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Software Engineer III (GNC + Simulation)

Playa Vista, California, United States

Turning Space into a Transportation Layer for Earth

Who We Are:

Eras of humanity can often be defined by a dominate transportation mode - horse drawn chariots, ocean going boats, or aircraft. These were spurred by a small group of people rigorously focused on building technology to achieve faster access to more of the world.  We seek to usher in a new era of humanity defined by universal access to the whole globe free of borders and the presence of a routine way from space to Earth. To do this, we are building highly maneuverable re-entry vehicles that can loiter in orbit before precision landing back on Earth. 

What You'll Do:

As a Software Engineer, GNC & Simulation at Inversion, you will have an instrumental impact on the functionality and performance of our next-generation reentry vehicles. You will own a key aspect of the flight software (FSW) implementation and verification processes. Your impact will be seen on a challenging portion of the FSW domain – integration and verification of Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GNC) components. The focus is on proposing and implementing innovative solutions to interface, integrate, and fully test these algorithms. The result of this essential work will be the demonstration of flight software applications: executing on the world’s first reentry vehicle designed for turning space into a transportation layer for Earth. You will be a key member of the Processing Core team, reporting directly to the Director of Engineering, Processing Core. 

Key Responsibilities:

This role is all-encompassing and includes the complete lifecycle of the vehicle’s software including: 

  • Develop, own and implement new approaches as well as establish processes to interface the evolving software applications with GNC blocks
  • Work closely with FSW, GNC and Simulation teams to integrate, debug, and prove functionality across the full operating mission envelope
  • Build portions of the simulation environment and implement tests, including HITL (hardware in the loop) and HOOTL/SITL (software in the loop), generate documentation and scripts for automated test execution and artifact collection
  • Assist with the growth and development of the software organization, including conducting interviews and mentoring/onboarding other engineers and interns 

Required Qualifications:

  • 6 years of applicable experience with a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science or related field
  • Experience working in a systems level language such as C++, or C
  • Efficient communication and collaboration skills
  • Demonstrated success by actualizing novel concepts in solving complex simulation scenarios
  • Knowledge of Agile principles including planning/backlog tools (e.g., JIRA)
  • “Test for success” mindset balanced with a focus on results under schedule constraints
  • An innovative and optimistic approach to your work in a dynamic and uncertain environment!
  • Our office headquarters is located in Playa Vista, CA, and this position requires you to work onsite

Desired Qualifications:

  • Familiarity with GNC development or vehicle kinematics
  • Physics or math emphasis from formal studies
  • Scripting and tooling skills: e.g., Python
  • Prior experience working in startups and small independent teams 

Our office headquarters is located in Playa Vista, CA. This position requires in office presence.

The California annual base salary for this role is currently $120,000-150,000.  Pay Grades are determined by role, level, location, and alignment with market data.  Individual pay will be determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on the following considerations: interviews and an assessment of several factors that are unique to each candidate, job-related skills, relevant education and experience, certifications, abilities of the candidate and internal equity. 

ITAR Compliance:
To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here.  
 
Equal Employment Opportunity:
Inversion provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, veteran status, or disability.  
 
Inversion collects and processes personal data in accordance with applicable data protection laws.  If you are a US Job Applicant see the CCPA Privacy Policy Notice for further details.

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