Software Engineer - Embedded Linux (Senior-Staff)
About The Position
As a Linux Software Engineer at Zipline, you'll build and maintain our Yocto-based Linux kernel BSP powering our flight computers, enabling our highly autonomous aircraft to safely fly over millions of homes day-in and day-out. You will work closely with other Linux experts on this team. You will also work closely with software engineers who build user-space applications and drivers. This job also spans the entire development lifecycle, working with the Release team, owning validation, and analyzing performance from real-world flight tests. Our technical stack is built on embedded Linux, running on three desktop-grade computers with a distributed network of sensors, redundant communication links, and actuators. We are looking for detail-oriented engineers with deep expertise in embedded Linux and distributed systems, including kernel development, userspace tooling, real-time performance tuning, system reliability and core operating systems activities.
Requirements
- Strong software engineering skills, with proficiency in at least one strongly typed language; we use Rust and C++ onboard, and Python for tooling
- Deep expertise in embedded Linux development, including experience with kernel modifications, userspace programming, and performance tuning
- Experience working with Yocto or other build systems for custom Linux distributions
- Strong software architecture skills, with experience designing and shipping solutions for complex real-world use cases
- A systems-oriented mindset, with a focus on reliability, fault tolerance, and performance optimization
- Technical leadership skills and experience owning large technical systems that other engineers contribute to
- Detail-oriented mindset to think through validating a system's safety
Responsibilities
- Design and build the software architecture necessary to run everything from critical flight software to interconnected ground-based hardware on embedded Linux systems
- Contribute to the development and maintenance of our custom Linux distribution on Yocto, ensuring a reliable and performant foundation for our flight and ground-based systems
- Analyze the runtime characteristics of our Linux-based avionics software in flight to build confidence in its performance, with a focus on system reliability, maintainability, and optimization
- Develop and optimize kernel and userspace drivers for production and prototype sensors, and refine sensor data APIs for perception, navigation, and other autonomy software engineers
- Develop metrics, monitoring, and troubleshooting capabilities to prepare the system for field deployment at scale
- Design and build data collection and testing tools to support early-stage evaluation of new sensors, communications systems, and edge compute platforms
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Mid Level
Industry
Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services
Education Level
No Education Listed
Number of Employees
1,001-5,000 employees
