Shield AI is seeking a Senior Principal Autonomy Engineer to define and lead the technical strategy, architecture, development, integration, and fielding of advanced autonomy capabilities for high performance systems. This role will focus on the sensing, perception, decision, guidance, and control functions that enable reliable operation in complex, contested, and dynamically changing environments.
The Senior Principal Autonomy Engineer will serve as a technical authority for autonomy architectures that incorporate advanced RF sensing, signal processing, electronic protection, state estimation, sensor fusion, guidance, navigation, and end to end vehicle simulation. This individual will shape multi year technical roadmaps, solve the organization’s most complex autonomy and RF performance challenges, and connect algorithm development with embedded implementation, hardware integration, simulation, test, and operational deployment.
The ideal candidate combines deep expertise in radar and RF signal processing with demonstrated leadership in autonomous system development. They bring a record of taking algorithms from early concept through requirements, design reviews, high fidelity modeling, hardware integration, test, and fielded capability, while building and mentoring strong technical teams.
What you'll do:
- Define the technical vision, architecture, and development roadmap for autonomy capabilities that combine RF sensing, perception, state estimation, sensor fusion, decision logic, guidance, navigation, and vehicle control.
- Lead the development and maturation of advanced radar and RF signal processing algorithms, including waveform design, adaptive beamforming, direction finding, target detection and tracking, clutter mitigation, electronic protection, and sensor performance optimization.
- Serve as the senior technical authority for autonomy and RF system performance, leading high consequence trade studies, requirements decisions, architecture reviews, algorithm reviews, and technical risk resolution across the full system lifecycle.
- Establish and govern end to end simulation, modeling, and verification approaches, including RF scene generation, electronic attack and protection modeling, sensor models, 6 degree of freedom vehicle simulation, Monte Carlo analysis, software in the loop, hardware in the loop, and field test correlation.
- Lead cross functional technical integration across autonomy, software, RF hardware, avionics, embedded computing, vehicle systems, flight sciences, systems engineering, test, and manufacturing to ensure subsystem performance supports mission level autonomy outcomes.
- Translate mission and vehicle needs into rigorous technical requirements, performance budgets, interface definitions, algorithm specifications, verification plans, and measurable success criteria.
- Guide the technical development of real time algorithm implementations in MATLAB, Python, C, C++, and DSP environments, balancing performance, compute resources, latency, reliability, integration constraints, and operational needs.
- Lead technical engagement with customers, partners, suppliers, and executive stakeholders, communicating technical strategy, performance evidence, maturity, risks, tradeoffs, test outcomes, and recommended decisions.
- Build organizational capability by mentoring engineers, establishing technical standards, recruiting specialized talent, and raising the quality of algorithm development, systems engineering, modeling, verification, and test practices.
- Influence investment decisions, technical proposals, and growth initiatives by defining differentiated autonomy and RF capabilities, assessing technical feasibility, shaping solution architectures, and supporting customer facing technical engagements.
Required qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Applied Mathematics, Physics, Computer Science, or a related technical discipline.
- 15 or more years of professional experience in autonomy, radar, RF sensing, signal processing, guidance and navigation, sensor fusion, aerospace systems, robotics, or related complex technical fields.
- Demonstrated technical leadership for the architecture, development, integration, and fielding of advanced autonomous, RF sensing, radar, electronic warfare, avionics, aerospace, or defense systems.
- Expert knowledge of radar and RF signal processing, including waveform design, adaptive processing, beamforming, direction finding, target detection and tracking, clutter modeling, interference mitigation, and performance assessment.
- Experience developing and validating algorithms through high fidelity end to end simulation, including sensor models, RF environmental models, vehicle dynamics, 6 degree of freedom simulation, and operationally representative scenarios.
- Demonstrated experience translating mission needs into system and subsystem requirements, performance allocations, interface definitions, algorithm specifications, verification plans, and test objectives.
- Substantial hands on experience with MATLAB and Python, along with experience developing or transitioning algorithms into C, C++, real time DSP, embedded computing, or hardware accelerated environments.
- Experience leading technical teams, mentoring engineers, driving design reviews, and resolving complex cross functional technical issues involving software, hardware, systems engineering, simulation, integration, and test.
- Strong communication skills and demonstrated ability to influence senior technical leaders, program leaders, external customers, and executive stakeholders through clear technical recommendations and evidence based decisions.
- Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. government security clearance.
Preferred qualifications:
- Master’s degree or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Applied Mathematics, Physics, or a related technical field, with emphasis in radar, RF systems, signal processing, control systems, autonomy, estimation, or optimization.
- Experience leading radar seeker, RF sensing, autonomy, guidance, navigation, or electronic warfare capability development from early research through system design, critical design review, qualification, test, and production or operational deployment.
- Expertise in advanced adaptive signal processing techniques, including space time adaptive processing, adaptive beamforming, optimal estimation, multi sensor tracking, waveform optimization, mismatched filtering, cognitive sensing, or machine learning enabled signal processing.
- Experience with electronic warfare and electronic protection algorithm development, including interference modeling, jamming assessment, clutter modeling, RF scene generation, and resilient sensing methods.
- Experience planning and executing laboratory, chamber, ground, hardware in the loop, field, and flight test activities, including instrumentation, test design, data analysis, model correlation, anomaly resolution, and readiness decisions.
- Experience with system engineering artifacts and lifecycle methods, including requirements decomposition, traceability, interface control documents, performance budgets, verification cross reference matrices, configuration management, and technical risk management.
- Demonstrated record of technical leadership through high value competitive captures, research and development programs, customer proposals, invention disclosures, patents, publications, or externally recognized subject matter expertise.
- Experience building and leading technical teams of engineers across algorithm development, systems engineering, simulation, embedded software, integration, and test.
- Active U.S. Secret or higher security clearance.
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Applied Mathematics, Physics, Computer Science, or a related technical discipline
- 15 or more years of professional experience in autonomy, radar, RF sensing, signal processing, guidance and navigation, sensor fusion, aerospace systems, robotics, or related complex technical fields
- Technical leadership experience in architecture, development, integration, and fielding of advanced autonomous, RF sensing, radar, electronic warfare, avionics, aerospace, or defense systems
- Expert knowledge of radar and RF signal processing, including waveform design, adaptive processing, beamforming, direction finding, target detection and tracking, clutter modeling, interference mitigation, and performance assessment
- Experience developing and validating algorithms through high-fidelity end-to-end simulation, including sensor models, RF environmental models, vehicle dynamics, six-degree-of-freedom simulation, and operationally representative scenarios
- Experience translating mission needs into system and subsystem requirements, performance allocations, interface definitions, algorithm specifications, verification plans, and test objectives
- Hands-on experience with MATLAB and Python, plus experience developing or transitioning algorithms into C, C++, real-time DSP, embedded computing, or hardware-accelerated environments
- Experience leading technical teams, mentoring engineers, driving design reviews, and resolving complex cross-functional technical issues
- Strong communication skills and ability to influence senior technical leaders, program leaders, external customers, and executive stakeholders
- Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. government security clearance
- Master's degree or PhD in a related technical field with emphasis in radar, RF systems, signal processing, control systems, autonomy, estimation, or optimization
- Experience leading radar seeker, RF sensing, autonomy, guidance, navigation, or electronic warfare capability development through production or operational deployment
- Expertise in advanced adaptive signal processing, multi-sensor tracking, waveform optimization, cognitive sensing, or machine-learning-enabled signal processing
- Experience with electronic warfare and electronic protection algorithm development
- Experience planning and executing laboratory, chamber, ground, hardware-in-the-loop, field, and flight testing
- Experience with systems engineering artifacts and lifecycle methods, including requirements traceability, interface control documents, performance budgets, verification matrices, configuration management, and technical risk management
- Record of technical leadership through competitive captures, research and development programs, customer proposals, invention disclosures, patents, publications, or recognized subject-matter expertise
- Experience building and leading technical teams across algorithm development, systems engineering, simulation, embedded software, integration, and test
- Active U.S. Secret or higher security clearance
What the Team is Saying
Shield AI Compensation & Benefits Highlights
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Healthcare Strength — Company materials highlight comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage with mental-health support and an EAP. Third-party benefits summaries also portray health coverage as a strong component of the package.
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Retirement Support — Offerings include a 401(k) with employer matching, cited on the careers page and independent benefits directories. Multiple sources indicate a match exists, though exact formulas have varied over time and warrant confirmation.
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Equity Value & Accessibility — Company communications describe equity for all full-time hires and stock benefits as part of total rewards. Independent listings also note company equity/RSUs as a standard element.
Shield AI Insights
What We Do
At Shield AI, you won't wait years to see your work reach the field. You'll build hardware and software that operates in the real world right now, in the hands of the people who depend on it. Hivemind, our AI pilot, has been flying since 2018. It has flown more than 30 platforms, including an F-16, and it now sits under a U.S. Air Force production contract for Collaborative Combat Aircraft. When you write code or shape a system here, you contribute to technology with a proven flight record and a clear production future. V-BAT flies intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions with an operational record that stretches from Ukraine to the Indo-Pacific. It delivers eyes where they matter most, in the most demanding conditions on earth. The teams behind it watch their work get tested where the stakes are real. X-BAT takes its first flight this year. It's an AI-piloted fighter that needs no runway, built to operate where traditional aircraft can't. Join now and you help shape a program at its earliest, most formative stage. That's the kind of ground-floor work that defines a career. Do the most impactful work of your life, on problems that matter. Autonomy at this level asks a lot of you. You'll take on problems in perception, planning, and control that few teams anywhere are equipped to solve. You'll work across disciplines, from aerospace and robotics to machine learning and systems engineering, alongside people who hold themselves to an exacting standard and expect the same from you. Our mission is clear: protect service members and civilians with intelligent systems. That purpose runs through every decision, every design review, and every deployment. It's why the work here carries a weight you can feel. Ready to join our mission? Explore our open roles and find where you fit.
Why Work With Us
Founded in 2015 by a former Navy SEAL, Shield AI builds AI pilots and uncrewed aircraft. Veterans aren't an afterthought here, they're at every level. It's why the work carries weight: AI pilots and uncrewed aircraft flying real missions, from Ukraine to the Indo-Pacific, protecting service members and civilians.
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