Senior Software Engineer

Why LeoLabs? At LeoLabs, we're building the living map of activity in space. Through our proprietary global radar network and AI-enabled analytics platform, we collect millions of measurements daily on more than 25,000 objects in low Earth orbit (LEO). Our radar-powered intelligence protects billions in assets, monitors adversarial behavior, and ensures safe operations for commercial and government missions. We're not just building technology, we are redefining global security, safety, and transparency in space. As orbital activity accelerates and threats grow more complex, LeoLabs is a trusted partner for Space Domain Awareness, Space Traffic Management, and Satellite Operations for top-tier space operators and allied defense organizations. If you're looking to work on mission-critical challenges at the forefront of aerospace, national security, and AI, your impact starts here. LeoLabs is seeking a Senior Radar Software Engineer to develop, integrate, and optimize software systems supporting advanced radar operations and space domain awareness missions. This role will work closely with radar systems engineers, signal processing engineers, data scientists, and software developers to deliver high-performance radar capabilities that support mission-critical customer requirements. The ideal candidate has experience developing software for radar, sensor, defense, aerospace, or real-time data processing systems and enjoys solving complex technical challenges in a fast-paced environment.   The Opportunity:  LeoLabs is seeking a highly experienced and technically driven Senior Software Engineer to join our cross-functional Cloud Software team. in this role, you will contribute to a collaborative, high-impact group of engineers building the software that powers real-time decisions for protecting and managing satellites and other objects in low-earth orbit.  As a Senior Software Engineer on our team, you will design and deliver mission-critical software and be a key contributor in ensuring that our system meets our customers’ needs. You will develop software for multiple systems, helping the team to deliver reliable, secure, and high-performance solutions.  The Cloud Software team has responsibility for a wide variety of technical domains, including software for:  Maintaining orbits and tracking custody on every object in Low-Earth Orbit  Providing high-level insights and analytics for our customers  Leveraging large volume data pipelines for custom AI/ML model training  Orchestrating and schedule tasking for our global radar network  Exposing UIs and APIs with strict uptime SLAs for data delivery and visualization    We partner closely with radar and product teams to build cohesive, powerful platform capabilities.    This is a remote position requiring onsite travel approximately once per month, typically for up to one week at a time. The preferred location is the San Francisco Bay Area or Denver, CO area, and candidates must hold an active TS/SCI clearance for periodic SCIF access.   Responsibilities:  Leverage LeoLabs’ leading dual-use systems to support critical space missions.  Develop full-stack software for key software initiatives, particularly for DOD/IC contracts  Participate in stakeholder discussions and translate customer needs into engineering requirements  Ensure reliability, observability, security, and performance across production systems  Own critical portions of our systems through the full development lifecycle, including operation, monitoring, and on-call support  Make use of generative AI to raise the bar on the quality and security of our software    Required Qualifications:  Active US TS/SCI clearance and experience delivering on mission for DOD/IC customers  B.S. in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or equivalent experience  5+ years of professional software engineering experience, with significant time building cloud-based systems at scale  Demonstrated experience building, deploying, and operating distributed backend services  Experience and enthusiasm with using generative AI for software development  Proficiency in Python, Go, or a similar language  Understanding of architecture patterns, service boundaries, message-driven workflows, and API design  Experience with cloud environments (AWS/GCP/Azure) and containerized deployments  Expertise with relational databases (Postgres/MySQL) and message brokers (Kafka, SQS, or similar)  Experience with observability and CI/CD practices  Experience with relational databases (Postgres/MySQL) and message brokers (Kafka, SQS, or similar)  Strong communication skills, with the ability to work with stakeholders across teams  Willingness to participate in on-call rotations for critical systems    Preferred Qualifications:  Experience building production frontend applications with TypeScript, JavaScript, or comparable modern web technologies  Experience deploying into US federal systems  Experience with Kubernetes in cloud environments  Background in Math/Physics, AI/ML, or Orbital Mechanics  Experience operating in a high-availability or mission-critical environment      What Success Looks Like:   Within 1 month, you’ll:  Complete onboarding and gain deep context on LeoLabs’ mission and architecture  Review key software systems and operational practices  Be introduced to our US Federal contract work strategy and how your work contributes to its success  Contribute initial improvements or fixes that demonstrate your technical approach and engineering standards    Within 3 months, you’ll:  Contribute to constructive design reviews and actively support teammates  Own medium-sized software features end-to-end with minimal guidance  Deliver key software features towards the execution of our US Federal contracts    Within 6 months, you’ll:  Participate in key requirements discussions for complex features  Take ownership of major services or system components  Deliver major software features for key revenue-generating projects    Within 12 months, you’ll:  Influence strategic technical direction for Cloud Software team  Help blaze the trail for our growing sensor orchestration and integration software products  Be a trustworthy team member as our US Federal contract work expands    Compensation The base salary range for this position is up to $194,700 + bonus + stock options + benefits   Compensation Note: The salary range for this position is benchmarked based on the designated primary work location for the role. Final compensation may vary depending on the selected candidate's work location, applicable market data, experience, qualifications, and other job-related factors.Perks and Benefits Global workforce: flexible remote/hybrid opportunities Work on complex, meaningful missions with real-world impact Unlimited paid time off for most roles Competitive salary and equity packages Comprehensive health, dental, and vision coverage Access to the forefront of commercial space operations and defense innovation   ITAR Requirements  To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. More information regarding ITAR can be found at DDTC’s website.     Vendor Notification LeoLabs does not engage external staffing agencies or third-party recruiting firms for this role. Unsolicited candidate submissions will not be considered.   All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or status as a protected veteran.