Autonomous Systems Software Engineer

Leidos•Lynnwood, WA

2d•$131,300 - $237,350•Onsite

About The Position

Leidos is seeking an Autonomous Systems Software Engineer to develop software for next-generation uncrewed underwater vehicles (UUVs) and maritime autonomous systems. This role involves hands-on engineering for real platforms operating in challenging environments to support critical national missions. The engineer will design, write, and deploy production software that controls autonomous behavior, vehicle health, and mission execution. The team values progress with discipline, fast iteration with bounded risk, and engineers who take end-to-end responsibility. They move quickly, learn continuously, and expect software to work reliably when it matters. This role offers the opportunity to work on fielded systems, control vehicles directly, have real ownership, and contribute to defining how autonomy software is built.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or related field with 12-15 years of experience, or a Master’s degree with 10-13 years of experience.
Must have a current Secret clearance.
Demonstrated experience developing modern C++ software on Linux, with strong fundamentals in performance, memory management, and code quality.
Ability to design clean, maintainable systems and make sound tradeoffs under real constraints.
Familiarity with MBSE concepts and tools (e.g., Cameo, MagicDraw) and how software fits into larger system architectures.
Experience developing and deploying software in virtualized or containerized environments (VMware, Docker).
Experience working in Agile or iterative development environments with tools like Jira, Confluence, Bitbucket, or equivalents.
Ability to explain complex technical ideas to engineers, systems teams, and stakeholders.

Nice To Haves

Experience across multiple languages (C#, Java, Python, Rust, etc.) and comfort adapting to new stacks quickly.
Exposure to embedded systems, resource-constrained environments, or software that runs without a full OS.
Hands-on experience building autonomy, decision-making, or control software for robotic or vehicle systems.
Proven ability to build and maintain tests that catch real failures.
Experience diagnosing, refactoring, and improving large or aging codebases without breaking production systems.
Background in autonomous, remotely operated, or mission-critical platforms, especially maritime or undersea systems.
Experience with ROS, Protocol Buffers, SCons, VS Code, and cross-platform build systems.

Responsibilities

Build mission-critical autonomy software using modern C++ and Python on Linux-based systems that operate in constrained, contested environments.
Translate high-level system intent into executable software, breaking down complex autonomy and vehicle requirements into clear, testable implementations.
Architect and evolve scalable autonomy frameworks, emphasizing modularity, performance, and long-term adaptability across multiple vehicle platforms.
Ship real features by developing, integrating, and testing new capabilities in existing codebases, with accurate estimates and ownership from design through deployment.
Collaborate actively in technical debates, design reviews, and trade studies to resolve real constraints.
Mentor and raise the bar by supporting junior engineers and strengthening the team’s overall technical rigor and execution velocity.
Own quality by writing unit and integration tests, analyzing failures, and fixing root causes.
Work across disciplines with systems, hardware, and test engineers to ensure software behaves correctly as part of a larger, real-world system.
Continuously improve build processes, refining tools, workflows, and processes in an Agile, iterative environment.