Embedded Software Engineer

About Airbound

Our mission is to make a world where everyone has access to delivery. Where goods move as freely as information moves today.

This is possible. Today the cost of moving on a scooter is ₹2/km. That’s the cost of moving a 150kg mass from point A to B. We’re bringing that mass down to less than 5kgs, concurrently bringing the cost down to 10 paise/km. This is how we make deliveries a reality. This is how we create a world where we’re doing billions of deliveries per day.

The tech is not there. The current cost of drone delivery is ₹100/km. We need to completely redefine the way things are done here. We’re building the world’s most efficient aircraft from the ground-up, and scaling that up to beyond anything the aerospace sector has ever seen. This cannot be an iterative process. We have to tear down all conventions and build everything up from scratch.

To do this, we need nothing less than the best engineers. The ones who care about building something fundamentally different, who are deeply curious about understanding the fundamentals of everything they’re working on, who are dreamers that believe in the impossible.

About Flight Systems

The hardware on the drone is only half of what keeps it up in the air. The rest is the software both on the craft and on our ground station. Our unique dual motor thrust vectored tailsitter with blended wing body design has to fly in almost all weather-including heavy winds and light rains autonomously. We’re targeting 1000s of flights per day across all locations, requiring us to rethink everything from firmware, controls, state estimation to even ground control and fleet management software. We’ve achieved an industry-leading payload-to-weight ratio of ~2kg drone for 1kg payload and we’re pushing this even further. Every gram matters when you’re revolutionizing logistics. This is where cutting-edge aerospace engineering meets software scalability meets real-world impact. If you get excited about solving problems that span multiple disciplines that don’t have textbook solutions, this is your playground.

About the Role

In this critical, hands-on engineering role, you will develop the embedded software that keeps our revolutionary aircraft flying safely and efficiently. You will build flight-critical systems, optimize real-time performance of our state estimation and control loops, and integrate cutting-edge sensors into our dual-motor thrust-vectored tailsitter platform.

Key Responsibilities

• Flight-Critical Firmware Development: Design and implement core embedded systems that control our unique blended wing body aircraft through complex autonomous flight operations

• Real-Time Control Systems: Develop high-frequency control loops and sensor fusion algorithms under strict timing constraints. Implement advanced flight control logic and state estimation systems that respond to changing flight conditions in milliseconds

• Hardware Integration & Optimization: Build low-level drivers for custom avionics hardware including IMUs, GPS modules, cameras, and motor controllers. Optimize code for memory and power efficiency

• Autonomous Navigation Systems: Support development of computer vision pipelines for precision landing, path planning algorithms, and obstacle avoidance systems for fully autonomous flight operations

• Communication & Telemetry: Develop robust communication protocols for ground station connectivity, fleet coordination, and real-time telemetry streaming. Ensure reliable data transmission in challenging RF environments with failsafe mechanisms

Qualifications

Must-Have

• 3-4 years or equivalent expertise in embedded/firmware engineering, with proven experience preferably in the drone/robotics industry or on similar complex real-time systems

• Core Programming Skills: Expert-level proficiency in embedded C and modern C++ 14/17+ for embedded systems, with strong knowledge of Python 3.8+ for computer vision, scripting and data analysis

• Embedded Systems Expertise:

  • Low-level MCU firmware with hardware interfaces, device drivers, and system programming for I2C/SPI/GPIO/UART/CAN based peripherals in bare-metal and RTOS setups

  • Proficiency with Embedded Linux systems in user-space and/or kernel-space modules, with exposure to multithreading and multiprocessing

  • Knowledge of computer vision libraries (OpenCV) and camera integration

• Flight Control Systems:

  • Hands-on experience with autopilot frameworks like ArduPilot/PX4 and ground control software (Mission Planner, QGroundControl, MAVProxy)

  • Strong understanding of control theory including PID controllers, and real-time feedback systems

  • Experience with SITL/HITL testing and flight simulation environments

• Software Engineering Fundamentals:

  • Strong test-driven development and profiling expertise for safety-critical systems

  • Mastery of Git workflows and collaborative development practices

  • Application of SOLID principles and embedded software best practices

  • Excellent documentation and communication skills for cross-functional collaboration

Good to Have

• Experience with state estimation techniques (Kalman filters, least squares) and advanced control algorithms like model predictive control, disturbance rejection control

• Experience with high-speed communication protocols: MIPI-CSI/DSI, USB cameras with v4l2 stack, Ethernet, SerDes

• Experience with ROS2/Zenoh for distributed robotics systems and inter-process communication

Work location: Hoskote, Bangalore (Headquarters)

#LI-AR1

What We Offer

• Comprehensive health insurance to keep you and your loved ones covered

• Relocation assistance and a daily travel stipend to ease your commute

• Advanced salary credit to support you when you need it

“A driven, passionate team where you’ll have room to grow and thrive - this is more than just a job, it’s a rare opportunity to build something meaningful from the ground up”

Work Schedule:

• In-office role, working alternate Saturdays.

Ready to take off?

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