployment onto production vehicles. In this role, you will: 

• Report directly to the Chief Technology Officer (CTO). 

• Lead technical and programmatic architecture and execution of the flight computer and flight software systems on Inversion’s Arc vehicle. 

• Assemble an incredibly talent-dense team of engineers to design, build, test, and produce the primary flight computer, operating system, and flight software. 

• Integrate and coordinate the integration of your team’s systems into Inversion’s vehicle(s). 

• Implement your vision for what you deem the “art of the possible” in a company that’s constructing an autonomy-enabled space transportation layer. 

 Required Qualifications: 

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or equivalent industry experience in a relevant field with a minimum of 10+ years of engineering complex computation systems. 

• Industry leadership experience managing interdisciplinary teams and responsibility over program-level technical decision-making. 

• Proven experience rapidly deploying and iterating critical software infrastructure, high-reliability systems, highly secure software, or safety-critical software. 

• Successful track record of taking projects from design through deployment into production. 

• Strong ability to translate customer requirements into highly reliable engineering outcomes. 

• Solid understanding of Operating System implementation fundamentals. 

• Strong communication skills and the ability to inspire team members. 

 Desired Qualifications: 

• Excellent C, C++, and/or Rust coding ability for embedded systems. 

• Experience with embedded Linux kernel, driver, and firmware development. 

• Demonstrated experience developing embedded software for autonomous flight vehicles, satellites, rockets, or robotics. 

• Experience with cryptography for platform security and implementation of secure software stacks and runtimes. 

• Knowledge of hardware architecture and assembly language programming. 

• Ability to obtain and maintain a DoD Top Secret clearance. 

The California annual base salary for this role is currently $175,000-$276,000. Pay Grades are determined by role, level, location, and alignment with market data. Individual pay will be determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on the following considerations: interviews and an assessment of several factors that are unique to each candidate, job-related skills, relevant education and experience, certifications, abilities of the candidate and internal equity.  

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