Applications Engineer, Autonomy (open level)
Our Applications Engineers are highly technical, customer-facing problem solvers who play a critical role in deploying Shield AI’s Hivemind software in real-world environments. This role is travel-intensive, with frequent trips, often international, and sometimes lasting multiple weeks, to work directly alongside customers on-site.
This is primarily a Senior-level role, and we’re typically looking for candidates with several years of relevant industry experience. That said, we will consider exceptional mid-level engineers who demonstrate strong technical fundamentals, a hands-on mindset, and a track record of taking initiative in dynamic, customer-driven environments
In this role, you will work closely with customers to understand their requirements, provide technical expertise during deployment, and ensure successful integration of our AI and autonomy products. You’ll also collaborate internally with engineering teams, with opportunities to grow into technical leadership over time.
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You’re excited about a travel-heavy role and enjoy being on-site with customers, including international and multi-week engagements
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You’re a strong technical contributor (or early in your career and eager to grow) who takes initiative and figures things out
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You enjoy problem solving, building relationships, and working at the intersection of engineering and real-world deployment
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You’re passionate about autonomy, robotics, or aerospace
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You prefer minimal travel or want to work primarily from a single location
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You want to do 100% R&D and don’t enjoy customer interactions
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You’ve never programmed in C, C++, or Rust
- Deploy with customers on site globally (~50% travel) to support software integration and development activities.
- Become an expert user of the Hivemind enterprise software stack and its various autonomy modules.
- Provide technical support and training to customers.
- Develop AI & Autonomy applications using the Shield AI enterprise software development kit
- Assist the sales team in pre-sales activities, e.g., demos, conferences, immersions
- Assist in post-sales deployment and integration of Shield AI enterprise software products.
- Develop and maintain technical documentation and training materials.
- Help customers debug software/API integration issues.
- Collaborate with the product engineering team to address customer feedback and improve products.
- Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field.
- 5+ years of experience of industry experience
- 2+ years of experience in an integration/applications engineering role
- 2+ years of experience working in a startup environment.
- Strong technical background in software engineering.
- Strong proficiency in writing modern C++ code.
- Intermediate proficiency in writing Python code.
- Excellent problem-solving and analytical skills.
- Strong communication and interpersonal skills.
- Experience in the defense aviation or robotics industry.
- Experience building and running a small enterprise software applications/solutions engineering team.
- Advanced technical degree, especially in robotics or autonomy related fields
- How much does the Applications Engineer, Autonomy (open level) at Shield AI pay?
- The posting lists a range of $105K–$275K per year. Ranges reflect what Shield AI publicly declared on the source posting.
- Where is this Applications Engineer, Autonomy (open level) role based?
- The role is based in United States and is open to remote candidates.
- What experience does Shield AI expect for this role?
- The posting is tagged as a lead-level role, typically 7+ years of experience. Check the requirements section for specifics.
- Where is Shield AI headquartered?
- Shield AI is headquartered in San Diego, USA.
- How was this posting sourced?
- This role was pulled directly from Shield AI's Lever careers site. Apply links open in the employer's own ATS — no reposts or aggregator middleware.
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