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NEXTMOVEFDE careers · United States
Shield AI

Forward Deployed Engineer, Operations & Sustainment (R5497)

AI summary of the role

This is a customer-facing field engineering role focused on deploying, supporting, and sustaining Shield AI's Hivemind autonomy software in real operating environments.

What you’ll do

  • Deploy with customers globally (50%+ travel) to install, configure, validate, train, troubleshoot, and sustain Hivemind products.
  • Execute and improve deployment runbooks covering software install, validation, licensing, pre-mission checks, and acceptance.
  • Provide hands-on technical support to operators, maintainers, partners, and internal field teams during deployment and sustainment windows.
  • Capture and organize field evidence (logs, telemetry, recordings) and drive issues through the support flow to closure.

What you’ll bring

  • Bachelor's degree in Engineering, CS, Robotics, Aerospace, or equivalent practical experience.
  • 5+ years in field engineering, forward-deployed engineering, systems integration, flight test, or similar hands-on technical role.
  • Proficiency writing, reading, and debugging modern C++ code.
  • Working proficiency with Python, Bash, or similar scripting.

Technologies

C++ · Python · Bash · Linux · embedded systems · networking · telemetry · configuration management · Hivemind · autonomy · UAS · FAA Part 107

About Shield AI

Builds AI pilot software, aircraft, and vision systems that let militaries and OEMs develop, deploy, and operate mission autonomy in contested environments.

Unicorn

Source and classification

Implementation & delivery · Evidence for this classification:

customer-facing role focused on deploying, supporting, and sustaining Hivemind products in real operating environments. This role bridges field deployment, customer operations, technical troubleshooting, training, and sustainment. This is a travel-intensive role. Candidates must be willing and able to travel at least 50% of the time, including frequent domestic and international trips, customer-site work, test events, training events, and multi-week deployments as program needs require. In this role, you will work directly with customers and internal teams to install, configure, validate, train, troubleshoot, and support Hivemind products. The role requires strong technical judgment, clear customer communication, comfort operating under field pressure, and the discipline to turn field lessons into durable support artifacts: runbooks, supported baselines, evidence packages, known-issue
More from the job description

Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai. Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and YouTube. Job Description: Shield AI builds intelligent systems that protect service members and civilians. Our products include Hivemind autonomy software and V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and our teams support customers and operations across the United States, Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific. The Forward Deployed Engineer, Operations & Sustainment is a highly technical, customer-facing role focused on deploying, supporting, and sustaining Hivemind products in real operating environments. This role bridges field deployment, customer operations, technical troubleshooting, training, and sustainment. This is a travel-intensive role. Candidates must be willing and able to travel at least 50% of the time, including frequent domestic and international trips, customer-site work, test events, training events, and multi-week deployments as program needs require. In this [... source excerpt omitted ...] directly with customers and internal teams to install, configure, validate, train, troubleshoot, and support Hivemind products. The role requires strong technical judgment, clear customer communication, comfort operating under field pressure, and the discipline to turn field lessons into durable support artifacts: runbooks, supported baselines, evidence packages, known-issue records, escalation paths, customer-safe updates, and product feedback. What you'll do: Deploy with customers on site globally, with a minimum expectation of 50% travel, to support installation, configuration, validation, training, troubleshooting, and sustainment of Hivemind products. Become an expert us [... source excerpt omitted ...] ftware install, version/configuration validation, licensing or provisioning status, pre-mission checks, log readiness, and acceptance steps. Provide hands-on technical support to customer operators, maintainers, partners, and internal field teams during deployment, test, training, demonstration, and sustainment windows. Capture and organize field evidence for triage, including logs, telemetry, recorded data, screenshots, version/configuration state, asset context, operator notes, mission phase, and environmental constraints. Drive issues through the support flow: intake, severity assessment, ownership, workaround or fix delivery, customer-safe status, closure, and learning loo

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