Software and Autonomy Engineering Lead

Location: Leander, Texas
Employment Type: Full-Time
Work Arrangement: Onsite

Position Overview

An early-stage defense technology company is seeking a Software and Autonomy Engineering Lead to guide the technical direction of its complete autonomy software stack—from embedded firmware and perception systems to advanced autonomous targeting capabilities.

This role will lead a small engineering team developing computer vision, sensor fusion, targeting, and control systems designed to operate on constrained edge hardware in dynamic and contested environments. The successful candidate will establish architecture and coding standards, mentor engineers, and contribute directly to the development and field deployment of perception and autonomy systems.

Key Responsibilities

Technical Leadership

Define the technical direction and architecture for embedded firmware and autonomy software
Establish coding standards and engineering best practices
Lead, mentor, and support the growth of a small team of firmware and software engineers
Evaluate build-versus-buy and internal-development-versus-partnership decisions
Collaborate with hardware engineering and program management teams on system-level requirements and tradeoffs

Perception and Autonomy

Develop and deploy real-time object detection, classification, and tracking systems
Build solutions for identifying small, fast-moving aerial and ground targets
Optimize computer vision and machine-learning models for deployment on resource-constrained edge hardware
Develop multi-sensor perception and sensor-fusion pipelines
Improve system reliability under challenging real-world and operational conditions
Integrate perception outputs with tracking, targeting, and control systems
Take autonomy capabilities from early prototypes through field deployment

Firmware and Systems Integration

Oversee firmware architecture for sensor drivers, real-time operating system scheduling, and hardware controls
Create and maintain reliable interfaces between firmware, perception, targeting, and control layers
Support system integration, field testing, troubleshooting, and performance validation across the full technology stack
Work closely with multidisciplinary teams to resolve hardware and software integration challenges

General Qualifications

Strong leadership experience across embedded systems, perception, autonomy, or related software disciplines
Hands-on experience developing production-quality software for complex, real-time systems
Ability to contribute independently while leading and collaborating with a multidisciplinary team
Strong ownership mindset and the ability to operate effectively in a fast-moving startup environment
Willingness to participate in field testing and support deployed systems

Export-Control Requirements

To comply with U.S. government export-control regulations, applicants must be one of the following:

A U.S. citizen