---
title: 'Optical Systems Engineer at K2 Space'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/optical-systems-engineer-k2-space-los-angeles-sch6c834mbe2'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-13'
---

# Optical Systems Engineer at K2 Space 

- **Company:** K2 Space 
- **Location:** Los Angeles, CA
- **Posted:** 2026-04-29
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-13
- **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/k2spacecorporation/jobs/5205443008

## Job description

K2 is building the largest and highest-power satellites ever flown, unlocking performance levels previously out of reach across every orbit. Backed by over $1 billion in total funding from leading investors including Altimeter Capital, ICONIQ, Kleiner Perkins, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Redpoint Ventures, and T. Rowe Price — and with over $1 billion in signed contracts across commercial and US government customers, we're mass-producing the highest-power satellite platforms ever built for missions from LEO to deep space.

The rise of heavy-lift launch vehicles is shifting the industry from an era of mass constraint to one of mass abundance, and we believe this new era demands a fundamentally different class of spacecraft. Engineered to survive the harshest radiation environments and to fully capitalize on today's and tomorrow's massive rockets, K2 satellites deliver unmatched capability at constellation scale and across multiple orbits.

With multiple launches in 2027 and plans to scale to 100 satellites a year, we're Building Bigger — helping develop the solar system and build toward a Kardashev Type II (K2) civilization. If you are a motivated individual who thrives in a fast-paced environment and you're excited about contributing to the success of a high-growth Series D-funded company, we'd love for you to apply.

## The Role

K2’s plan doesn't stop at satellite buses, however. By operating our own vehicles and manifesting regular rides to space, K2 is uniquely positioned to design, test, and deploy-at-scale ambitious optical payloads in MEO, GEO, cis-lunar, and deep space on unprecedented timelines. The satellite bus is the platform – the payloads are the mission.

There are any number of space-based optical payloads that can generate value here on Earth (ex. forest fire detection, climate and atmospheric monitoring, etc.) and further planetary science in our solar system (ex. hyper-spectral imaging, laser-altimetry) -- all of which require payload-specific optics benches with spectral / spatial filters, beam-shaping optics, image scanning / stabilization mechanisms, electro-optical sensors, fiber-to-free space interfaces, etc. coupled to large aperture, diffraction-limited telescopes for collecting and transmitting optical energy from the UV to the infrared.

As an Optical Systems Engineer, you will contribute to defining how K2 designs, manufactures, tests, and deploys optics benches across K2’s optical payload suite. You will be involved in every phase of your optical system’s life cycle, from initial feasibility and architectural trade studies through manufacturing, ground testing, and on-orbit commissioning. The development timelines and manufacturing scale that we are targeting require meaningful innovation, but you will have the resources and full support of K2 to make this possible and help raise the bar for the next generation of space technology companies.

## Responsibilities

- Responsible for delivering the...
- system architecture, SNR budget, and system-specific modeling (ex. stray light, fiber coupling);
- detailed optical design and tolerancing;
- development plan (risk reduction timeline, division of labor, test strategy);
- environmental qualification and reliability testing;
- technical leadership of vendors and external partners, including component qualification, supply-chain development, and transition to volume manufacturing; and
- laboratory characterization, system-level validation, mission readiness, and on-orbit commissioning plan

… of optical benches for a suite of high-volume optical payloads operating in the UV / VIS / NIR / SWIR / MWIR / LWIR.

- Collaborate with the optical and satellite bus teams to determine feasibility and optimal system requirements for optical payloads.
- Prepare design reviews for your optical system to get stakeholder buy-in and communicate expectations to the hardware, software, test, and manufacturing teams.
- Forecast staffing needs, define roles, and interview candidates to ensure the optical payloads team is staffed appropriately to deliver on schedule.
- Mentor the engineers supporting you to make them more capable and autonomous in the realm of optical system development in the future – scoping work, providing feedback throughout, and reviewing and signing off on the quality of their work.
- Manufacturing is a major emphasis of this role. For any in-house fabrication and assembly, you’ll be responsible for the evaluation and selection of manufacturing equipment and working with the production team to develop a factory layout, work instructions, in-process checkouts, and end-of-line tests to ensure successful builds.

## Qualifications

- Bachelor’s degree in physics, optics, computer science, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, or a related technical field.
- 8+ years of experience in the design, manufacture, and test of optical systems.
- Experience designing and deploying optical systems at every phase of the product life cycle (requirements generation, design, analysis, tolerance, procure, build, align, test, deploy, operate).

## Nice to Have

- Familiarity with high-volume manufacturing – broad knowledge of manufacturing techniques, design for manufacturability, supply chain management, and productionization of assembly and test processes.
- Experience with optical mechanisms – specifying their requirements, knowledge of feedback and actuation methods, basic controls analysis, quantifying mechanism error, and system-level testing.
- Deep knowledge of electro-optical sensing technologies (ie. focal plane arrays, photodiodes, etc.) – their non-idealities, noise mechanisms, and mitigations, testing and characterization, and practical implementation / system integration details.
- Experience conducting experimental research, data analysis, and visualizing esoteric datasets.
- Understanding of the failure modes of electrical, mechanical, and optical systems in space environment.

Compensation and Benefits:

- Base salary range for this role is $110,000 - $280,000 + equity in the company
- Salary will be based on several factors including, but not limited to: knowledge and skills, education, and experience level
- Comprehensive benefits package including paid time off, medical/dental/vision coverage, life insurance, paid parental leave, and many other perks

If you don’t meet 100% of the preferred skills and experience, we encourage you to still apply! Building a spacecraft unlike any other requires a team unlike any other and non-traditional career twists and turns are encouraged!

If you need a reasonable accommodation as part of your application for employment or interviews with us, please let us know.

Export Compliance

As defined in the ITAR, “U.S. Persons” include U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents (i.e., Green Card holders), and certain protected individuals (e.g., refugees/asylees, American Samoans). Please consult with a knowledgeable advisor if you are unsure whether you are a “U.S. Person.”

The person hired for this role will have access to information and items controlled by U.S. export control regulations, including the export control regulations outlined in the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (ITAR). The person hired for this role must therefore either be a “U.S. person” as defined by [22 C.F.R. § 120.15](https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/22/120.15) or otherwise eligible for a federally issued export control license.

## Equal Opportunity

K2 Space is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with K2 Space is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

## About K2 Space 

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: K2 Space builds the largest, highest-power satellite platforms on orbit, enabling previously impossible missions across LEO, MEO, GEO, and cislunar space.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Series C, $440.53M total raised)
- **Headquarters**: Torrance, California, United States (Los Angeles area)
- **Founded**: 2022
- **Founders**: Neel Kunjur (Co-Founder, CTO) and Karan Kunjur (Co-Founder, CEO) – both SpaceX veterans

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: Aerospace & Defense – satellite manufacturing and space platforms
- **Target customers**: Government/military (DoD, Space Force), commercial satellite operators (e.g., SES), and mission integrators requiring high-power, large-format spacecraft
- **Mission statement**: "Build bigger" – scale changes what’s possible; bigger satellites deliver more power, mass on orbit, and resilience at lower cost.

## Products & Services
- **Mega Class Satellite Platform**: A high-power (20 kW), high-mass (3,000 kg payload) satellite bus designed for mass production and vertical integration. Suitable for LEO, MEO, GEO, and cislunar missions. Built in-house with radiation-tolerant architectures, redundant avionics, and high-Δv propulsion.
- **Launch Stacking**: By stacking 10 Mega Class satellites per launch vehicle, K2 maximizes power to orbit (200 kW per launch), drastically reducing per-satellite launch costs.
- **End-to-End Mission Services**: Design, build, integrate, and operate custom satellite missions for defense, communications, and sensing applications.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation**: Not publicly disclosed
- **Key Metric**: Total funding raised – $440.53M (Series C of $250M raised ~6 months ago, per CB Insights)
- **Notable Investors**: Alpine Space Ventures, Altimeter Capital, Lightspeed, T. Rowe Price, Redpoint Ventures, and 20+ others
- **Notable Partners/Contracts**: $30M military contract for a “Mega” satellite mission; partnership with SES to develop next-generation MEO network
- **Growth Signals**: Headcount grew 106% YoY to 186 employees; active job postings up 391% YoY (172 open roles); plans for a three-orbit demonstration mission; Pentagon’s former space policy chief joined as Head of Strategy

## Competitive Advantages
- **Size & Power Advantage**: Mega Class platform delivers 10x the power (20 kW vs. 2 kW) and significantly more mass than typical constellation satellites, enabling higher-performance payloads.
- **Vertical Integration**: 80% of each satellite built in-house – drives reliability, accelerates production, and enables rapid iteration.
- **Resilient Design**: Radiation-tolerant architectures, redundant avionics, and high-Δv propulsion allow operation in the harshest orbits (GEO, MEO, LEO, cislunar).
- **Cost Efficiency**: Stacking 10 satellites per launch vehicle dramatically lowers per-unit launch cost, making large satellites economically viable.

## Strategic Focus
- **Scale Production**: Series C funding directed toward scaling manufacturing capacity and building out the Torrance factory.
- **Three-Orbit Demonstration**: Planning a mission to demonstrate capabilities across LEO, MEO, and GEO – a key milestone for customer validation.
- **Defense & Commercial Expansion**: Pursuing military contracts (DoD, Space Force) and commercial partnerships (SES) to anchor long-term revenue.
- **Talent Acquisition**: Aggressively hiring across avionics, mechanical, GNC, production, and program management roles to support rapid growth.

## Why Work Here
- **Culture**: "First principles thinking" and a bias toward building big, ambitious hardware. The team includes many SpaceX, Anduril, and NASA JPL alumni.
- **Work Environment**: Fast-paced startup with a focus on vertical integration and hands-on engineering. Office in Torrance, CA (Los Angeles area). Some roles (e.g., GNC) are remote-eligible.
- **Growth Opportunity**: 106% headcount growth in the past year, 172+ open positions – strong career advancement potential.
- **Perks & Mission**: Work on the largest satellites in the industry, directly impacting national security and next-generation space infrastructure. "Make previously impossible missions possible."
- **Notable**: Active job postings include roles in avionics, mechanical engineering, production, RF payload, dynamics, and program management (TS/SCI clearance may be required for some roles).

## Sources
1. [K2 Space Official Website](https://www.k2space.com/)
2. [K2 Space Careers Page (Greenhouse)](https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/k2spacecorporation)
3. [LinkedIn – K2 Space Corporation](https://www.linkedin.com/company/k2-space)
4. [CB Insights – K2 Space Profile](https://www.cbinsights.com/company/k2-space)
5. [Bloomberg Technology – K2 Space Raises $110M Series B](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-07-07/k2-space-raises-110-million-to-scale-up-satellite-production) (referenced in search results)
6. [SES Partners with K2 Space – News Article](https://www.k2space.com/news) (referenced in search results)

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