Ground Control Station (GCS) Software Engineer (R3963)

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: We’re looking for a Software Engineer to join our team developing next-generation Ground Control Station (GCS) applications for unmanned aerial systems (UAS). This role is ideal for engineers with a strong foundation in real-time, performance-sensitive software who also bring experience with modern web technologies. You’ll work on mission-critical software that bridges responsive user interfaces with robust backend systems, enabling human operators to plan, command, and monitor autonomous assets with precision and reliability. What you'll do: Design, develop, and optimize ground control software that enables low-latency communication with UAVs and other autonomous platforms. Build high-performance client and server applications that support telemetry processing, mission planning, and real-time control. Implement responsive user interfaces w [... source excerpt omitted ...] rts on key features or subsystems, from early design through deployment and iteration. Write high-quality, well-tested code and participate in peer design/code reviews. Required qualifications: Senior: Bachelor’s degree with 5+ years of relevant experience, or Masters with 4+ years, or PhD with 2+ years. Staff: Bachelor’s degree with 7+ years of relevant experience, or Masters with 6+ years, or PhD with 4+ years. Senior Staff: Bachelor’s degree with 10+ years of relevant experience, or Masters with 9+ years, or PhD with 7+ years. Demonstrated experience building real-time or performance-sensitive applications—preferably for UAVs, robotics, autonomous vehicles, or simulation envir [... source excerpt omitted ...] bugging, and performance profiling. Proven ability to deliver high-quality software as part of a collaborative engineering team. Ability to obtain security clearance. Preferred qualifications: Experience with GCS software, mission planning tools, or real-time visualization platforms. Familiarity with API-driven systems using REST or gRPC, and communication protocols like WebSocket or custom telemetry formats. Knowledge of standards such as STANAG 4586, Cursor on Target (CoT), or MAVLink. Familiarity with containerized environments (e.g., Docker, Kubernetes) and CI/CD practices. Exposure to distributed systems and cloud integration for telemetry data pipelines. Understanding of