Chief Engineer, Autonomy (R4614)
at Shield AI
Location
Washington, D.C.; San Diego, California; Dallas, Texas
Compensation
$200k–$300k USD
Type
full time
Posted
6/10/2025
Market range · company + function + seniority
$155k—$185k—$218k
p25 · target · p75 · n=127
Posted $300k · well above market
Posting health
Aging · 65- ·Open 503 days
Tailor your résumé to this role in 30 seconds.
Free account · ATS keyword check · per-job bullet rewrite by Claude.
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.
The Chief Engineer at Shield AI is responsible for solving complex technical challenges in deploying advanced autonomy solutions on Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS).
As the chief authority on system architecture, design, development, risk mitigation, and product quality the Chief Engineer ensures the successful integration of Hivemind Autonomy across a range of aircraft, from small UAS to large autonomous collaborative platforms.
This role is part of the Hivemind Solutions organization and leads a team of engineers to deliver cutting-edge autonomous capabilities for business-to-business and defense contracts. The ideal candidate has defense industry experience as a Chief Engineer and a proven track record of leading technical teams to develop and deploy autonomous systems.
WHAT YOU'LL DO:
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:
Full-time regular employee offer package:
Pay within range listed + Bonus + Benefits + Equity
Temporary employee offer package:
Pay within range listed above + temporary benefits package (applicable after 60 days of employment)
Salary compensation is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, licenses and certifications, and specific work location. All offers are contingent on a cleared background and possible reference check. Military fellows and part-time employees are not eligible for benefits. Please speak to your talent acquisition representative for more information.
###
Shield AI is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know.
#LI-DS5
#LF
More open roles at Shield AI
Hiring velocity, headcount trend, and every open posting on one page.
Similar roles
Open postings ranked by description similarity — useful if this role isn't quite right.
- Chief Engineer, Autonomous Flight82% matchAnduril· Costa Mesa, California, United States; Seattle, Washington, United States; Washington, District of Columbia, United States· $220k–$330k USD
- Chief Engineer, Autonomy — Space Domain (R5150)89% matchShield AI· Washington, D.C.; Dallas, Texas; San Diego, California· $211k–$316k USD· same company
- Senior Software Engineer, Autonomy Capabilities (R5339)87% matchShield AI· San Mateo, California· $196k–$294k USD· same company
- Manager of Engineering, Autonomy Capabilities (R5412)87% matchShield AI· Washington, D.C.; San Diego, California· $236k–$354k USD· same company
- Staff Software Engineer, Autonomy Capabilities (R5368)86% matchShield AI· San Mateo, California· $234k–$351k USD· same company
- Staff Software Engineer, Autonomous Pilot Integration – Emerging Domains (R5401)85% matchShield AI· Washington, D.C.; San Diego, California; Boston, Massachusetts; Dallas, Texas· $195k–$293k USD· same company