Head of Prospective and R&T

Harmattan AI is a next-generation defense prime building autonomous and scalable defense systems. Following the close of a $200M Series B, valuing the company at $1.4 billion, we are expanding our teams and capabilities to deliver mission-critical systems to allied forces.

Our work is guided by clear values: building technologies with real-world impact, pursuing excellence in everything we do, setting ambitious goals, and taking on the hardest technical challenges. We operate in a demanding environment where rigor, ownership, and execution are expected.

As the Head of Prospective R&T at Harmattan AI, you will be the driving force behind the group's future roadmap, focused on exploring, initiating, and validating new strategic opportunities. This high-impact role is centered on upstream Research and Technology (R&T) activities, specifically conducting POCs and initial exploratory studies, strictly excluding industrialization. You will build and lead a highly creative team of Product Managers dedicated to opening up new, broad fields for the group, securing our position as an innovator in the defense sector.

The role will report directly to the leadership, acting as the senior expert for all R&T matters.

Key Responsibilities

• R&T Strategy & Exploration:

  • Define the prospective R&T strategy, identifying and initiating new opportunities to enrich the company's long-term product roadmap.

  • Lead exploration in key strategic areas, around Harmattan AI’s expertise.

  • Manage and lead strategic technical discussions,

  • Lobby and negotiate with MoDs contracts for R&T activities and new product developments

• Team Leadership & Management:

  • Lead and support a team of two Product Managers (one in France, one in Switzerland) whose primary mission is focused on upstream activities.

  • Oversee the team’s execution of POC realization and necessary sizing studies.

  • Ensure the team maintains a high level of creativity and a broad range of technical skills to cover varied subjects effectively.

• Strategic Vision:

  • Benchmark and analyze R&T activities within major defense players to ensure Harmattan AI is continuously working to open up new, relevant fields for the group.

  • Manage the R&T budget and align resources with strategic exploration goals.

  • Standardization lobbying

• Technical Domain Expertise:

  • Apply deep technical knowledge to inform R&T decisions, assess the feasibility of new concepts, and guide the team’s exploratory efforts.

Ideal Candidate Profile

• R&T Expertise: Possess in-depth expertise in Research & Technology (R&T), with a proven ability to cover a very broad spectrum of varied technical subjects regarding autonomous systems

• Professional Experience: Approximately 10 years of experience within major companies in the defense sector

• Defense Sector Knowledge: Prior experience with MoDs is mandatory.

• Technical Domain: Strong knowledge of autonomous systems and their components is essential.

• Qualities: High creativity, broad range of skills, and the capacity to manage a variety of diverse subjects concurrently. A track record of pioneering new technical or product fields is highly valued.

• General: Strong leadership skills with the ability to recruit, mentor, and manage a team of highly creative and technically diverse Product Managers.

We look forward to hearing how you can help shape the future of autonomous defense systems at Harmattan AI.