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Sr. Embedded Systems & Controls Software Engineer

Irvine, CA

Aerospace is at a turning point — costs are rising, supply chains are strained, and old ways of building can’t keep up. At Neon Aero, we’re breaking that mold. We move fast, think big, and combine start-up agility with aerospace expertise to design, build, and scale aircraft in ways the industry has never seen. Our team leverages automation, AI-driven tools, and a fully connected digital backbone to accelerate innovation and reduce barriers to production.

Here, you won’t just take a job — you’ll help reinvent how the world flies. If you’re ready to solve complex problems, push technology further, and work alongside some of the brightest minds in aerospace, this is your chance to make a real impact.

Neon Aero is building safety-critical aerospace systems that have to behave correctly every time—through power-up, normal operation, faults, and recovery. We’re looking for a Senior Embedded Systems & Controls Software Engineer with strong systems intuition and a love of clean, deterministic control logic.

This role lives at the intersection of embedded software, system-level control behavior, and hardware interfaces. You’ll own the supervisory control layers that coordinate actuators, motor drives, power, and vehicle-level systems—designing the state machines, sequencing, diagnostics, and comms that keep the whole system coherent and safe.

This is not a fast inner-loop motor-control role. It’s about system behavior, integration, and correctness.

Why This Role Matters:

This role defines how complex control systems behave as a whole. Your work ensures motors, actuators, power, and climate systems operate coherently, safely, and predictably under all conditions. You’ll have deep technical ownership, influence system architecture decisions, and help bring flight-ready control systems from concept to deployment. You will get to:

  • Own system-level control behavior: architect supervisory control across actuators, power sequencing, and operational modes; implement state machines, mode management, safe power-up/down, fault response, and degraded operations.
  • Build robust embedded real-time software: develop embedded C/C++ on safety-oriented MCUs (e.g., TI C2000, NXP); create scalable frameworks for control execution, diagnostics, monitoring, and communications; ensure deterministic behavior across BSP/middleware/application layers.
  • Define and maintain system interfaces: implement and document controller/subsystem/external interfaces; write and maintain ICDs for CAN (incl. safety profiles), ARINC 825, and related buses; ensure reliable data exchange, arbitration, and fault handling.
  • Drive model-based validation: use MATLAB/Simulink for system logic and sequencing; support MIL/SIL/HIL workflows; validate behavior with simulation and lab data across nominal, corner-case, and fault scenarios.
  • Lead integration and test: integrate across motor control, BMS, sensors, and vehicle control; support hardware bring-up and lab/HIL debugging; develop test strategies, automation hooks, and analysis workflows for repeatable verification.
  • Support safety-critical process and lifecycle: contribute to requirements, traceability, verification planning, and certification readiness (DO-178C, ARP4754/4761, or equivalent); maintain configuration control and long-term maintainability of software artifacts.

What you’ll Bring:

  • Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or related field; equivalent professional experience may be considered in lieu of a degree.
  • Minimum of 8 years building embedded control software for complex real-time systems.
  • Strong proficiency in embedded C/C++ and real-time software architecture.
  • Experience designing system-level control logic, state machines, and sequencing.
  • Hands-on experience with comms/protocols such as CAN, SPI, Ethernet, and/or ARINC.
  • Experience with MATLAB/Simulink and SIL/HIL validation.
  • Proven ability to integrate and debug across hardware/firmware/software boundaries.
  • Strong analytical and system-level problem-solving skills.
  • Nice to Haves:
    • Direct experience with aerospace safety frameworks (DO-178C, ARP4754/4761) and certification-oriented development.
    • Experience bringing up safety-oriented MCUs and building diagnostic/health-monitoring frameworks.
    • Comfort working end-to-end—from ICDs and requirements through lab validation.

Why Join Us:

  • Work alongside elite engineering talent and innovators from across aerospace and tech.
  • Be part of a team moving faster than the industry standard.
  • Shape solutions that are lower-cost, autonomous, and scalable — the future of aviation.
  • Competitive compensation, including equity participation, growth opportunities, and full heath benefits (health, vision, dental, 401K) designed to support you in and out of work.

This pay range is specific to the location where the role is posted. Final pay will depend on experience, skill level, and other job-related factors.

Location-Specific Pay Range

$150,000 - $175,000 USD

Neon Aero, Inc is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, veteran status, or any other protected status under applicable law.

We believe that diverse perspectives drive innovation, and we welcome candidates from all backgrounds to apply.

All final candidates must successfully complete a background check and drug screening as a condition of employment.

At this time, Neon Aero and its divisions are not accepting unsolicited resumes from third-party recruiters or staffing agencies.

 

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