We’re looking for a Human Machine Interface (HMI) Designer to join our team developing next-generation Ground Control Station (GCS) applications for unmanned aerial systems (UAS). This role is ideal for engineers with a strong foundation in real-time, performance-sensitive software who also bring experience with modern web technologies.
You’ll work on mission-critical software designs that bridges responsive user interfaces with robust backend systems, enabling human operators to plan, command, and monitor autonomous assets with precision and reliability.
What you'll do:
- Engage in end-to-end design of HMI systems for UAV ground control station displays
- Translate complex system requirements into clear, intuitive, and safety-critical user interfaces
- Develop wireframes, user flows, high-fidelity mockups, and interactive prototypes using Figma
- Collaborate cross-functionally with systems engineers, pilots/operators, software developers, and human factors experts
- Apply human factors engineering principles to optimize usability, workload, and situational awareness
- Design for real-time data visualization, including telemetry, navigation, sensor fusion, and mission planning tools
- Conduct usability testing, simulations, and iterative design validation
- Contribute to and maintain a design system and component library within Figma for consistency and scalability
- Work with other designers to help establish best practices in HMI/UX design
- Ability to obtain a S//SAR level security clearance desired.
Required qualifications:
- Bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design, Industrial Design, Aerospace Engineering, Computer Science, or related field.
- 5+ years of professional experience designing HMI/UX for aerospace, defense, or other commercial applications.
- Expert-level proficiency in Figma (component systems, prototyping, design systems)
- Strong understanding of:
- Human factors
- Cognitive workload and situational awareness
- Real-time system interfaces and data visualization
- Experience working with cross-disciplinary engineering teams
- Ability to handle complex, ambiguous problem spaces and translate them into usable designs
Preferred qualifications:
- Demonstrated experience designing interfaces for:
- Aircraft cockpits (manned) and/or Unmanned systems / Ground Control Stations (GCS).
- Experience designing for multi-screen, touch, and hardware-integrated interfaces
- Knowledge of simulation environments or operator-in-the-loop testing
- Background in designing for degraded environments or high-stress operational contexts
- Familiarity with additional tools (e.g., Adobe CC, Principle, Framer), but Figma expertise is strongly prioritized
Skills Required
- Bachelor's degree in Graphic Design, Industrial Design, Aerospace Engineering, Computer Science, or related field
- 5+ years of professional experience designing HMI/UX for aerospace, defense, or other commercial applications
- Expert-level proficiency in Figma (component systems, prototyping, design systems)
- Strong understanding of human factors
- Strong understanding of cognitive workload and situational awareness
- Strong understanding of real-time system interfaces and data visualization
- Experience working with cross-disciplinary engineering teams
- Ability to handle complex, ambiguous problem spaces and translate them into usable designs
- Ability to obtain a S//SAR level security clearance
- Demonstrated experience designing aircraft cockpits (manned) and/or Unmanned systems / Ground Control Stations (GCS)
- Experience designing for multi-screen, touch, and hardware-integrated interfaces
- Knowledge of simulation environments or operator-in-the-loop testing
- Background in designing for degraded environments or high-stress operational contexts
- Familiarity with additional tools (e.g., Adobe CC, Principle, Framer)
What the Team is Saying
Shield AI Compensation & Benefits Highlights
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Healthcare Strength — Company materials describe excellent medical, dental, and vision coverage alongside a mental‑health EAP. Site perks such as an onsite gym in DC and a gym discount in San Diego support a health‑focused offering.
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Retirement Support — Careers materials highlight a 401(k) with company match as part of the standard package. A Total Rewards overview emphasizes retirement features within a broader, transparent compensation view.
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Career-Linked Recognition & Rewards — Compensation for in‑demand technical and senior go‑to‑market roles is described as competitive, with visible engineering ranges and top‑end packages. This points to meaningful upside tied to role, level, and scarce skills.
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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Shield AI Offices
Hybrid Workspace
Employees engage in a combination of remote and on-site work.
