Staff Engineering Specialist, Hardware Test (R4704)

Founded in 2015, Shield AI is a venture-backed deep-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include the V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, Hivemind Enterprise, and the Hivemind Vision product lines. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and the Asia-Pacific, Shield AI's technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and YouTube.

Job Description:

Shield AI's mission is to protect the lives of service members and civilians with intelligent systems. The Hardware Test Engineering team supports this mission by developing and maintaining test infrastructure that ensures the reliability and performance of X-BAT hardware throughout development and production.

As a Staff Engineering Specialist, you will play a critical role in building, maintaining, and operating a fleet of hardware test systems, including Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) environments as well as production test equipment. These systems integrate electrical, mechanical, networking, and software components to validate avionics, vehicle subsystems, and production hardware.

What you'll do:

In this highly hands-on role, you will perform electrical debugging, system integration, and hardware rework while supporting the deployment and sustainment of complex test infrastructure. You will work closely with test engineers, design engineers, and production teams to diagnose failures, improve test coverage, and ensure that hardware validation systems operate reliably in both development and manufacturing environments.
This role is ideal for someone who thrives in multidisciplinary environments, enjoys troubleshooting complex hardware systems, and takes ownership of keeping critical test infrastructure operational.

Required qualifications:

• Hands-on experience working with complex electromechanical systems or hardware test environments in development or production settings.
• Strong experience performing benchtop electrical testing and debugging, including use of oscilloscopes, multimeters, power supplies, and electronic loads.
• Experience performing PCBA rework, harness repair, and system-level hardware modifications.
• Experience building, maintaining, or operating hardware test systems or integrated engineering equipment.
• Working knowledge of fundamental engineering principles across electrical, mechanical, and software domains.
• Ability to troubleshoot multidisciplinary systems involving electronics, embedded hardware, and mechanical assemblies.
• Demonstrated ownership of technical work, with a history of delivering reliable solutions in fast-paced environments.
• Strong collaboration skills and the ability to work closely with engineering and production teams.

Preferred qualifications:

• Experience supporting HIL, or integrated vehicle test environments.
• Experience with PCB schematic capture and layout tools such as Altium, KiCAD, or Eagle.
• Experience designing and building custom wiring harnesses and test fixtures.
• Experience with CAD tools such as SolidWorks, NX, or CATIA.
• Familiarity with automated test systems, data acquisition, or scripting for test automation.
• Experience supporting production test systems in aerospace, robotics, automotive, or similar industries.
• Demonstrated ability to solve complex hardware issues under schedule pressure while maintaining high quality standards.

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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.

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.

We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.