Senior Engineer, Generative AI: Shield AI

Role Overview
Shield AI is a venture-backed defense technology company building "self-driving" systems for aircraft like the V-BAT. As a Senior Engineer on the Generative AI team, you will not just be building chatbots; you will be architecting AI-driven developer tools to accelerate the entire engineering organization.

This role sits at the intersection of DevOps and AI. You will build "agents" that automate pull request (PR) reviews, resolve bugs, and assist with upgrades, directly impacting the velocity of the engineers building autonomous systems for national defense.

Key Responsibilities
Developer Velocity Tools: Design and implement AI applications that serve as "force multipliers" for internal engineers, such as documentation aides and automated upgrade assistants.

Agentic Workflows: Create specific AI agents capable of performing PR reviews and bug resolutions autonomously.

Product Integration: Embed Generative AI features into the Hivemind ecosystem (Shield AI's autonomy stack) for both internal and external users.

Infrastructure & Security: collaborate with Software Operations to ensure all AI deployments meet strict IP-safety and cybersecurity standards (crucial in defense).

Qualifications
Education: Bachelor’s or Master’s in CS or Engineering.

Experience: 3+ years developing large-scale production software for Machine Learning or Autonomy.

Technical Stack:

Languages: Expert in Python, C++, or Go.

AI: Proven experience training, fine-tuning, and deploying GenAI models.

DevOps: Strong grasp of CI/CD, Git, and code-management tools.

Clearance: All offers are contingent on a cleared background (likely requires ability to obtain a Secret/Top Secret clearance eventually, though not explicitly listed as a start date requirement, it is standard for Shield AI).

Industry Demographics & Representation
Shield AI operates at the intersection of Defense/Aerospace and Artificial Intelligence. While the company is private and does not release a granular diversity report, industry benchmarks for these sectors in the United States provide the following context:

Aerospace & Defense Engineering Workforce:

Gender:

Men: ~85–87%

Women: ~13–15%

Race/Ethnicity:

White: ~68%

Asian: ~14%

Hispanic/Latino: ~9%

Black/African American: ~6%

Veterans: The defense industry has a significantly higher rate of veteran employment (~25% of the workforce) compared to the general tech sector.

San Diego Tech Hub: San Diego has a high concentration of biotech and defense hardware talent, which tends to skew slightly more senior and hardware-focused than the software-centric demographics of Silicon Valley.

Compensation & Benefits
Base Salary: $160K – $240K (Determined by skills/experience).

Equity: Stock options in a high-growth "unicorn" (valued over $1B).

Benefits: Medical/Dental/Vision, 401(k), and paid time off.

Note: Military fellows and part-time employees are excluded from standard benefits.