Senior Discovery Engineer - AI & Autonomy Prototyping

Anduril Industries is a defense technology company with a mission to transform U.S. and allied military capabilities with advanced technology. By bringing the expertise, technology, and business model of the 21st century’s most innovative companies to the defense industry, Anduril is changing how military systems are designed, built and sold. Anduril’s family of systems is powered by Lattice OS, an AI-powered operating system that turns thousands of data streams into a realtime, 3D command and control center. As the world enters an era of strategic competition, Anduril is committed to bringing cutting-edge autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion, and networking technology to the military in months, not years. ABOUT THE TEAM Discovery is Anduril's team for the hard concepts: the ones that are not yet proven or built. We take the newest and hardest problems across space, missiles, air, sensors, autonomy, and cyber, decide what is worth building, and prove it out: we build the models, break the assumptions, run the tests, and carry what works to the point where a program can pick it up. We work with hardware and software engineering teams across the company, driving cross-functional collaboration across different business lines. ABOUT THE JOB We are building an expeditionary force: a small group of engineers who want to do big, new, hard things and who move into unfamiliar territory as a matter of course. As a Discovery Engineer you pick up a concept nobody has proven, learn whatever domain it lives in, build the analysis or prototype that tests it, and get to an answer. The problems change; the approach does not: reason from first principles, do the work, check it, and reach a solution. You are not hired for a particular skill set. You are hired for a record of getting engaged in problems across different areas, being analytic, testing new concepts, and getting to solutions. You are also the adversary to our own ideas. The rigor that validates a good concept is the same rigor that kills a bad one early, while it is still cheap, and you apply it to your own work first. This is a hands-on technical role on both internally and externally funded programs within Anduril's Discovery Business Line, on operationally relevant timelines. WHAT YOU’LL DO Own new concepts from first idea through analysis, prototype, and test, and drive them to a validated answer Learn new domains fast enough to do real work in them: read the references, build the model, check it against known results, then extend it Build or adapt the models, simulations, and test setups the question needs, using existing tools where they fit and building where they do not Pressure-test your own and others' work: hunt failure modes, surface hidden assumptions, and stress trade studies before decisions are locked in Use AI tools as a force multiplier for research, code, and analysis, and know when their output has to be checked against a reference Work shoulder to shoulder with Hardware, Software, GNC, and the other teams at Anduril, and translate results into decisions that change the design Communicate results to engineers, leadership, and customers, including strong visual presentation of complex data REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS Currently possesses and is able to maintain an active U.S. Top Secret security clearance Demonstrated experience working in more than one technical area You have done things: designed, built, tested, or fielded something real, in any field Proficiency in at least one physics-math scripting environment (Python with numpy/scipy, MATLAB/Simulink, Julia, or similar) Strong written, verbal, and visual communication PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS 8+ years in a relevant science/engineering field Math, physics, or engineering degree, or similar Proficiency with AI tools (coding assistants, agents, model-driven research) in day-to-day engineering work, and judgment about when to trust their output Experience in several of: space systems, missiles and missile defense, air vehicles, GNC, sensors and sensor fusion, radar, EW, acoustics, autonomy, or similar. Breadth across these counts for more than depth in any one Familiarity with domain analysis tools as relevant (STK/Astrogator, AFSIM, HFSS, Fluent, or similar) US Salary Range $191,000 — $253,000 USD The salary range for this role is an estimate based on a wide range of compensation factors, inclusive of base salary only. Actual salary offer may vary based on (but not limited to) work experience, education and/or training, critical skills, and/or business considerations. Highly competitive equity grants are included in the majority of full time offers; and are considered part of Anduril's total compensation package. Additionally, Anduril offers top-tier benefits for full-time employees, including: Benefits At Anduril, we invest in our people. Our comprehensive, competitive benefits package (available at little to no cost to employees) ensures you’re supported in health, recovery, and whatever comes next. For more information, Explore Our Benefits . Protecting Yourself from Recruitment Scams Anduril is committed to maintaining the integrity of our Talent acquisition process and the security of our candidates. We've observed a rise in sophisticated phishing and fraudulent schemes where individuals impersonate Anduril representatives, luring job seekers with false interviews or job offers. These scammers often attempt to extract payment or sensitive personal information. To ensure your safety and help you navigate your job search with confidence, please keep the following critical points in mind: No Financial Requests: Anduril will never solicit payment or demand personal financial details (such as banking information, credit card numbers, or social security numbers) at any stage of our hiring process. Our legitimate recruitment is entirely free for candidates. Please always verify communications: Direct from Anduril: If you receive an email from one of our recruiters, it will only come from an @anduril.com address. Via Agency Partner: If contacted by a recruiting agency for an Anduril role, their email will clearly identify their agency. If you suspect any suspicious activity, please verify the agency's authenticity by reaching out to View email address on click.appcast.io . Exercise Caution with Unsolicited Outreach: If you receive any communication that appears suspicious, contains grammatical errors, or makes unusual requests, do not engage. Always confirm the sender's email domain is @anduril.com before providing any personal information or clicking on links. What to Do If You Suspect Fraud: Should you encounter any questionable or fraudulent outreach claiming to be from Anduril, please report it immediately to View email address on click.appcast.io . Your proactive caution is invaluable in protecting your personal information and upholding the security and trustworthiness of our recruitment efforts. Data Privacy To view Anduril's candidate data privacy policy, please visit . By submitting your application, you consent to Anduril Industries using a third-party service provider to conduct pre-employment risk, integrity, and due diligence screening and assessing potential risks as part of your application process. This third-party service provider provides risk-intelligence services that may include analysis of sanctions and watchlists, adverse media, public-record information, and other lawful open-source or commercial data sources. This third-party service provider does not act as a consumer reporting agency. Use of this provider helps to ensure compliance with applicable laws and protect technology, intellectual property, and organizational security. #J-18808-Ljbffr Anduril