Skdse
Senior Software Engineer – Aerial Swarming (All Genders)
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Confirm work authorization, visa sponsorship and location requirements with the employer.About the role
At Stark, we forge the future of European and national security through cutting-edge, AI-driven technology and unmatched engineering precision. As a premier defence technology company, our mission is clear: to equip NATO Allies and their partners with next-generation autonomous defence platforms and advanced AI-driven software built to perform in the world’s most demanding environments.
We believe that true security stems from relentless innovation. By combining elite engineering talent with agile technology and an AI-native operational culture, Stark turns complex defence challenges into field-tested, multi-domain solutions.
Why Join Us?
- The software and systems you work on directly protect personnel and defend European and national sovereignty.
- You will work alongside industry-leading minds on autonomous systems, advanced propulsion, and secure cyber platforms.
- We foster a fast-paced, collaborative environment where bold ideas are supported by serious R&D backing.
About the Team
We move fast, ship real software, and operate under constraints most engineers never encounter — low-bandwidth networks, air-gapped devices, high-stakes decision loops. There is no room for abstraction for its own sake. Everything we build ends up in the hands of real operators in the field.
Our Team is dedicated to a mission of pure strikes.
Your Mission
As a Senior Software Engineer with a focus on Aerial Swarming, you will play a critical role in enabling real-time cooperative autonomy onboard next-generation multi-UAV platforms. You will work directly with decentralized routing networks, ROS2-based systems, and embedded compute platforms to build robust, efficient, and scalable swarming functionality.
You will contribute as a highly skilled individual contributor—hands-on with the system—bridging diverse codebases, optimizing real-time communications, and taking software from simulation through field deployment. Your work will be essential to ensuring that our autonomous multi-vehicle systems operate reliably in real-world, resource-constrained environments.
Responsibilities
- Develop and integrate real-time cooperative control, decentralized routing, and perception algorithms on embedded platforms such as NVIDIA Jetson devices.
- Architect and optimize multi-agent communication networks utilizing ROS2 and DDS architectures to ensure reliable data distribution in challenging environments.
- Implement and maintain Software-in-the-Loop (SITL) and Hardware-in-the-Loop (HITL) testing environments to rigorously validate swarming features before physical flight.
- Collaborate with AI, controls, and hardware teams to ensure tight integration between swarming behaviors and other onboard subsystems.
- Profile and debug system performance under embedded constraints (compute, thermal, bandwidth), ensuring stability and robustness in multi-vehicle field deployments.
- Contribute to system-level architecture discussions with a focus on communication reliability, modularity, and clean C++ implementation.
Required Skills
- Bachelor's or Master's degree in Engineering, Computer Science, Aerospace, or a related technical field.
- 5+ years of professional software engineering experience in robotics, aerospace, or autonomous systems.
- Expert-level proficiency in modern C++ (C++17/20) for low-latency, multi-threaded embedded and robotics development.
- Deep, hands-on knowledge of ROS2 and a strong foundational understanding of DDS architectures for real-time communication.
- Strong experience working with embedded Linux platforms, particularly NVIDIA Jetson devices, and hardware interfaces.
- Familiarity with autonomous swarming algorithms (e.g., flocking, consensus, decentralized task allocation) deployed on physical multi-vehicle systems is highly desirable.
Nice-To-Have
- Strong problem-solving and debugging skills, especially in real-time or resource-constrained environments.
- Effective communicator and team player in multidisciplinary engineering teams.
- Willingness to travel occasionally for field testing and deployment.
- Fluent English (C1 preferred). German language skills are advantageous but not required.
Equal Opportunity:
At Stark Defence, we are committed to building a diverse, inclusive, and high-performing team. We operate in an industry where women, as well as other minority groups, are systematically under-represented. We actively encourage applications from candidates of all backgrounds and identities.
If you are excited about this role, we encourage you to apply even if you don't meet all the listed qualifications—ability and impact cannot be summarised in a few bullet points. We value unique perspectives, adaptability, and a drive to solve high-stakes challenges.
Security Clearance:
Due to the nature of our work in the defence sector, candidates must be eligible to obtain and maintain the appropriate security clearance required for this position. Details will be provided during the recruitment process.
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