Chief Software Architect

Company DescriptioniMETALX, Inc. is building the future of space autonomy — enabling space systems to perceive, reason, and act reliably in dynamic environments. We provide Space Domain Awareness (SDA) and In-Space Servicing, Assembly and Manufacturing (ISAM) solutions to government and commercial customers, delivering autonomy software that brings real capability to operators: perception, navigation, decision-making, and control. Our mission is to become the best company in the world at spacecraft autonomy and computer vision, spanning missions from LEO to xGEO, and enabling sustainable, scalable operations across the space domain. Over the next 12–24 months, we will be building deployable mission software in environments where reliability, traceability, and security are imperative— without compromising innovation. Role OverviewWe are seeking a Chief Software Architect to serve as the technical lead and systems-level architect for our spacecraft autonomy stack. This role will define and own the end-to-end software architecture for autonomy capabilities supporting SDA and ISAM missions: Multi-sensor perception and world modeling Estimation and relative navigation support for ISAM/RPO missions Data pipelines (synthetic + real) Embedded deployment to ground station infrastructure, as well as flight/edge hardware Government-ready security posture and delivery workflows Operational reliability and safety engineering You will lead a team of engineers spanning Computer Vision, Full Stack, DevSecOps/Platform, Mod/Sim, and Embedded/Edge deployment, while working closely with company leadership, mission/operations teams, and hardware engineers. This is a role for someone who wants to architect autonomy that flies — not just publish papers or create prototypes that never leave the lab. What You’ll Own1) Architecture of the Autonomy Stack (Core Mission) Define and maintain the end-to-end architecture for a production-grade spacecraft autonomy stack, spanning: perception + sensor ingest (EO/IR, multi-camera, star trackers, etc.) calibration, time-sync, and sensor health monitoring world modeling / representation (relative state, scene understanding, object modeling) state estimation interfaces (relative navigation, uncertainty propagation) decision & autonomy interfaces (planning hooks, constraints, safety gating) fault detection, fallback modes, and confidence-driven behavior switching Build scalable, modular designs that transition cleanly from: R&D prototypes → validated algorithms → flight/edge-capable products → mission operations including clear separation between: offline training/evaluation pipelines on-orbit/edge inference pipelines mission operations tooling Establish rigorous interface contracts and architectural guardrails so autonomy capabilities remain: reliable testable upgradeable safe to deploy into mission environments (especially for ISAM / RPOD scenarios) 2) Autonomy Software Engineering Excellence Establish patterns for high-reliability autonomy software: modular architectures, clear interfaces, versioning deterministic execution where needed fault detection, fallback modes, and observability Implement rigorous engineering practices without slowing innovation. 3) Deployment Across Cloud + Edge / Embedded Hardware Drive design decisions across the entire compute surface area: cloud data pipelines and model training simulation environments and evaluation infrastructure embedded inference on real hardware (e.g., GPU edge devices / flight-relevant compute) Ensure production performance in real constraints: latency, memory, power, bandwidth, thermal constraints repeatability, robustness, recoverability 4) System Reliability, Safety, and Security Work with DevSecOps to ensure architecture supports: secure builds, controlled release pipelines Government security requirements, traceability, auditability secure deployment into customer/government environments CUI up to TS levels Design for safety in autonomy contexts: bounded behaviors explicit failure modes confidence estimation and gating 5) Technical Leadership + Team Development Lead and mentor a multidisciplinary autonomy software team (~10+ engineers in year 1, and multiple teams in year 2) Conduct design reviews, set coding standards, define architecture guardrails Help recruit top-tier engineers and develop internal technical leadership 6) Research Awareness → Practical Capability Stay current on the autonomy and perception research landscape: CV foundation models, pose estimation, multi-view geometry neural implicit representations, 3D reconstruction tracking/filtering methods, uncertainty quantification Translate research into deployable product capability: evaluate, prototype, validate, productize Responsibilities Own perception stack architecture across software layers and teams Drive end-to-end technical strategy, with clear tradeoffs and rationale Create architecture artifacts: system design documents, interface contracts, data schemas “golden path” workflows for training → evaluation → deployment Lead design reviews and ensure consistent implementation across teams Enable continuous improvement in performance, scalability, and reliability Partner with hardware teams to ensure: deployment feasibility sensor-to-model integration integrity testability and validation strategy Communicate architecture decisions clearly to: leadership program/customer stakeholders government partners Required Qualifications 10+ years of professional software engineering experience, with a strong emphasis on software architecture and design. Expert knowledge of computer vision and machine learning with hands-on experience developing production-grade systems. Demonstrated experience in developing systems for robotics or autonomous vehicles. Proficiency in Python and C++, with demonstrated ability to guide technical teams in software development processes. Experience with leading cross-functional teams in the development of complex systems. Familiarity with GPU-based programming (CUDA) or leading-edge methodologies in computer vision. Strong problem-solving skills and a thorough understanding of software performance optimization techniques. Ability and willingness to work on-site in Sausalito, CA. U.S. citizenship due to ITAR export-control restrictions; only U.S. citizens are eligible for this position. Preferred Qualifications Active U.S. Security Clearance Demonstrated experience in developing space systems. Hands-on experience with cloud-native architecture and integration processes. Strong network of industry contacts and thought leadership within the software development community. Strong network of highly capable engineers with interest on tackling the hardest problems in space. Competitive Salary Health Insurance/Dental Paid Time Off 401k Performance Bonus Equity