a16z Motor Control Electrical Systems Engineer
Summary
Design and troubleshoot high-performance motor control systems for autonomous drones used in defense, guiding hardware-software integration from board design to flight testing.
Anduril Industries is a defense technology company with a mission to transform U.S. and allied military capabilities with advanced technology. By bringing the expertise, technology, and business model of the 21st century’s most innovative companies to the defense industry, Anduril is changing how military systems are designed, built and sold. Anduril’s family of systems is powered by Lattice OS, an AI-powered operating system that turns thousands of data streams into a realtime, 3D command and control center. As the world enters an era of strategic competition, Anduril is committed to bringing cutting-edge autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion, and networking technology to the military in months, not years.
ABOUT THE TEAM
The Tactical Recon & Strike team at Anduril develops aerial small drones (Group 1-3) and all equipment to test, deploy and operate. The team is responsible for taking products like Ghost, Anvil, Bolt and Altius from concepts to operational systems. We work in close coordination with specialist teams to solve some of the hardest problems facing our customers. We are looking for software engineers, hardware engineers, roboticists, and front-end mobile developers who are excited about creating a powerful robotics platform that can be tasked and viewed in real-time through a variety of interfaces.
ABOUT THE JOB
We are looking for a Motor Control Electrical Systems Engineer to join our rapidly growing team in Costa Mesa, CA. In this role, you will be responsible for leading the end-to-end development of high-performance motor control systems in a fast-paced environment. You will guide cross-functional teams from initial architecture and board design through complex hardware-software troubleshooting to flight testing and customer delivery. This will require motor controls experience as well as lab-based prototyping/research and development experience. If you are someone with demonstrated technical leadership experience and experience working on products used in extreme environments (aerospace, defense, etc.), this role is for you.
WHAT YOU’LL DO
- Guide the team through architecture trades, board design, implementation, troubleshooting and validation, supporting system level integration, flight test and customer deliveries.
- Drive the motor control fundamentals for optimal performance in contested and challenging environments.
- Troubleshoot issues that span the electrical and software boundaries, with solid skills using both lab equipment (Oscilloscopes, DMM, etc.) and software debugging tools.
- Work closely with other electrical, mechanical, software, firmware and test engineers to deliver fully functional products.
- Work in a fast-paced environment supporting new developments, active deployments and customer operated hardware.
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Lab-based prototyping/research and development experience.
- Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Materials Sciences or equivalent.
- Motor controls experience.
- Experience working on products used in extreme environments (aerospace, defense, etc.).
- U.S. Person status is required as this position needs to access export controlled data.
- 5+ years of experience designing, testing, and troubleshooting complex embedded systems and products.
- Demonstrated experience designing and integrating mixed signal circuits.
- Eligible to obtain and maintain an active U.S. Secret security clearance
PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
- Demonstrated ownership of unit and subsystem level payloads or products.
- Demonstrated technical leadership experience.
- Systems engineering and architectural trade experience with payloads or products.
- Proficiency with embedded software and firmware (C/Linux is a plus).
- Experience with developing for a safety-critical environment (human in the loop).
- Knowledge of software protocols for embedded development, including use of timers, interrupts, hardware peripherals such as SPI controllers and ADCs.
The salary range for this role is an estimate based on a wide range of compensation factors, inclusive of base salary only. Actual salary offer may vary based on (but not limited to) work experience, education and/or training, critical skills, and/or business considerations. Highly competitive equity grants are included in the majority of full time offers; and are considered part of Anduril's total compensation package. Additionally, Anduril offers top-tier benefits for full-time employees, including:
Benefits
At Anduril, we invest in our people. Our comprehensive, competitive benefits package (available at little to no cost to employees) ensures you’re supported in health, recovery, and whatever comes next. For more information, Explore Our Benefits.
Protecting Yourself from Recruitment Scams
Anduril is committed to maintaining the integrity of our Talent acquisition process and the security of our candidates. We've observed a rise in sophisticated phishing and fraudulent schemes where individuals impersonate Anduril representatives, luring job seekers with false interviews or job offers. These scammers often attempt to extract payment or sensitive personal information.
To ensure your safety and help you navigate your job search with confidence, please keep the following critical points in mind:
-
No Financial Requests: Anduril will never solicit payment or demand personal financial details (such as banking information, credit card numbers, or social security numbers) at any stage of our hiring process. Our legitimate recruitment is entirely free for candidates.
- Please always verify communications:
- Direct from Anduril: If you receive an email from one of our recruiters, it will only come from an
@anduril.comaddress. - Via Agency Partner: If contacted by a recruiting agency for an Anduril role, their email will clearly identify their agency. If you suspect any suspicious activity, please verify the agency's authenticity by reaching out to contact@anduril.com.
- Direct from Anduril: If you receive an email from one of our recruiters, it will only come from an
-
Exercise Caution with Unsolicited Outreach: If you receive any communication that appears suspicious, contains grammatical errors, or makes unusual requests, do not engage. Always confirm the sender's email domain is @anduril.com before providing any personal information or clicking on links.
-
What to Do If You Suspect Fraud: Should you encounter any questionable or fraudulent outreach claiming to be from Anduril, please report it immediately to contact@anduril.com. Your proactive caution is invaluable in protecting your personal information and upholding the security and trustworthiness of our recruitment efforts.
Data Privacy
To view Anduril's candidate data privacy policy, please visit .
By submitting your application, you consent to Anduril Industries using a third-party service provider to conduct pre-employment risk, integrity, and due diligence screening and assessing potential risks as part of your application process. This third-party service provider provides risk-intelligence services that may include analysis of sanctions and watchlists, adverse media, public-record information, and other lawful open-source or commercial data sources. This third-party service provider does not act as a consumer reporting agency. Use of this provider helps to ensure compliance with applicable laws and protect technology, intellectual property, and organizational security.