Archer is an aerospace company based in San Jose, California building an all-electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft with a mission to advance the benefits of sustainable air mobility. We are designing, manufacturing, and operating an all-electric aircraft that can carry four passengers while producing minimal noise.
Our sights are set high and our problems are hard, and we believe that diversity in the workplace is what makes us smarter, drives better insights, and will ultimately lift us all to success. We are dedicated to cultivating an equitable and inclusive environment that embraces our differences, and supports and celebrates all of our team members.
Archer is best known for Midnight, our electric aircraft. This role isn't on that program. The AI Products Org is building software for the general aviation industry: mobile apps, websites, and web apps for consumer end users. We haven't announced what we're working on, and we're not going to spoil it in a job posting. What we can tell you: it's early, it's greenfield, and the design decisions made in the next year will define these products for a long time.
That's why we're hiring a Staff Designer. Not someone to execute a roadmap that's already figured out, but someone who can take a loosely defined problem, explore it, and come back with something worth building.
What You’ll Do:
- Own product design for consumer end-user software end to end: mobile apps, websites, and web applications
- Take products from 0 to 1. Some of what you'll work on doesn't exist yet in any form, not even a brief
- Run product explorations — sketch out directions, pressure-test them with the team, kill the weak ones early
- Work with minimal direction. You'll get context and constraints from PM and engineering, but the design leadership on your projects is you ship. Then keep refining what shipped based on how people actually use it
- Raise the bar on craft across the org, through your own work and through feedback on everyone else's
- 8+ years of product design experience minimum. Realistically, the person we're picturing has 12–15
- Products you've designed that are live and in users' hands. We will ask about them, in detail: what you decided, what you got wrong, what you'd change
- Real 0→1 experience: you've built the first version of something, not just iterated on a mature product
- Strong systems thinking across mobile and web. You know when a pattern should be shared across platforms and when it shouldn't
- Comfort with ambiguity. If you need a fully scoped ticket before you can start, this won't be a fit
- A portfolio that shows your thinking, not just polished final screens
Bonus Qualifications:
- Experience designing for aviation, or an interest in general aviation. Pilots and aviation nerds, this is your moment
- Experience working alongside AI/ML teams, or designing products with AI-driven features
- You've shipped consumer products in a domain with real-world constraints (regulated industries, safety-adjacent, hardware-adjacent) and know how that shapes design
If you want to hear more about what we're building before you apply, you can't. Apply, and we'll tell you plenty.
At Archer we aim to attract, retain, and motivate talent that possess the skills and leadership necessary to grow our business. We drive a pay-for-performance culture and reward performance that supports the Company’s business strategy. For this position we are targeting a base pay between $175,00.00 - $215,000.00 . Actual compensation offered will be determined by factors such as job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.
Skills Required
- 8+ years of product design experience
- Products you've designed that are live and in users' hands (be prepared to discuss decisions and learnings)
- Real 0→1 experience building first versions of products
- Strong systems thinking across mobile and web
- Comfort with ambiguity and ability to work with minimal direction
- Portfolio that shows design thinking and process, not just polished screens
- Experience designing for aviation or interest in general aviation
- Experience working alongside AI/ML teams or designing AI-driven features
- Experience shipping consumer products in regulated, safety-adjacent, or hardware-adjacent domains
Archer Aviation Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Archer Aviation and has not been reviewed or approved by Archer Aviation.
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Healthcare Strength — Health coverage includes medical, dental, and vision, alongside HSA/FSA options and an Employee Assistance Program, forming a comprehensive base. Wellness activities and company-sponsored outings are additionally referenced.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Time off includes generous PTO, paid sick days, and paid holidays, with unlimited PTO noted for exempt employees. This breadth provides above-average flexibility for a hardware-focused environment.
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Equity Value & Accessibility — Ownership opportunities include company equity, performance bonuses, and an Employee Stock Purchase Plan with a purchase discount. Equity is used to keep packages competitive in high-demand roles, creating meaningful upside potential.
Archer Aviation Insights
What We Do
Archer is an aerospace company building an all-electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft focused on improving mobility in cities. The company's mission is to advance the benefits of sustainable air mobility. Archer is designing, manufacturing, and operating a fully electric aircraft that can carry four passengers for 60 miles at speeds of up to 150mph while producing minimal noise. Archer's team is based in the San Francisco Bay Area.
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