Software Engineer - Perception

🏢 Summary: Software Engineer role focused on developing on-board autonomy and real-time decision-making systems for spacecraft. The position involves designing and deploying machine learning–based algorithms that integrate perception, prediction, and control to enable autonomous operation in uncertain and communications-limited environments. The engineer will build and maintain autonomy infrastructure, testing frameworks, and deployment pipelines for space missions. 🗂️ Requirements: Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Machine Learning, Robotics or related field, 2+ years industry experience in autonomy, decision-making, or control systems, Proficiency in C++, Proficiency in Python, Experience with deep learning frameworks, Experience applying machine learning to decision-making or control problems, Experience with optimal control, planning, or reinforcement learning in real-time systems, Familiarity with multi-agent decision-making or planning under uncertainty, Experience with real-time or safety-critical systems, Experience with Linux and Git, Experience with CI/CD pipelines, U.S. citizenship, permanent residency, or ITAR authorization eligibility 📃 Skills: C++, Python, PyTorch, TensorFlow, MachineLearning, ReinforcementLearning, OptimalControl, Planning, Robotics, Autonomy, Linux, Git, Docker, Kubernetes, AWS, GCP, Azure, CICD, Multithreading, Networking 🏢 Description: About Lodestar Lodestar's mission is to develop the first "Protect and Defend" capability for high-value space assets in orbit. Our flagship product, MITHRIL, is our hardware-agnostic, AI-enabled autonomy software suite that enables us to augment any off-the-shelf spacecraft with the ability to autonomously detect, characterise, and reversibly neutralise orbital threats. By building on the proven space heritage of our best-in-class satellite-bus partners and fully integrating MITHRIL into single unified platform, we deliver an end-to-end, autonomous in-space superiority service. About the Job At Lodestar, as a Software Engineer - On-board Autonomy, you'll be developing the decision-making systems at the heart of Lodestar's autonomy suite. You'll focus on creating algorithms that evaluate mission context, system capabilities, and environmental conditions to recommend and execute optimal actions. These models adapt dynamically to changing conditions, enabling real-time autonomous decision-making even in communications-limited or uncertain environments. Your work will bridge perception, prediction, and control, allowing spacecraft to operate intelligently, efficiently, and resiliently across complex mission scenarios. We proudly have an "extreme ownership" oriented engineering culture. What You'll Do Design and implement on-board decision-making models that recommend and adapt strategies in real time Develop autonomous decision algorithms that integrate information from perception, state estimation, and intent prediction models to execute mission objectives Research and implement ML models for decision making - everything from lit. review, through training, to deployment Implement decision models that adapt dynamically to changing mission context, environmental conditions, and system status Develop frameworks for continuous re-evaluation of active strategies to ensure resilient and adaptive behavior under uncertainty Support real-time autonomy in communications-limited or time-critical scenarios Build and maintain autonomy infrastructure, testing frameworks, and deployment pipelines for space missions Basic Qualifications Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Machine Learning, Robotics, a related field, or equivalent experience 2+ years of distinguished industry experience in autonomy, decision-making, or control systems for aerospace/robotics Strong proficiency in C++ and Python and DL frameworks (PyTorch, TensorFlow) Demonstrated experience with machine learning applied to decision-making or control problems Track record with optimal control, planning, or reinforcement learning in real-time systems Familiarity with multi-agent decision-making or planning under uncertainty Preferred Skills & Experience Track record implementing autonomy applications in real-time or safety-critical environments Experience integrating perception and prediction outputs into decision frameworks Familiarity with resource-aware strategy selection and optimization under uncertainty Background in reinforcement learning, hierarchical planning, or adaptive control Experience with distributed training and cloud-based scaling of ML models (AWS, GCP, or Azure) Experience with Linux, Git, and CI/CD pipelines Comfortable with containerization tools such as Docker and Kubernetes Familiarity with real-time systems, multi-threading, and performance optimization Strong understanding of distributed autonomy, networking, and communication protocols ITAR Requirements To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here. Compensation & Benefits Pay Range: (E1) Junior Software Engineer: $120,000 - $145,000 / year (E2) Software Engineer: $140,000 - $180,000 / year (E3) Senior Software Engineer: Competitive Meaningful equity incentives as part of our employee option pool Flexible PTO with generous paid vacation, holidays, and sick leave Comprehensive medical, dental & vision coverage 401(k) retirement plan with company match LA Additional Information Compensation bands are determined by role, level, location, and alignment with market data. Individual level and base pay is determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on job-related skills, education, experience, technical capabilities and internal equity. In addition to base salary, for full-time hires, you may also be eligible for long-term incentives, in the form of stock options , and access to medical, vision and dental coverage, as well as access to a 401(k) retirement plan. Lodestar is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Lodestar is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

🏢 Summary: Software Engineer role focused on developing state estimation and trajectory prediction algorithms for autonomous spacecraft operations within an AI-enabled autonomy platform. The position involves building probabilistic and neural models to track dynamic targets, forecast behavior, and infer intent in real time. You will design, implement, and integrate these models into mission-critical autonomy systems. 🗂️ Requirements: Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Aerospace, Robotics, Applied Mathematics or related field, 2+ years experience in state estimation, aerospace, robotics or related domain, Strong proficiency in C++, Strong proficiency in Python, Experience with probabilistic state estimation methods, Experience with deep learning frameworks for sequence modeling, Familiarity with trajectory modeling or orbital mechanics, Eligibility under ITAR regulations 📃 Skills: C++, Python, Kalman, Bayesian, Particle, PyTorch, TensorFlow, Seq2Seq, RNN, LSTM, Transformers, CUDA, TensorRT, Linux, Git, Docker, Kubernetes, Multithreading, Orbital, Dynamics 🏢 Description: About Lodestar Lodestar's mission is to develop the first "Protect and Defend" capability for high-value space assets in orbit. Our flagship product MITHRIL is our hardware-agnostic, AI-enabled autonomy software suite that enables us to augment any off-the-shelf spacecraft with the ability to autonomously detect, characterise, and reversibly neutralise orbital threats. By building on the proven space heritage of our best-in-class satellite-bus partners and fully integrating MITHRIL into single unified platform, we deliver an end-to-end, autonomous in-space bodyguarding service. About the Job At Lodestar, as a Software Engineer - Localization, State Estimation & Prediction, you'll be leading the development of our state estimation and prediction models at the core of Lodestar's flagship product, MITHRIL. You'll be focusing on researching and developing algorithms that fuse probabilistic estimation with machine learning to track targets, predict trajectories and assess intent. We proudly have an "extreme ownership" oriented engineering culture. What You'll Do Design and implement Lodestar's core state estimation and prediction architecture for autonomous spacecraft operations Research and implement novel estimation and prediction algorithms - everything from lit. review, through training and tuning, to optimisation and deployment Develop classical and neural estimators to track the current state and trajectory of multiple dynamic targets in real time Create neural models to forecast future trajectories and behavioral patterns of targets Implement intent inference models to identify actions and dynamically rank threat levels Integrate state estimation and prediction models into mission simulation environments and autonomy decision systems Collaborate with cross-functional teams including, perception, and on-board autonomy to ensure prediction fidelity, robustness, and scalability across missions Basic Qualifications Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Science, Aerospace, Robotics, Applied Mathematics, a related field, or equivalent experience 2+ years of distinguished industry experience in state estimation, aerospace, robotics, or a related field Strong proficiency in C++ and Python Demonstrated experience with probabilistic state estimation (Kalman filters, particle filters, Bayesian inference) Experience with deep learning frameworks (PyTorch, TensorFlow) for sequence modeling (seq2seq, RNNs, LSTMs, Transformers) Familiarity with trajectory modeling, multi-body dynamics, or orbital mechanics Preferred Skills & Experience Track record implementing state estimation pipelines in real-time or safety-critical systems Experience deploying sequence-to-sequence models for forecasting in dynamic environments Familiarity with sensor fusion techniques (e.g., combining radar, optical, and inertial data) Proficiency with GPU acceleration (CUDA, TensorRT) for neural network training and inference Experience with Linux, Git, and CI/CD pipelines Comfortable with containerization tools such as Docker and Kubernetes Familiarity with real-time systems, multi-threading, and performance optimization Strong understanding of networking and communication protocols for distributed autonomy systems ITAR Requirements To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here. Compensation & Benefits Pay Range: (E1) Junior Software Engineer: $120,000 - $140,000 / year (E2) Software Engineer: $135,000 - $170,000 / year (E3) Senior Software Engineer: Competitive Meaningful equity incentives as part of our employee option pool Flexible PTO with generous paid vacation, holidays, and sick leave Comprehensive medical, dental & vision coverage 401(k) retirement plan with company match LA or San Francisco Additional Information Compensation bands are determined by role, level, location, and alignment with market data. Individual level and base pay is determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on job-related skills, education, experience, technical capabilities and internal equity. In addition to base salary, for full-time hires, you may also be eligible for long-term incentives, in the form of stock options , and access to medical, vision and dental coverage, as well as access to a 401(k) retirement plan. Lodestar is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Lodestar is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.