Chief Engineer - Robotic Systems

About the role

Harmattan AI builds autonomous and scalable defense systems and is expanding its teams after a $200M Series B. As Chief Engineer, you will own the architecture, system definition and implementation of one of the company's robotic systems, from concept to field deployment. You will work with project managers and technical leads to turn mission needs into system-level designs, coordinate multidisciplinary engineering teams and ensure overall system performance, robustness and reliability.

Key responsibilities

• Transform system requirements into architecture solutions.
• Lead cross-functional design across mechanical, electrical, software, GNC and ML teams.
• Conduct feasibility studies, trade-off analyses and system-level simulations to guide technical choices.
• Oversee system integration, prototyping and validation so performance targets are met.
• Drive design and architecture reviews to keep requirements, design and testing consistent.
• Implement processes that improve requirements traceability, system documentation and validation workflows.

Required profile

• 10+ years of experience in system engineering within robotics, aerospace or defense.
• MSc in Engineering; PhD is a plus.
• Proven experience leading full system lifecycles (concept to prototype to validation).
• Broad engineering culture covering mechanical, electrical and embedded systems.
• Experience coordinating multi-disciplinary teams and managing technical interfaces.
• Rigorous, structured and mission-driven mindset with strong analytical skills.
• Excellent communication and documentation abilities.
• Bonus: experience with UAS or defense systems.