Lead Field Engineer

Who we are

Helsing develops artificial intelligence-enabled capabilities to protect and defend democracies. We are growing our US operations, cultivating an ambitious and committed team of mission-driven professionals to apply their skills to solve challenging problems.

The role

A Lead Field Engineer owns operations. They design the test campaigns, coordinate the teams, manage external partners, and are accountable for the result. They understand not just the technical work but the commercial and program context it sits in - why this demo matters, what the customer needs to see, how this feeds into the product roadmap. They shape what gets done, not just how.

The day-to-day

• Test combined software and hardware products end -to -end in the lab and in the field, capturing data and providing structured feedback to Helsing's mechanical, electrical, software, and AI engineers to drive product improvement
• Prepare, transport, mobilize and demobilize equipment at test locations — including ports and offshore military test ranges and remote environments — and execute tests in real-world conditions at sea
• Install AI software onto edge computing devices using Helsing's in-house deployment tools, ensuring systems are correctly configured for field conditions
• Design, refine, and improve test plans and safety standard operating procedures, raising the bar for how Helsing conducts field operations. For example, this may include purchasing hardware, trialing new software tools for inventory management and QA, establishing new secure storage facilities, and preparing safety cases and submissions to aviation authorities.
• Define the resources required to maintain an effective and efficient field-testing operation — for example, procuring hardware, trialing new software tools for inventory management and QA, or establishing support vehicles/vessels and waterfront on-site storage
• Embed with and train end users, and ensure safety of all participants at field test events
• Advise on training course design and in-service support procedures, helping to shape how end users interact with Helsing's products
• Travel to testing locations across the US as well as UK, Germany and beyond as required
• Embed with and host Helsing UK and EU Field Engineers to establish company spanning best practices, procedures, and culture.
• Build and manage a team of field engineers to be the front lines of product deployment and critical connection from the end-users to product development

You should apply if you

• Have strong technical aptitude and can understand complex hardware and software products at a systems level — you are driven to understand how something works, or why it does not
• Have experience assembling, deploying, and troubleshooting robots, aircraft, watercraft, or other autonomous or electromechanical systems
• Are comfortable with software deployment and debugging tools including command-line interfaces, and creation and implementation of field fixes to mitigate hardware and electrical issues.
• Communicate clearly in writing and speech, producing concise documentation and explaining technical concepts effectively to both engineering and non-engineering audiences
• Have independently owned critical workstreams, identified problems and taken the initiative to resolve them without waiting for direction
• Are comfortable working at test sites for periods of up to two weeks
• Have a practical, hands-on approach to working with hardware, equipment and field environments
• Have managed teams of three or more, or executed complex tests as part of an independently functioning team with shared responsibility

Note: We encourage you to apply even if you don’t meet all the listed qualifications; ability and impact cannot be summarized in a few bullet points.

Nice to Have

• Experience testing software and/or hardware products at any stage of maturity, from prototype to production system
• Experience working at remote field sites in an operational or technical capacity
• Experience training end users on complex hardware and/or software products, or providing in-service support
• Experience building operations from scratch: new site, new test types, new team, and working in a rapid-pace startup environment
• Prior military experience, particularly weapons, CONOPs, or tactics training
• Experience working across team functions – Field Engineering, AI/Software, Hardware, Product - and not being limited by team boundaries.

Join Helsing and work with world-leading experts in their fields

• Helsing’s work is important. You’ll be directly contributing to the protection of democratic countries while balancing both ethical and geopolitical concerns

• The work is unique. We operate in a domain that has highly unusual technical requirements and constraints, and where robustness, safety, and ethical considerations are vital. You will face unique Engineering and AI challenges that make a meaningful impact in the world

• Our work frequently takes us right up to the state of the art in technical innovation, be it reinforcement learning, distributed systems, generative AI, or deployment infrastructure. The defense industry is entering the most exciting phase of the technological development curve. Advances in our field of world are not incremental: Helsing is part of, and often leading, historic leaps forward

• In our domain, success is a matter of order-of-magnitude improvements and novel capabilities. This means we take bets, aim high, and focus on big opportunities. Despite being a relatively young company, Helsing has already been selected for multiple significant government contracts

• We actively encourage healthy, proactive, and diverse debate internally about what we do and how we choose to do it. Teams and individual engineers are trusted (and encouraged) to practice responsible autonomy and critical thinking, and to focus on outcomes, not conformity. At Helsing you will have a say in how we (and you!) work, the opportunity to engage on what does and doesn’t work, and to take ownership of aspects of our culture that you care deeply about

What we offer

• A focus on outcomes, not time-tracking

• A generous compensation and benefits package (in addition to base salary) that includes, but may not be limited to, insurance coverage (medical and travel), flexible paid time off, paid holidays, and remote and/or hybrid work available depending on position. All compensation and benefits are subject to the terms and conditions of the underlying plans or programs, as applicable and as may be amended, terminated or superseded from time to time.

• Growth toward global roles in our Finance organization

The base salary offered to the successful candidate will be determined by a variety of factors including relevant experience, qualifications, education, skill level, interview performance, and the level and scope of the position.

Helsing is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We will consider all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran status, genetics, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. Please do not submit personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade union membership, data concerning your health, or data concerning your sexual orientation.

Helsing's Candidate Privacy and Confidentiality Regime can be found here.