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Shield AI via Lever

Senior Staff Engineer, Discrete Planning (R5440)

lead California
still open verified 1d ago posted 53d ago checked just now
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This is the employer's own posting, not a copy on a job board.

What we know

Is it still open?

Confirmed still open

Last checked 1d ago — checked against the employer's own applicant tracking system, which is the company answering directly.

We re-read the employer's own applicant tracking system and the posting was still there. That is the company answering directly.

Check this listing's status as JSON

How old is it?

Posted 53d ago

The date the source published, not the day we noticed it (2026-07-24). Last seen at its source just now.

Is it remote?

Marked remote on the employer's board

Their board carries a remote setting on this posting — a field they filled in, not wording we read. The location field names somewhere specific, which is usually where the team or the entity sits.

Who may apply?

California

The description states no restriction of its own. This is the source's own tag.

Pay not stated

Similar roles pay $196.0k–254k/yr

Middle 50% of 551 listings that do state pay — Engineering · Lead · United States · USD/year. This employer has published no salary; this is what comparable listings we hold disclose, never converted between currencies or periods. How this is calculated.

Skills named in the ad

AgileC++Talent Acquisition

Recognised terms only, from a fixed vocabulary — this is what CV matching compares against.

Carried by 1 source

The listing

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 LinkedInXInstagram, and YouTube. 

Job Description:

The Discrete Planning Group is a part of the Autonomy Team for Hivemind Enterprise Product. The group is an agile set of engineers focused on researching and developing state-of-the-art algorithms that drive intelligent and confidence-inspiring flight behaviors while accounting for an uncertain and dynamic world. As a member of the group, you will work at the intersection of artificial intelligence, discrete optimization, and motion planning. You will architect and write high-quality software for core systems, set standards for software engineering, refine technical requirements, drive strategic technical improvements, and mentor other engineers.

What you'll do:

  • Research, design, and implement state-of-the-art algorithms for optimal task allocation, scheduling and temporal sequencing of heterogeneous teams of autonomous vehicles (land, air, other). 
  • Solidify and improve existing C++ based mission planning software applicable across disparate vehicle types and compute platforms. 
  • Work with our engineers, program managers, and product managers to define a technical roadmap for future autonomy solutions and SDK offerings. 

Projects you might work on:

  • Breakdown a mission into assignable tasks based on agent capabilities such as navigating in contested and denied environments and adapting to mission changes in real-time. 
  • Construct feasible and optimal action plans for distributed teams of autonomous vehicles that also minimize human operator workload.  
  • Full software and hardware-in-the-loop simulation of complex multi-agent missions. 

Required qualifications:

  • Typically requires a PhD with graduate work in Optimization or Operations Research. Master’s degree with 4 or more years of work in the same areas. 
  • Expert in Integer or Mixed Integer Linear Programming, Constraint Programming, Convex Optimization, Multi-Objective-Optimization and using established solvers such as Gurobi, Google-OR, CPLEX etc. 
  • Significant experience in implementing algorithms in C++ and using debuggers such as gdb to troubleshoot execution within a multi-threaded environment. 

Ways to stand out:

  • Past publications on Optimization(google scholar profile). 
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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.
 
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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. 
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