---
title: 'Senior Mechanical Engineer at Kapta Space'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/senior-mechanical-engineer-kapta-space-redmond-9cdppynk9dv9'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-07'
---

# Senior Mechanical Engineer at Kapta Space

- **Company:** Kapta Space
- **Location:** Redmond, WA
- **Compensation:** $185k–$220k
- **Employment:** full-time
- **Work type:** onsite
- **Posted:** 2026-08-25
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-07
- **Apply:** https://jobs.lever.co/kapta-space/5649f10d-8588-41c0-b2b1-246709a830e8

## Job description

Kapta Space, a VC-funded early-stage startup in Seattle, WA, is breaking new ground in Geospatial Intelligence.  Our technology centers around a proven, scalable electronically-steered radar for sophisticated spaceborne applications such as earth observation using synthetic aperture radar (SAR) techniques, as well as enabling advanced defense missions such as target tracking on the ground and in the air.

You are the Right Fit for this Role at Kapta Space if:

- You can work as a member of a multi-disciplinary team to develop rugged printed circuit board systems, avionics enclosures, RF systems, power systems, and mounting solutions for use in harsh environments such as Low Earth Orbit.
- You take “Responsible Engineer” ownership of successful delivery of hardware from requirements definition and design all the way through fabrication, test and qualification.
- You can perform mechanical analysis tasks such as bolted joint analysis, modal vibration analysis, static/dynamic thermal analysis, and tolerance stack-ups.
- You’ve built hardware to pass an environmental qualification test plan (such as SMC-S-16)
- Generating organized and flexible 3D CAD is second nature to you.
- You’re familiar with making drawings per ASME Y14.5-2018
- You’re familiar with cost, schedule and performance tradeoffs of diverse fabrication technologies such as CNC machining, PCB manufacturing, 3D metal printing, Wire EDM, electroforming or injection molding.
- You can manage schedule and integration requirements for payload development and spacecraft integration to ensure on-time delivery.
- You love to learn.
- Domestic travel may be required. Foreign travel possible.

Required Qualifications

- BS, MS, or PhD in mechanical, aerospace engineering or related discipline
- Onsite role in Seattle, WA, with intermittent work travel required (less than 10%)
- 6+ years of mechanical and thermal design or equivalent experience
- Strong skills in CAD design (ex: OnShape) and Finite Element analysis (ex: Ansys)
- Experience with Electronics Packaging and PCB design
- Participate in a culture of technical excellence, innovation and ownership. Mentor junior engineers.
- Excellent communication skills, with ability to clearly present technical findings and collaborate effectively across engineering functions.

Bonus if candidates have experience and skills in the following areas:

- Experience with electronically-steered or phased-array radar systems, including beam-steering, calibration approaches and general space reliability.
- Experience developing RF systems hardware such as waveguide, antennas, or phase-matched cables
- Experience selecting materials such as metal alloys, plastics, finishes, lubricants, insulative materials, films, composites, tapes, adhesives, or electrical components for use in Low Earth Orbit.
- Setting up and running 3-axis or 5-axis CNC milling machines, Wire EDM machines, CMM Metrology Systems, or other advanced manufacturing/testing systems.
- Experience using Thermal Desktop, Ansys Mechanical or Ansys IcePak.
- An active or previously held US Government TS/SCI security clearance is considered a strong plus
- Experience in defense contracting environments or ISR/target-tracking radar missions.
- Prior work in small, fast-iteration aerospace teams.

Concerned you do not meet all the requirements? Not a problem - please apply even if you do not meet all these criteria.

U.S. Citizenship, Lawful Permanent Residency, or Refugee/Asylee Status Required To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), Kapta Employees must be U.S. citizens, lawful U.S. permanent residents (i.e., current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum, or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State or Commerce as applicable.

Kapta Space is committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace. We believe that diversity drives innovation, strengthens our team, and broadens our capabilities. We are an equal opportunity employer and do not discriminate on the basis of race, national origin, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, protected veteran status, disability, age, or other legally protected status. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and encourage individuals from underrepresented groups to apply.

Kapta Space does not engage with external recruiters or agencies without prior written agreement. If you are a recruiter (individual or agency) and wish to engage with Kapta Space for talent acquisition, please email hr@kaptaspace.com.

## About Kapta Space

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Kapta Space develops next-generation spaceborne radar systems using metasurface-based electronically steered antennas to provide persistent geospatial intelligence and defense tracking capabilities.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Seed stage)
- **Headquarters**: Seattle, Washington, USA
- **Founded**: 2023 (company work began in 2022)
- **Founders**: Milton Perque (CEO) and Adam Bily (CTO)

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: Spaceborne radar, geospatial intelligence, defense technology
- **Target customers**: U.S. defense agencies (DARPA, military), satellite operators, commercial data aggregators, and industries such as mining, energy, and transportation
- **Mission**: "Arm our partners with persistent and actionable insights on a global scale."

## Products & Services
- **Metasurface Electronically Steered Array (ESA) Radar**: A low-cost, energy-efficient spaceborne radar platform that uses ultra-thin metamaterial surfaces to shape electromagnetic waves, enabling synthetic aperture radar (SAR) imaging and ground moving target indication (GMTI).
- **InSAR Change Detection**: Interferometric SAR data providing millimeter-scale 3D change detection for commercial applications in mining, energy, and transportation.
- **Defense Tracking Solutions**: Spaceborne radar for tracking custody of mobile land and sea targets, moving target indication, and resilience against electronic warfare (EW) threats.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not disclosed (private company)
- **Key Metric**: Total funding of $5M in seed (2025) plus a $1.8M DARPA SBIR contract; CB Insights lists a total of $5.5M (conflicting reports on total funding amount)
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: MetaVC Partners (lead, backed by Bill Gates), Entrada Ventures, Blue Collective; DARPA as a government partner
- **Growth Signals**: Exited stealth mode in February 2025; secured security clearances for classified defense contracts; plans in-orbit demonstration with 2–3 satellites; actively seeking additional private and military investment.

## Competitive Advantages
- Proven, scalable electronically steered metasurface antenna architecture that is cheaper and more energy-efficient than traditional Active Electronically Steered Arrays (AESAs)
- Strong defense credentials: DARPA contract, security clearances, and deep founder expertise from Echodyne, Apple, and Astranis
- Unique capability to maintain continuous tracking of moving targets from space (GMTI), a historically elusive defense challenge
- Operational resilience against electronic warfare threats, enabling effective operations in contested environments

## Strategic Focus
- Rapidly transition technology from ground demonstrations to in-orbit validation
- Build and launch a constellation of at least 2–3 satellites to demonstrate moving-target custody handoff
- Expand into additional defense markets: maritime domain awareness, space-based ballistic missile defense, and space domain awareness
- Form partnerships with mission providers, launch services, and ground operations to accelerate deployment

## Why Work Here
- On-site work environment in Seattle, WA
- Small, focused team (~10 employees) with direct impact on cutting-edge space radar technology
- Opportunity to work on high-stakes defense and national security applications
- Early-stage startup culture with close collaboration between engineering and leadership
- No specific perks or remote policy publicly listed; candidates are encouraged to join the Kapta Talent Community for updates

## Sources
1. [kaptaspace.com](https://www.kaptaspace.com/)
2. [spacenews.com](https://spacenews.com/kapta-space-exits-stealth-mode-with-bold-plans-for-space-based-target-tracking/)
3. [cbinsights.com](https://www.cbinsights.com/company/kapta-space)
4. [builtin.com](https://builtin.com/company/kapta-space)
5. [jobs.lever.co](https://jobs.lever.co/kapta-space)

## Other roles at Kapta Space

- [Senior Embedded Firmware Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-embedded-firmware-engineer-kapta-space-redmond-vrzwhrz316mk) — Redmond, WA
- [Senior Technical Program Manager](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-technical-program-manager-kapta-space-redmond-2ekfnxqq1gc2) — Redmond, WA
- [Director of Hardware Engineering – Spaceborne Radar Systems](https://feeny.ai/job/director-of-hardware-engineering-spaceborne-radar-systems-kapta-space-redmond-xdxwcbtyvbab) — Redmond, WA
- [Director – Radar Payloads](https://feeny.ai/job/director-radar-payloads-kapta-space-redmond-04k6v82npmj7) — Redmond, WA
- [Senior FPGA Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-fpga-engineer-kapta-space-redmond-gbkfcc21z9v6) — Redmond, WA
- [Principal Antenna Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/principal-antenna-engineer-kapta-space-redmond-4etxpxgfqyq1) — Redmond, WA
- [Principal Radar Engineer- MTI](https://feeny.ai/job/principal-radar-engineer-mti-kapta-space-redmond-06mrkr5btv14) — Redmond, WA
- [Principal RF/Microwave Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/principal-rf-microwave-engineer-kapta-space-redmond-wwh7hf2d9m4t) — Redmond, WA
- [Director of Manufacturing – Spaceborne Radar Payloads](https://feeny.ai/job/director-of-manufacturing-spaceborne-radar-payloads-kapta-space-redmond-7kfkg0kcppk1) — Redmond, WA
- [Senior PCB Designer](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-pcb-designer-kapta-space-redmond-7d8899d9qdnt) — Redmond, WA