# Engineering Lead, Autonomy Software

**Company**: Shield AI
**Location**: Melbourne
**Work arrangement**: onsite
**Experience**: senior
**Job type**: full-time
**Category**: Engineering
**Industry**: Technology

**Apply**: https://jobs.lever.co/shieldai/28ebb068-b00d-4a34-a4d7-a471c84e09ff
**Canonical**: https://yubhub.co/jobs/job_3dc40911-47e

## Description

Lead the development of cutting-edge autonomy software that enables unmanned systems to operate intelligently in complex, real-world environments.

In this role, you will guide multidisciplinary teams to design, build, and deploy high-performance autonomy solutions,from algorithm development to system integration and field testing. Working at the intersection of robotics, aerospace, and software engineering, you’ll drive mission-critical capabilities from concept to flight, delivering resilient, scalable systems that perform in dynamic and contested conditions.

Responsibilities:

*   Lead teams across autonomy, integration, and testing by aligning technical efforts, resolving cross-functional challenges, and driving mission-focused execution. Balance hands-on technical oversight with performance optimization, innovation, and clear stakeholder communication.

*   Design tactical autonomy algorithms to enable unmanned aircraft to perform complex missions across air, land, and sea domains with minimal human supervision.

*   Develop high-performance software modules that incorporate planning, decision-making, and behavior execution strategies for dynamic and adversarial environments.

*   Implement and test behavior architectures that enable multi-agent coordination, target engagement, reconnaissance, and survivability in contested scenarios.

*   Collaborate with cross-functional teams including perception, planning, simulation, hardware, and flight test to ensure seamless integration of autonomy solutions on real-world platforms.

*   Deploy autonomy capabilities to real platforms and participate in field tests and flight demos, validating performance in operationally relevant conditions.

Required qualifications:

*   A tertiary level qualification in Computer Science, Mechatronics, Software Engineering, Robotics or a related field

*   Significant professional experience in robotics, autonomy, perception or aerospace systems

*   Strong experience in modern C++

*   Experience leading teams to delivery engineering projects

*   Significant experience in building and delivering reliable software systems, ideally in fast-paced environments

Preferred qualifications:

*   Prior experience with uncrewed systems, especially in the air domain

*   Defence industry experience

*   Significant experience in one or more of the following domains:

    *   State Estimation

    *   Real-Time Systems

    *   Guidance, Navigation and Control

    *   Path Planning

## Skills

### Required
- C++
- Robotics
- Autonomy
- Perception
- Aerospace Systems
- Software Engineering
- Team Leadership
- Project Management

### Nice to have
- Uncrewed Systems
- Defence Industry
- State Estimation
- Real-Time Systems
- Guidance, Navigation and Control
- Path Planning