Lead Hardware Engineer

We are looking for a Lead Hardware Engineer with 8+ years of experience to own the hardware architecture and mechanical design of our chip-based LiDAR missile seeker system. You must have previously designed payloads, seekers, or systems for high-G environments at a prime defense contractor (Raytheon, Lockheed, Northrop) or a national lab (AFRL, Draper, Livermore). You will be the architecture leader responsible for taking our photonics team's simulations and turning them into a physical, ruggedized product that can be qualified and mounted on the front of counter-UAS interceptors. This is a high-ownership role where you'll shape the entire hardware stack from scratch — we don't even have a CAD of the seeker yet. You'll also hire and lead a small team of hardware engineers beneath you.

What will you be doing?

- Define the full hardware architecture for our LiDAR missile seeker — mechanical packaging, lens mounting, PCB placement, and seeker diameter — translating photonics simulations into a buildable system

- Deliver a physical prototype/CAD within the first 60-90 days that can be put in customers' hands to demonstrate form factor and system capabilities

- Own the certification and qualification process required to mount a seeker on partner missile platforms, navigating the hundreds of pages of compliance documentation

- Work alongside the photonics and electrical teams as the integration layer — packaging their optical and power architectures into a high-G ruggedized system ready for flight

- Hire and lead a scrappier mechanical engineer to handle hands-on prototyping and grunt work, setting the technical bar for the growing hardware team