---
title: 'General Manager, AI Test & Evaluation Products at CoVar'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/general-manager-ai-test-evaluation-products-covar-durham-jekw19t708p7'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-11-11'
---

# General Manager, AI Test & Evaluation Products at CoVar

- **Company:** CoVar
- **Location:** Durham, NC
- **Posted:** 2026-11-10
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-11-11
- **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/covar/jobs/5290341007

## Job description

General Manager, AI Test & Evaluation Products

## About CoVar

CoVar is a small AI/ML R&D software company with offices in Durham, NC and McLean, VA. We build AI/ML tools that help the Department of War (DoW) find threats, help researchers find new treatments, and help industry keep machinery safe. Our engineers take hard problems out of the lab and into systems that actually get used.

## About this position

CoVar develops technology under DARPA and DoW research programs that has value well beyond the original contract. Some of it is ready to become a product. We are hiring a General Manager to build a business around one of these technologies.

You will develop a new line of business, from first customer conversations through initial sales, revenue, and ultimately product P&L. The product is software built under a DARPA program to test and evaluate autonomous and AI-enabled systems, a market where Government test organizations, primes, and commercial developers all face the same problem: proving that AI-enabled systems behave as intended.

You will talk to buyers in the DoW test community, at defense primes, and in commercial robotics and AI assurance. You will turn what you learn into a value proposition backed by real numbers. You will also build the go-to-market and financing plans, and take them to customers and investors. You will report to our VP of Strategy and work directly with our CEO and CTO.

## Responsibilities

- Own the commercialization strategy and product roadmap, taking the technology from its DARPA program baseline to a supportable, fieldable product
- Lead customer discovery across DoW test ranges and operational test agencies, acquisition program offices, defense primes, and commercial autonomy and AI assurance buyers
- Define the value proposition, pricing, and business model, grounded in customer data and validated with paying pilots
- Identify and pursue transition pathways, including SBIR Phase III, Other Transaction Agreements, CRADAs, program office funding, and commercial licensing
- Build the go-to-market and financing plans, and present them to customers, Government sponsors, and investors
- Work with engineering to turn customer requirements into product priorities and a realistic delivery plan
- Set commercialization milestones and revenue targets, and report progress to CoVar leadership

Who we're looking for

You have taken an early-stage or deep-tech product from prototype to paying customers. You know how the DoW buys and tests technology, and how a product moves from a research program to a program of record. You communicate easily with people from a wide variety of backgrounds, from engineers and test directors to program managers and investors. Veterans and transitioning service members with test and evaluation or acquisition experience are encouraged to apply.

## Minimum qualifications

- B.S. in engineering, computer science, physics, math, or a related field, or equivalent technical experience (hands-on experience with autonomous systems, coding, engineering, etc.)
- 8+ years of professional experience, including at least 3 years leading go-to-market, business development, or product commercialization
- Working knowledge of the DoW test and evaluation (T&E) community and the DoW acquisition process
- Track record of taking an early-stage or deep-tech product to paying customers, with measurable revenue results
- Experience raising private capital or winning Government transition funding (e.g., SBIR Phase III, OTA prototype or follow-on production awards, or program-of-record funding), including proposal writing, presentation creation, etc.
- Experience running customer discovery and setting pricing and business models
- Excellent written and verbal communication with technical and non-technical audiences
- Ability to work from Durham, NC or McLean, VA, with regular travel to customers, investors, and DoW test sites
- Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance (U.S. citizenship required)

## Preferred qualifications

- MBA or equivalent business training
- Experience at a DoW test range, test organization, or acquisition program office
- Experience in commercial autonomy, robotics, or AI assurance
- Network in the DoW, prime contractor, and defense-tech investor communities
- P&L ownership for a product or business unit
- Active U.S. security clearance
- Experience building or licensing a dual-use product for both Government and commercial markets
- Familiarity with AI test, evaluation, and assurance frameworks, such as the NIST AI Risk Management Framework
- Experience hiring and leading a small cross-functional team

## Benefits

- Competitive salary, cash bonus, equity structure, and 401k with employer contributions
- Excellent health care coverage, including dental and vision plans
- Parental leave
- Short-term and long-term disability insurance
- Life insurance
- Flexible work schedule
- Tuition support
- PTO and paid holidays

Visit us: www.covar.com

## About CoVar

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: CoVar is a small AI/ML R&D software company that creates customized algorithms and decision-support tools for defense, healthcare, and industrial applications.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Bootstrapped; no public funding rounds disclosed)
- **Headquarters**: Durham, North Carolina, United States (with additional office in McLean, Virginia)
- **Founded**: 2011
- **Founders**: Mark Hibbard and Martin Milner; expanded through acquisition of New Folder Consulting (2013) with Dr. Peter Torrione and Dr. Kenneth D. Morton, Jr. as chief technologists.

## Core Business
- **Primary industry/industries**: Defense & Space, Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning, Computer Vision, Aided Target Recognition
- **Target customers**: U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), biomedical researchers, industrial operators (B2G/B2B)
- **Mission or purpose statement**: “Deliver more than cutting-edge technology – a one-of-a-kind company that delivers unique smart sensing and automation solutions to our clients.”

## Products & Services
For each major offering:
- **ODIN**: AI-powered decision support tool that turns battlefield data into real-time, actionable insight on friendly forces, adversary activity, ISR coverage, and mission progress.
- **ACES**: Multi-tiered automatic target recognition (ATR) software with patented algorithms for detecting tiny unresolved distant targets, mid-range objects, and providing targeting information.
- **BullsEye**: Software architecture that decouples mission capability from specific airframes and payloads, enabling rapid AI-powered ISR upgrades via software updates.
- **ATLAS (Advanced Targeting & Lethality Aided System)**: Custom machine learning algorithms for detecting threats in infrared and RGB imagery at extreme distances, developed for the U.S. Army.
- **Custom AI/ML Solutions**: Tailored algorithms for defense, healthcare (e.g., disease cure discovery), and industrial monitoring (e.g., machinery to prevent injuries and environmental catastrophes).

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not publicly available (privately held)
- **Key Metric**: Total funding not disclosed; revenue not publicly available. Notable contract: Direct-to-Phase II SBIR from the U.S. Air Force and a DARPA contract for Predictive Psychological Architectures for Decision-Making (PPADM) program (announced April 2026).
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: No external investors reported. Key partners include DARPA, U.S. Army, U.S. Air Force, and biomedical research institutions.
- **Growth Signals**: Headcount grew 25.8% YoY (26 employees as of mid-2026); LinkedIn followers increased 71% year-over-year; active job postings grew 50% quarterly; DARPA and SBIR contract wins signal expanding government trust.

## Competitive Advantages
- **Specific moats or differentiators**: Over a decade of experience in custom AI/ML for defense; patented algorithms for aided target recognition at extreme distances; ability to decouple software from hardware (BullsEye); deep relationships with DoD and DARPA; small, agile team with high technical expertise (51% of staff in technical roles).

## Strategic Focus
- **Current priorities and direction for growth**: Continue expanding AI/ML solutions for defense (especially real-time battlefield decision support and autonomous target recognition), while growing healthcare and industrial monitoring applications. Emphasis on software-driven upgrades over hardware replacement.

## Why Work Here
- **Culture highlights**: Small, tight-knit team of engineers and scientists; values integrity, creativity, dependability, and diversity; passionate about solving serious problems with cutting-edge technology.
- **Remote/hybrid/office policy**: Flexible work schedule; likely on-site/hybrid given defense contracts (offices in Durham, NC and McLean, VA).
- **Notable perks or engineering culture**: Competitive salary, cash bonus, equity structure, 401k with employer contributions; excellent health/dental/vision plans; opportunity to work on high-impact national security and biomedical projects; constant experimentation and prototyping at the edge of AI/ML.

## Sources
1. [covar.com](https://covar.com/) – Homepage and technology areas
2. [covar.com/about-us](https://covar.com/about-us/) – About Us (history, values)
3. [covar.com/careers-local](https://covar.com/careers-local/) – Careers page (benefits, culture)
4. [linkedin.com/company/covar-llc](https://www.linkedin.com/company/covar-llc) – Company details, workforce, growth
5. [theorg.com/org/covar](https://theorg.com/org/covar) – Org chart, team structure

## Other roles at CoVar

- [Machine Learning Internship Summer 2027](https://feeny.ai/job/machine-learning-internship-summer-2027-covar-durham-3rk1h6avbp1m) — Durham, NC
- [Field Operations Advisor, Army Programs](https://feeny.ai/job/field-operations-advisor-army-programs-covar-durham-ebwx57vydvn3) — Durham, NC
- [Software Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/software-engineer-covar-durham-e0xnxda82mcn) — Durham, NC
- [Machine Learning Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/machine-learning-engineer-covar-durham-ar0hdvxt0jdh) — Durham, NC
- [Machine Learning Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/machine-learning-engineer-covar-mclean-k6gerwpesfw2) — Mclean, VA
- [Signal Processing Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/signal-processing-engineer-covar-durham-xqaedd0ghr6t) — Durham, NC