---
title: 'Senior Mechanical Engineer, Systems Integration at Shield AI'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/senior-mechanical-engineer-systems-integration-shield-ai-seattle-f0yacntevhsq'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-10-17'
---

# Senior Mechanical Engineer, Systems Integration at Shield AI

- **Company:** Shield AI
- **Location:** Seattle, WA
- **Compensation:** $140k–$200k
- **Employment:** full-time
- **Work type:** onsite
- **Posted:** 2026-09-30
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-10-17
- **Apply:** https://jobs.lever.co/shieldai/fa1fe324-9ced-4885-9be8-35760574361e

## Job description

Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai. Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and YouTube.

Job Description: As a Staff Systems Integration Engineer you will provide technical leadership for the integration of major aircraft systems across the full product development lifecycle. You will establish subsystem installation architectures, guide multidisciplinary engineering teams, and lead complex integration efforts involving structures, avionics, propulsion, electrical systems, manufacturing, and suppliers.

In this role, you will influence technical direction beyond your immediate assignments by developing integration strategies, improving engineering processes, and mentoring engineers across multiple programs.

The ideal candidate is a recognized technical leader with extensive experience integrating complex aircraft systems. They possess exceptional engineering judgment, are trusted to solve the organization's most challenging multidisciplinary integration problems, and consistently drive improvements in aircraft design, manufacturability, reliability, and engineering execution through collaboration and technical leadership.

## What You'll Do

- Lead the mechanical integration of complete aircraft subsystems from concept through production, ensuring compatibility across structural, electrical, avionics, propulsion, and manufacturing interfaces.
- Develop installation architecture for complex aircraft systems, including subsystem packaging, equipment mounting, and routing of electrical and fluid systems.
- Lead the design of complex machined, composite, fabricated, and sheet metal assemblies requiring advanced engineering judgment.
- Develop and review installation drawings, assembly documentation, and configuration baselines to ensure design consistency and production readiness.
- Perform advanced tolerance analyses, structural hand calculations, and engineering trade studies supporting design decisions.
- Coordinate subsystem integration activities during prototype builds, aircraft assembly, and production.
- Mentor junior engineers in CAD modeling, GD&T application, installation design, and engineering best practices.
- Coordinate suppliers and internal stakeholders to resolve technical issues affecting integration, manufacturability, schedule, or cost.
- Support technical planning, schedule development, and project execution for assigned work packages."

Required Qualifications

- Bachelor's or Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering or related discipline.
- 5+ years of experience in aircraft, aerospace, defense, robotics, or complex electromechanical system development.
- Demonstrated experience designing machined, fabricated, composite, and sheet metal components from concept through production release.
- Demonstrated experience leading mechanical integration of aircraft subsystems or complex assemblies.
- Advanced CAD proficiency with NX, SolidWorks, CATIA, Creo, or equivalent.
- Experience managing engineering data, product structures, Bills of Material (BOMs), and drawing releases using PLM systems such as Teamcenter, Windchill, or 3DEXPERIENCE.
- Working knowledge of aircraft installation practices, subsystem packaging, interface management, equipment mounting, and maintainability considerations.
- Experience developing installation layouts and routing solutions for EWIS, hydraulic, fuel, pneumatic, ECS, or similar mechanical systems.
- Experience developing part drawings, assembly drawings, and installation drawings.
- Working knowledge of EWIS, hydraulic, fuel, pneumatic, or ECS routing design.
- Strong knowledge of GD&T, ASME Y14.5, tolerance stack-up, and drawing release processes.
- Experience supporting manufacturing, prototype builds, production issue resolution, or MRB activity.
- Ability to coordinate across Manufacturing, Stress, Systems, Avionics, Supply Chain, and Test teams."

## Preferred Qualifications

- Aircraft integration experience on UAV, military, commercial, eVTOL, or autonomous aircraft programs.
- Experience performing structural hand calculations, margin assessments, or preliminary stress analysis.
- Experience with FEA including static, modal, vibration, fatigue, or thermal analysis.
- Hands-on experience supporting build, production, testing, or hardware validation activities.
- Experience managing technical scope, schedule, risk, or supplier coordination for subsystem work packages.
- Familiarity with aircraft-level requirements, interface control, and configuration management."

## #LI-AD6

#LD

Full-time regular employee offer package: Pay within range listed + Bonus + Benefits + Equity

Temporary employee offer package: Pay within range listed above + temporary benefits package (applicable after 60 days of employment)

Salary compensation is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, licenses and certifications, and specific work location. All offers are contingent on a cleared background and possible reference check. Military fellows and part-time employees are not eligible for benefits. Please speak to your talent acquisition representative for more information.

###

Shield AI is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know.

## About Shield AI

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Shield AI builds AI pilots and autonomous systems for military aircraft to protect service members and civilians.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Series G, venture-backed)
- **Headquarters**: San Diego, California, United States
- **Founded**: 2015
- **Founders**: Brandon Tseng, Ryan Tseng, Andrew Reiter

## Core Business
- Primary industry/industries: Defense technology, artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, aerospace
- Target customers: U.S. Department of Defense, allied nations’ military forces (B2G / Government)
- Mission or purpose statement: “Protect service members and civilians with intelligent systems.”

## Products & Services
- **Hivemind**: A combat‑tested, modular autonomy stack for aircraft – self‑driving technology for drones, jets, and helicopters. Includes path‑planning, mapping, state‑estimation, computer vision, and reinforcement learning. Type: Software (AI/autonomy).
- **V‑BAT**: A vertical take‑off and landing (VTOL) unmanned aerial system (UAS) designed for persistent ISR and strike missions. Type: Hardware (drone).
- **X‑BAT**: An advanced unmanned aircraft system with extended endurance and payload capacity, built for multi‑domain operations. Type: Hardware (drone).
- **Hivemind Vision Systems**: Computer‑vision and sensor‑fusion capabilities integrated into Hivemind for GPS‑denied environments. Type: Software + sensors.
- **Hivemind Enterprise**: A deployable version of Hivemind for third‑party platforms and commercial applications. Type: Software.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not publicly disclosed (private company). Total funding raised: $3.6B (as of Series G in March 2026).
- **Key Metric**: Annual Revenue ~$21.7M (estimated, private) | Total Funding $3.6B (including $2B Series G led by JP Morgan Chase and Advent International, March 2026).
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: JP Morgan Chase, Advent International, Blackstone, Riot Ventures, SnowPoint Ventures, Disruptive (55+ investors total). Strategic partners include U.S. DoD and allied defense forces.
- **Growth Signals**: Headcount grew 68.3% YoY to 1,283 employees; 338 active job postings (+57.2% YoY); operates in 5 countries (U.S., Australia, UAE, Norway, Ukraine); recent acquisitions of Sentient Vision Systems (2024), Heron Systems, MARTIN UAV.

## Competitive Advantages
- **Combat‑proven autonomy**: Hivemind has been tested in live military operations, providing a first‑mover advantage in contested, GPS‑denied environments.
- **Full‑stack integration**: Combines software (AI pilot), hardware (V‑BAT, X‑BAT), and sensor systems, creating a tightly integrated product ecosystem.
- **Cross‑functional engineering culture**: Engineers work across AI, robotics, aerospace, and defense – not siloed – enabling rapid iteration and field deployment.
- **Top talent pipeline**: Employees drawn from Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman, Raytheon, Amazon, Anduril, and other leading defense/tech firms.

## Strategic Focus
- **Scale AI pilots across all domains**: Extend Hivemind from aircraft to ships, satellites, and ground vehicles (“every military asset”).
- **International expansion**: Growing presence in Australia, Europe, and Middle East via mission autonomy centers and partnerships.
- **Deepen autonomy stack**: Continued investment in reinforcement learning, simulation, and computer vision to maintain leadership in contested‑environment autonomy.

## Why Work Here
- **Mission‑driven work**: Directly contribute to protecting service members and civilians with cutting‑edge AI and robotics.
- **Cross‑functional teams**: Engineers collaborate across disciplines (AI, hardware, software, systems) on real‑world defense challenges.
- **Benefits**: Excellent medical coverage, mental health EAP, paid parental leave, pet insurance, flexible work hours, gym discounts (SD) / on‑site gym (DC), free parking, competitive compensation, 401k with match, stock benefits.
- **Work policy**: Flexible work hours; some offices (e.g., San Diego HQ, Arlington, DC) have on‑site facilities. Remote/hybrid options available depending on role.
- **Growth trajectory**: Rapidly scaling (68% headcount growth) with hundreds of open roles across engineering, operations, and program management.

## Sources
1. [shield.ai/about](https://shield.ai/about/)
2. [shield.ai/careers](https://shield.ai/careers/)
3. [LinkedIn – Shield AI](https://www.linkedin.com/company/shield-ai)
4. [CBInsights – Shield AI](https://www.cbinsights.com/company/shield-ai)
5. [Lever – Shield AI Jobs](https://jobs.lever.co/shieldai)

## Other roles at Shield AI

- [Engineer I, Mechanical (R6302)](https://feeny.ai/job/engineer-i-mechanical-r6302-shield-ai-seattle-75gdhfp3k8nt) — Seattle, WA
- [Engineer I, Mechanical Hardware Test](https://feeny.ai/job/engineer-i-mechanical-hardware-test-shield-ai-seattle-009txzdn75eb) — Seattle, WA
- [Senior Staff Engineer, Structural Analysis - Ranger (R6300)](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-staff-engineer-structural-analysis-ranger-r6300-shield-ai-seattle-p24f55m9654f) — Seattle, WA
- [Staff Engineer, Fuel Systems - Ranger (R6299)](https://feeny.ai/job/staff-engineer-fuel-systems-ranger-r6299-shield-ai-seattle-66cbvba47hb6) — Seattle, WA
- [Staff Engineer, Aircraft Configuration Design - Ranger (R6298)](https://feeny.ai/job/staff-engineer-aircraft-configuration-design-ranger-r6298-shield-ai-seattle-942h4whh3a76) — Seattle, WA
- [Engineer II, Automated Test (R6288)](https://feeny.ai/job/engineer-ii-automated-test-r6288-shield-ai-san-mateo-9zrnhj6har1p) — San Mateo, CA
- [Capture Manager - XBAT - USAF (R6205)](https://feeny.ai/job/capture-manager-xbat-usaf-r6205-shield-ai-remote-wk7cq4qwzr70)
- [Manager, Infrastructure (R6154)](https://feeny.ai/job/manager-infrastructure-r6154-shield-ai-san-mateo-ak1zaxmkmbbf) — San Mateo, CA
- [Senior Director, Deal Strategy Execution (R6259)](https://feeny.ai/job/senior-director-deal-strategy-execution-r6259-shield-ai-washington-jjc8weakxqa7) — Washington, DC
- [Staff Engineer, Modelling and Simulation (R6248)](https://feeny.ai/job/staff-engineer-modelling-and-simulation-r6248-shield-ai-san-diego-xe9yvn3mf71x) — San Diego, CA