Senior Engineering, Test Engineering

Aurelius Systems is a VC backed defense tech startup building autonomous, edge deployed directed energy systems for counter-UAS. We're a small team of engineers, former US military operators, and subject matter experts scaling America’s directed energy dominance. Henry Ford didn’t wait for permission to reinvent manufacturing. In addition to our San Francisco lab, we have opened a Detroit manufacturing hub and we field test weekly on our own 400-acre private range.

You are a forward deployed embedded engineer who loves R&D testing.

You wire the electronics. You own the data path from scope trace to debrief slide. The thermal and ruggedization side of test will come from a different hire — your job is the full system integration testing from embedded to the electrical layer.

The test infrastructure you build now becomes the foundation for everything we ship. You are building it from scratch and making sure it actually reflects what happens downrange.

You will own verification and validation across embedded firmware, power electronics, electromechanical assemblies, and full-system integration. You are the single responsible party for ensuring all testing from top to bottom is completed and recorded as we move through the iteration process.

Lead field testing end-to-end: setup, operation, data collection, teardown, post-test analysis, and failure writeups

Write firmware and embedded test code that exercises the system end-to-end (C/C++, real time)

Wire test electronics, build harnesses, instrumentation setups, and test fixtures

Develop automated test procedures in Python

Debug across firmware, power rails, and electrical — root cause from first principles

Work directly with embedded, electrical, and mechanical engineers to reproduce bugs, validate fixes, and prevent regressions

3+ years embedded firmware development experience — C/C++, real-time systems, scripting test exercises directly against hardware

Strong electrical wiring and bench skills — scopes, logic analyzers, power supplies, DMMs, harness fabrication

Python or scripting for test automation. Strong debugging instincts across firmware, power rails, and electrical

Performance, reliability, and safety testing as a combined skill set. Your test reports tell a story, not just a data dump.

Robotics or defense companies with real electromechanical products where you wrote test code and wired test setups.

Your test experience is purely environmental/mechanical (vibe table, thermal chamber operator). MIL-STD, DO-178, or other safety critical testing standards exposure (even if informal)

Environmental, vibration, thermal, or shock testing exposure

Active security clearance or ability to obtain one

BS in Electrical Engineering, Mechatronics, Aerospace, or equivalent. Rigorous testing mindset. You characterize your own systems before the field does

Your brain only releases dopamine when you’re building

Clear communicator across mechanical, electrical, optical, and software teams

We field test weekly. Our laser systems are the asymmetric answer — infinite magazine, near zero cost per shot, scalable to every base, border, facility, and truck.

Core hours are Monday through Friday, 9 to 6. When we are sprinting toward a demo or field test, the team ramps up — nights, weekends, whatever it takes to ship. We don’t manufacture intensity for show.

Competitive salary + equity

United Health Care medical, dental, and vision coverage

Flexible 18 days PTO + 5 sick days

Travel to field test events and range days

Covered daily lunches and office snacks + drinks

E-bike / scooter stipend ( Up to $500)

This role requires access to export-controlled information or items that require "U.S. citizens, (2) legal permanent residents (a.k.a. green card holders), and (3) certain protected classes of asylees and refugees, as defined in 8 U.