---
title: 'Operations Associate, Growth at Distributed Spectrum'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/operations-associate-growth-distributed-spectrum-new-york-twsse9pdfsyg'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-10'
---

# Operations Associate, Growth at Distributed Spectrum

- **Company:** Distributed Spectrum
- **Location:** New York, NY
- **Employment:** full-time
- **Work type:** onsite
- **Posted:** 2026-08-19
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-10
- **Apply:** https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/distributed-spectrum/dba82f49-0db4-4d80-8223-2c81bd345761

## Job description

DS creates systems that power the next generation of radio spectrum intelligence. We collect radio data from all over the world, train neural networks to decipher it, and run them on the smallest chips we can. We’re solving a new, technically hard problem where nothing from other fields works out of the box, and along the way, we’ve built our own stack from scratch, including entirely new embedding model architectures, custom GPU kernels, and much more. Joining DS means owning major parts of a fast-growing AI research organization, joining a collaborative, talent-dense team with decades of experience in probabilistic ML, accelerated computing, embedded systems, and signal theory, and growing your career in the areas that interest you. You’ll fit in if you want to come to work for the problem itself and don’t want to choose between technical rigor, business value, and real-world impact. We work with high ownership and trust.

## The Role

We're looking for an Operations Associate, Growth to be the connective tissue between our fast-moving, frequently traveling Growth team and the rest of the company. This is a role for someone who loves being in the middle of the action: organizing complicated logistics, anticipating what’s next, solving problems before they become problems, and making sure nothing falls through the cracks. You genuinely like logistics and being the person who keeps things moving. You’ll own the operational details behind a team that spends significant time on the road meeting customers and building the business. That means coordinating travel, chasing down answers, navigating last-minute changes, and making sure teams across the company have the information they need. The right person will have real ownership from the start, with more autonomy as you build trust. We’re looking for someone hungry, resourceful, and excited to grow with the company.

## What You’ll Do

- Own travel logistics for the Growth team, including flights, hotels, ground transportation, changes, and day-of issues
- Chase down missing information from the team and make sure the right people across the company have the information they need
- Build familiarity with our key customers and projects, help maintain those relationships, and keep important information organized and up to date
- Maintain key trip details in one organized, visible place so everyone at the company has accurate, up-to-date information
- Keep upcoming trips and events moving, even while the Growth team is on the ground elsewhere
- Serve as the main point of contact for Growth’s travel-related operational needs
- Stay ahead of changing plans and solve issues quickly when things move at the last minute
- Build simple, repeatable processes that make travel and coordination easier over time
- Provide light calendar, inbox, and administrative support to a senior leader

## Who You Are

- Highly organized, with a genuine interest in keeping track of details, logistics, and moving pieces
- Proactive, comfortable chasing down what's missing and following up with people at any level of the company, holding your ground when something needs attention
- Resourceful and calm under pressure, especially when plans change at the last minute
- Clear and concise communication, with good judgment about when to escalate something
- Willing to ask questions and learn what you don't already know, even in conversations with technical teams
- Energized by unpredictability and the pace of startup life
- Strong sense of ownership and a habit of following things through to completion
- Interested in building simple systems and processes that make things run better the next time
- Strong judgment and discretion, especially when handling sensitive information
- 1-3 years of experience in operations, coordination, administrative support, hospitality, events, or another detail-heavy role

Who Thrives at Distributed Spectrum

- Fast learners over specific backgrounds – We care more about how quickly you can pick up new skills than where you’ve worked before.
- Intellectual honesty – The right answer matters more than being right. You challenge assumptions, test ideas, and pivot when needed.
- Adaptability – We’re organized, but sometimes things change quickly. You find a way to make it work and balance short-term deliverables with long-term goals.
- Ownership of outcomes – You optimize your own time, focus on what matters to deliver quickly, and cut out inefficiencies.
- Not building in a vacuum – You stay connected to the rest of our teams and our customers to make sure all the pieces fit together.

## What We Offer

- Above-market salary, equity, and benefits package.
- Early Series A Equity
- Excellent health, dental, and vision coverage
- 401(k) match - up to 4% of your salary
- Flexible PTO
- Daily office lunches in NYC

ITAR Requirements

To conform to U.S. Government technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR [here](https://www.pmddtc.state.gov/?id=ddtc_kb_article_page&sys_id=24d528fddbfc930044f9ff621f961987).

## About Distributed Spectrum

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Distributed Spectrum builds AI-enabled software and sensors that allow anyone to detect, classify, and understand critical radio signals without requiring expensive hardware or specialized expertise.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Series A)
- **Headquarters**: New York, New York, United States
- **Founded**: 2020
- **Founders**: Alex Wulff, Ben Harpe, Isaac Struhl

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: Defense technology / Electronic warfare / Signal intelligence
- **Target customers**: Government, defense, and commercial organizations that need real-time spectrum awareness and threat detection
- **Mission or purpose**: “Build AI and sensors to let anyone understand critical radio signals in any mission” – [distributedspectrum.com](https://www.distributedspectrum.com/about)

## Products & Services
- **Detection Mesh**: A network of hot-swappable, off-the-shelf commercial components that creates a vast, AI-powered radio frequency detection system. Provides real-time alerts with unlimited downstream integrations.
- **AI-Enabled Workflows**: Machine learning models that automatically identify and classify signals, enabling operators to act on threats without manual analysis.
- **Deploy Everywhere Platform**: Software that bridges the gap between $100 hardware and legacy $1M+ systems, allowing rapid deployment into existing infrastructure.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not disclosed (private company)
- **Key Metric**: Total funding of $25.2M as of April 2025. Series A of $25M, led by Conviction, Shield Capital, and Nat Friedman, with participation from Felicis and XFund. – [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/distributed-spectrum)
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Conviction, Shield Capital, Nat Friedman, Felicis, XFund, National Science Foundation (grant). Board Director Sarah Guo (Conviction).
- **Growth Signals**: 100% YoY employee growth (32 people), named to American Dynamism 50 in 2025, oversubscribed Series A, strong hiring momentum across engineering and mission operations roles.

## Competitive Advantages
- **Software-first approach**: Shifts focus from expensive proprietary hardware to modular, flexible software running on commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) components.
- **Hard technical moat**: Combines machine learning, embedded systems, and signal processing – a net-new problem space with few competitors.
- **Talent density**: Founders bring deep expertise from Google, Raytheon, Lockheed Martin, Microsoft, Bridgewater; entire team is technical and mission-driven.
- **Speed of deployment**: Can integrate with existing $1M+ systems or run entirely on low-cost hardware, making spectrum monitoring accessible to a wider set of missions.

## Strategic Focus
- **Product expansion**: Scaling the detection mesh and AI workflows to cover more signal types and operational environments (e.g., tactical UAVs, special projects).
- **Hiring for growth**: Actively recruiting for roles in embedded engineering, RF systems, mission operations, and program management to support government and commercial contracts.
- **Go-to-market**: Building out sales and business development teams to penetrate defense and critical infrastructure verticals.

## Why Work Here
- **Culture**: "High growth and high ownership" – trust by default, side-by-side problem solving in the office. Small, elite team where everyone contributes across ML, signal processing, and user design.
- **Work policy**: In-office (New York City). Employees work from physical offices at 147 West 25th Street, 4th Floor, NYC. – [builtin.com](https://builtin.com/company/distributed-spectrum)
- **Engineering culture**: Work on a net-new, technically hard problem with immediate real-world impact in national security. Opportunity to bridge research and production systems.
- **Perks**: Not explicitly listed, but the team is venture-backed and operates with startup intensity – likely standard benefits for a Series A defense tech company.

## Sources
1. [distributedspectrum.com – Home](https://www.distributedspectrum.com/)
2. [distributedspectrum.com – About](https://www.distributedspectrum.com/about)
3. [LinkedIn – Distributed Spectrum](https://www.linkedin.com/company/distributed-spectrum)
4. [Built In – Distributed Spectrum](https://builtin.com/company/distributed-spectrum)
5. [Ashby Careers – Distributed Spectrum](https://jobs.ashbyhq.com/distributed-spectrum)

## Other roles at Distributed Spectrum

- [Associate Director, Business Development - Army](https://feeny.ai/job/associate-director-business-development-army-distributed-spectrum-new-york-0x6ddj970h79) — New York, NY
- [Mission Operations](https://feeny.ai/job/mission-operations-distributed-spectrum-new-york-2wdwav9ddm8g) — New York, NY
- [RF Systems Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/rf-systems-engineer-distributed-spectrum-new-york-ft4x6edfd49q) — New York, NY
- [Systems Integration Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/systems-integration-engineer-distributed-spectrum-new-york-bhf5zsb366jm) — New York, NY
- [Mission Operations Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/mission-operations-engineer-distributed-spectrum-new-york-v7espz5g5wc0) — New York, NY
- [SkillBridge - Mission Operations Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/skillbridge-mission-operations-engineer-distributed-spectrum-new-york-x68t58je2nt9) — New York, NY
- [Machine Learning Research, RF Foundation Models Specialist](https://feeny.ai/job/machine-learning-research-rf-foundation-models-specialist-distributed-spectrum-8asabr0c6qrs) — New York, NY
- [Embedded Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/embedded-engineer-distributed-spectrum-new-york-2x6w4c797sfm) — New York, NY
- [Growth Department Talent Community](https://feeny.ai/job/growth-department-talent-community-distributed-spectrum-new-york-04c9yc50h0md) — New York, NY