Program Engineer

Anduril Anduril · Defense · Irvine, CA · AFS : Air Defense Engineering : Chief Engineering

This role is for a Program Engineer on the Air Defense team at Anduril, a defense technology company. The team builds autonomous robots for air defense, integrating various Anduril systems powered by an AI operating system. The Program Engineer will be responsible for stakeholder engagement, technical ownership, tactical execution, strategic planning, and enabling cross-team collaboration to deliver AI-driven defense capabilities. The role requires translating strategic goals into actionable plans and ensuring successful execution of initiatives.

What you'd actually do

  1. Build and maintain relationships with internal stakeholders, external clients, and industry partners to gather insights, align objectives, and secure buy-in for strategic initiatives. Act as the primary technical liaison for the client, advocate for their needs within the engineering organization and ensure their feedback directly influences the engineering roadmap. Communicate the outputs of these efforts including upcoming software releases, new capabilities, and performance improvement over time.
  2. Drive technical outcomes through meticulous understanding of system performance, drive product development through operational learnings and data, own the technical narrative from product deliver through continuous improvements. Credibly represent our system in front of technical and nontechnical clients
  3. Bring clarity to the path between engineering development and operational delivery. Whether through sprint planning and execution or on-the-ground support of test events, attack blockers and guide the team through fast-paced execution to deliver the optimal technical outcome for the client.
  4. Translate strategic business goals and program requirements into actionable project plans, setting clear milestones, and driving initiatives from conception through to successful completion, ensuring they deliver intended outcomes and add value to the business. Oversee the allocation of personnel, budget, and other resources to ensure successful execution of these initiatives. When possible, lead with data.
  5. Execute on broad and/or ambiguous requirements from external clients. Seize the opportunity to shape requirements in favor of the optimal product for the client and the company. Demonstrate high ownership on all pieces of work. Become a trusted partner to Anduril’s engineers.

Skills

Required

  • 5+ years experience as a Lead Engineer, Technical Program Manager, Technical Product Manager, Engineering Manager, or Engineer in an autonomous
  • Technical leadership
  • Client advocacy
  • Bridging engineering and field operations
  • Navigating ambiguity
  • Strategic planning
  • Tactical execution
  • Cross-functional collaboration
  • Communication skills

Nice to have

  • Experience in defense technology
  • Experience with AI/ML systems in defense
  • Experience with computer vision or sensor fusion

What the JD emphasized

  • primary technical liaison
  • own the technical narrative
  • own the execution of that vision
  • deliver timely, quality, and performant systems
  • bridge the gap between Engineering and Field Operations
  • build structure where it is needed
  • clearly say “No”
  • anticipate blockers
  • self direct
  • comfortable navigating ambiguity
  • fast-paced environment with many competing priorities
  • critical force protection capabilities
  • rapidly close the kill chain
  • broad range of UAS threats
  • modern battlespace
  • software-enabled Air Defense family of systems
  • AI-powered operating system
  • realtime, 3D command and control center
  • cutting-edge autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion, and networking technology
  • autonomous robots
  • find other robots and knock them out of the sky

Other signals

  • AI-powered operating system
  • autonomous robots
  • autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion
  • AI-powered operating system
  • autonomous family of networked sensors and effectors