Drone Software Engineer

Drone Mid-level (L4 equivalent) 2-5 years

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Anduril

Skydio

Shield AI

Zipline

DJI

AeroVironment

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The job description

Tech stack. Python, C++, TypeScript, MAVLink, ROS 2, ground control software, cloud backends (AWS/GCP), mission planning APIs, Docker, CI/CD

About the role

You will join a drone startup building the software layer that turns aircraft into a service: ground control applications, mission planning, fleet management, and cloud infrastructure. You work above the flight controller, creating the tools operators and customers use every day. This role exists because the best airframe in the world is useless without software that makes it easy to fly, monitor, and manage at scale, and your code is the daily interface between humans and machines. You will collaborate with flight test and operations teams to validate every release against real missions, and you will join post-flight reviews to turn operational pain points into software improvements.

What you will achieve

Ship ground control and mission planning features that measurably reduce the time and training required to plan and execute complex autonomous flights.
Build fleet management tooling that gives operators real-time visibility into aircraft health, location, and mission status across dozens of vehicles simultaneously.
Improve software reliability by driving automated testing, CI/CD pipelines, and structured release processes for flight-adjacent software.
Integrate vehicle telemetry, video, and payload data into cloud dashboards and APIs that customers build their daily workflows on.
Cut operator error rates by designing intuitive interfaces and safeguards for high-consequence actions such as arming, takeoff, and return-to-launch.

What you will bring

Must-haves

2-5 years of professional software engineering experience, ideally with exposure to robotics, aerospace, or other hardware-adjacent domains.
Strong Python and working C++ skills, with the ability to read and extend flight-stack-adjacent code when needed.
Experience with the MAVLink protocol and at least one ground control ecosystem such as QGroundControl, Mission Planner, or a custom stack.
Backend or full-stack experience: REST APIs, databases, authentication, and cloud deployment on AWS or GCP.
Familiarity with Linux, Docker, and modern CI/CD practices for reliable releases.
Understanding of real-time and safety considerations when software commands physical aircraft carrying real payloads.
Bachelor's degree in computer science, engineering, or equivalent professional experience.

Nice-to-haves

TypeScript and React experience for operator-facing web applications.
Experience with fleet telemetry pipelines using MQTT, WebSockets, or time-series databases.
Part 107 certification or direct flight operations experience that informs better software design.
Background in offline-first or low-connectivity application design for field use.