Autonomy Lead

Skyways•Austin, TX

About The Position

At Skyways, we are building the next generation of autonomous air transportation. Our fully autonomous unmanned aircraft systems move cargo faster and more efficiently than traditional logistics networks. Backed by strong investor support and a $37M STRATFI contract from the U.S. Air Force, we operate at the intersection of commercial logistics and national defense. Our aircraft are not just prototypes—we design, build, fly, and deploy them with real customers today. Based in Austin and supported by investors including Y Combinator, Skyways combines rapid engineering iteration with real-world operations. As we scale toward larger deployments, we are looking for people who want to help build and operate the future of autonomous aviation. The Opportunity This role owns autonomy at the system level. You will define how perception, state estimation, planning, and flight behaviors work together to enable reliable, real-world operation. You are responsible for making the full autonomy stack work in practice, not just in isolation. This is a hands-on leadership role. You will guide a small team while directly contributing to architecture, implementation, and flight debugging. Your work will directly determine whether aircraft complete missions safely and consistently.

Requirements

Experience owning or driving autonomy systems on real robotic or UAV platforms operating outside controlled environments
Deep understanding of at least one autonomy domain (perception, estimation, planning, or navigation) and strong working knowledge across the full stack
Experience taking systems from early development through real-world deployment and iteration
Strong proficiency in C++ and Python
Experience working across software, hardware, and field or flight operations
Ability to make practical tradeoffs under real constraints and deliver working systems
Experience leading engineers or owning technical direction

Nice To Haves

Experience with autonomous aircraft or aerial systems
Background in robotics, computer vision, or motion planning
Experience with real-time or embedded systems
Familiarity with ROS2 or similar robotics frameworks
Experience building simulation environments tied to real-world validation

Responsibilities

Own the end-to-end autonomy stack across perception, state estimation, planning, and system behavior
Define system architecture and make tradeoffs across performance, reliability, and complexity
Lead and mentor engineers while contributing directly to critical parts of the stack
Drive integration across GNC, hardware, and mission planning systems
Define how autonomy is validated across simulation, ground testing, and flight testing
Debug real-world failures using flight data, logs, and system-level analysis
Identify gaps in the current system and drive changes needed for reliable deployment
Set execution standards for autonomy development and delivery

Stand Out From the Crowd

Upload your resume and get instant feedback on how well it matches this job.

Upload and Match Resume