Autonomy & Software Engineer

Job Description
We are looking for an Autonomy & Software Engineer to own the intelligence layer of our AUV from flight controller integration and mission planning to sensor fusion and real-time decision-making. This is a high-impact role at a fast-moving startup where you will shape the architecture of a system that operates in one of the most challenging environments on Earth. We are looking for an engineer with deep, hands-on expertise in autonomy and software, but with enough breadth across adjacent domains electronics, sensors, and field systems to work effectively across a small, cross-functional team.

RESPONSIBILTIES


Autonomy & Mission Planning

• Design and implement the full autonomy stack for AUV mission execution, including behavior trees,
  state machines, and task sequencing
• Develop and tune waypoint navigation, path planning, and dynamic obstacle avoidance algorithms
• Own the integration of ArduSub / PX4 flight controller firmware with the high-level software stack

Sensor Integration & State Estimation

• Integrate and fuse data from IMU, DVL, depth sensors, and acoustic positioning systems
• Implement and maintain localization pipelines (EKF/UKF) for underwater navigation without GPS
• Developing custom sensor fusion techniques and implementing state-of-the-art models for state estimation and localization

Software Architecture & Infrastructure

• Build and maintain the ROS2-based software architecture across onboard compute platforms
• Write clean, tested, well-documented C++ and Python code with a focus on reliability in embedded environments
• Develop simulation environments in platforms like NVIDIA Isaac Sim.
• Build, test and maintain firmware code (ROS2, Python, C++) for the AUV.
• Set up and manage testing, version control practices, and software documentation

Cross-Functional & Field Work

• Support field testing and offshore deployments (This is a hands-on role)
• Collaborate closely with the Electrical Engineer on low-level firmware and hardware-software interfaces (CAN, UART, I2C, SPI)
• Contribute to system-level architecture decisions as part of a small founding engineering team

Requirements

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• 2-3 years of hands-on experience building autonomous robotic systems (full-time, internship, or substantial research/project work)
• Solid understanding of core software development principles and practices
• Strong knowledge of motion planning, obstacle avoidance and basic control systems
• Experience in building autonomous robots with state of the art models and techniques Strong proficiency in Python and C++ in a robotics or embedded context Deep experience with ROS2 (nodes, topics, services, actions, custom message types) Demonstrated experience integrating and tuning flight controllers such as ArduSub, ArduPilot, or PX4
• Working knowledge of state estimation and sensor fusion (IMU, DVL, barometer, or similar)
• Comfortable with Linux environments, Git, and standard software engineering practices Ability to write reliable, maintainable code that runs on resource-constrained hardware

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Experience with underwater robotics (AUVs, ROVs) or marine/subsea systems
  Experience with NVIDIA Jetson, Raspberry Pi, Arduino or other microcontrollers
• Familiarity with acoustic positioning systems (DVL, USBL, LBL) or underwater comms protocols
• Simulation experience with Gazebo, Isaac Sim, or similar environments
• Basic electronics skills, reading schematics, debugging hardware-software interface issues
• Experience with computer vision, sonar image processing, or onboard ML inference
• Exposure to systems like Blue Robotics hardware, Water Linked systems, or similar AUV platforms Background in competitive robotics (RoboSub, RobotX, etc.)

Benefits

• Ownership of autonomy and software systems deployed in the field
• Work on real robotic systems operating in extreme environments
• Rapid iteration between simulation, hardware, and testing
• Full-system scope across autonomy, controls, and embedded software
• Small, highly technical team with close collaboration Competitive compensation