{"id":3206734,"url":"https://alion.io/job/pillar-space-systems-founding-lead-gnc-engineer","title":"Founding Lead GNC Engineer","company":{"id":4398852,"name":"Pillar Space Systems","domain":"pillarspace.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/pillar-space-systems","size_band":null,"is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Ashby","truth_index":{"grade":"B","score":75,"open_postings":4,"ghost_share":0,"stale_share":1,"repost_share":0,"time_to_fill_p50_days":null,"computed_at":"2026-11-04T06:34:25Z"}},"role":"Hardware","role_family":"Hardware","seniority":"lead","employment_type":"full_time","work_mode":"hybrid","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Los Angeles, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":{"min":185000,"max":275000,"currency":"USD","period":"year","gross":null,"usd_annual":275000},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":8,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"C++","optional":false},{"name":"GMAT","optional":false},{"name":"MATLAB","optional":false},{"name":"Python","optional":false},{"name":"Reinforcement Learning","optional":false},{"name":"Reinforcement Learning","optional":false},{"name":"Rust","optional":false},{"name":"Sensor Fusion","optional":false},{"name":"Simulink","optional":false},{"name":"SLI/SLO/SLA","optional":false},{"name":"STK","optional":false},{"name":"Verification & Validation","optional":false}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-06-18T02:17:55Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-06-18","last_verified_at":"2026-11-04T11:28:37Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":139,"trust":{"level":"stale","repost_count":0,"flags":["stale"],"days_open":139},"description":"Founding Lead GNC Engineer\nEquity: 0.3% - 1% depending on experience\nAbout Us\nWe're a stealth team building space hardware at the edge of what's currently possible - high-stakes, flight-grade systems where the engineering bar is unforgiving and the upside is enormous. While we can't share full details yet, our founding and early engineering team includes talent from SpaceX, Northrop Grumman, and Impulse Space, the group includes people who've pulled off feats almost no one else on Earth has.\nRole Overview\nWe are seeking a Lead Founding GNC Engineer to own guidance, navigation, and control from first principles for autonomous spacecraft, across rendezvous, proximity operations, and related autonomous flight operations.\nThis is a senior technical leadership role. You will not only define and execute the GNC architecture, but also help build the engineering team, set technical standards, mentor engineers, and establish the systems, processes, and culture required to develop flight-grade autonomous spacecraft.\nThis is not a narrow algorithm role. You will help define the full GNC system: trajectories, sensors, actuators, flight software, testbeds, simulations, hardware-in-the-loop infrastructure, fault handling, and flight operations. You will make system-level trades across software, hardware, sensors, autonomy, avionics, propulsion, and mission design.\nThe ideal candidate has direct experience with spacecraft GNC, autonomous rendezvous and proximity operations, trajectory design, sensor fusion, hardware testing, and technical team leadership. We recognize that very few people have all of this. What matters most is that you have exceptional fundamentals, have led real systems from concept toward flight, have managed or mentored engineers in high-performance technical environments, and can operate independently in ambiguity while making sound engineering tradeoffs. You will have direct ownership over one of the company's core technical challenges.\nKey Responsibilities\nOwn the GNC architecture for autonomous rendezvous, proximity operations, and related mission phases, from early design through simulation, testing, integration, and flight.\n\nLead the development of guidance, navigation, and control algorithms for approach, stationkeeping, proximity maneuvers, aborts, collision avoidance, and other safety-critical maneuvers.\n\nDesign and analyze trajectories for orbital operations and other relevant flight regimes, including mission trades, dispersions, constraints, and operational margins.\n\nProvide technical leadership across GNC, autonomy, simulation, test, and flight software efforts.\n\nHelp hire, manage, mentor, and develop GNC, controls, autonomy, simulation, and related engineers as the team grows.\n\nEstablish engineering processes, review standards, technical decision-making norms, and verification discipline appropriate for flight-grade systems.\n\nBuild relative navigation and state-estimation systems using sensors such as vision, LiDAR, radar, IMUs, GNSS, star trackers, and other flight-relevant hardware.\n\nDevelop high-fidelity simulation, Monte Carlo, hardware-in-the-loop, and processor-in-the-loop test environments to validate GNC performance and robustness.\n\nHelp define requirements, interfaces, error budgets, verification plans, and fault-handling approaches for the GNC subsystem and broader vehicle.\n\nSelect, integrate, and test GNC-relevant hardware, including sensors, actuators, processors, and representative test equipment, working with vendors and internal teams as needed.\n\nDevelop and test flight GNC software in close collaboration with flight software, avionics, autonomy, propulsion, mechanical, and mission operations teams.\n\nContribute to system-level trades across algorithms, sensors, hardware, software, schedule, cost, reliability, and mission risk.\n\nWork closely with the founders and early engineering team to shape the technical roadmap, engineering culture, hiring plan, and long-term GNC strategy.\n\nRepresent the GNC function in cross-disciplinary design reviews, customer conversations, investor diligence, vendor discussions, and mission planning as needed.\n\nBasic Qualifications\nBachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Robotics, Controls, Computer Science, or a related technical discipline.\n\n8+ years of experience designing, simulating, implementing, testing, or flight-qualifying GNC algorithms for spacecraft, launch vehicles, hypersonic/reentry systems, autonomous aircraft, robotics, or other high-reliability autonomous systems.\n\nPrior experience leading technical workstreams, managing engineers, mentoring junior and mid-level engineers, or building high-performing engineering teams.\n\nDemonstrated ability to own complex technical systems from early architecture through implementation, test, validation, and operational readiness.\n\nStrong fundamentals in orbital mechanics, control theory, estimation, dynamics, linear algebra, numerical methods, and sensor fusion.\n\nExperience with GNC simulation, including 6-DOF dynamics, closed-loop simulation, Monte Carlo analysis, dispersions, and off-nominal testing.\n\nProficiency in MATLAB/Simulink and at least one production language such as C, C++, Python, or Rust.\n\nExperience taking algorithms beyond analysis and into real implementation, hardware testing, flight software, embedded systems, hardware-in-the-loop, processor-in-the-loop, or representative testbeds.\n\nAbility to work independently with limited direction, identify the right next problem to solve, and drive technical work from ambiguity to tested hardware or software.\n\nAbility to make practical system-level tradeoffs across performance, schedule, cost, reliability, testability, and mission risk.\n\nAbility to lead through influence in a cross-functional environment spanning flight software, avionics, autonomy, propulsion, mechanical, systems, and mission operations.\n\nHighly Valuable Experience\nWe do not expect every candidate to have all of the following. The strongest candidates will likely have depth in some areas and the ability to quickly learn the others.\nDirect experience with spacecraft rendezvous, proximity operations, or autonomous capture.\n\nExperience leading GNC, autonomy, controls, simulation, flight software, or mission design teams.\n\nExperience managing engineers in a startup, aerospace company, defense contractor, launch company, robotics company, or other high-reliability technical environment.\n\nExperience setting technical direction, conducting design reviews, making architecture decisions, and holding teams accountable to execution milestones.\n\nExperience with advanced flight regimes such as atmospheric reentry, entry/descent guidance, hypersonic flight, aerodynamics, or aerothermal constraints.\n\nExperience defining trajectories for proximity operations, inspection, servicing, stationkeeping, or other constrained autonomous spaceflight operations.\n\nExperience with optical navigation, LiDAR navigation, radar navigation, or multi-sensor relative navigation against cooperative or non-cooperative targets.\n\nExperience integrating radar into an autonomy or GNC sensing chain, including measurement modeling, tracking, calibration, filtering, and failure modes.\n\nExperience with AI for GNC, AI-assisted autonomy, learned perception, learned dynamics models, reinforcement learning for control, AI-based sensor processing, onboard autonomy, or AI-enabled fault detection.\n\nExperience selecting, purchasing, integrating, and testing GNC hardware, including sensors, actuators, processors, cameras, LiDAR, radar, IMUs, GNSS, star trackers, reaction wheels, or propulsion components.\n\nExperience working with vendors, evaluating datasheets, performing make-buy decisions, navigating supply chain issues, and qualifying hardware for flight or other high-reliability environments.\n\nExperience designing test infrastructure for hardware developed internally, including calibration rigs, dynamics testbeds, flat-sats, air-bearing tables, sensor test setups, HIL/PIL rigs, and integrated avionics test campaigns.\n\nExperience with formal requirements, V&V, flight qualification, mission assurance, fault trees, hazard analysis, or safety-critical software.\n\nExperience with STK, GMAT, Basilisk, Trick, Monte, FreeFlyer, custom mission analysis tools, or comparable simulation and trajectory design environments.\n\nExperience transitioning GNC from prototype through flight operations, anomaly response, post-flight reconstruction, and design iteration.\n\nExperience in early-stage startups, small high-performing teams, or environments where engineers must own broad technical scope.\n\nExperience recruiting, interviewing, closing, and onboarding exceptional technical talent.\n\nWho You Are\nYou are an exceptional GNC engineer with strong fundamentals and the ability to reason from first principles.\n\nYou are a technical leader who raises the bar for the people around you.\n\nYou have managed, mentored, or led engineers before and know how to create clarity, accountability, and momentum in ambiguous environments.\n\nYou are comfortable owning large, ambiguous, mission-critical problems without waiting for detailed direction.\n\nYou can move fluidly between analysis, simulation, software, hardware, testing, team leadership, and system-level tradeoffs.\n\nYou are not just interested in writing algorithms; you want to see them work on real hardware, in real environments, under real constraints.\n\nYou are excited by rendezvous, proximity operations, autonomy, and the challenge of building flight systems that must work the first time.\n\nYou are willing to learn unfamiliar domains quickly and deeply, whether that means radar, advanced flight dynamics, AI-enabled autonomy, supply chain, hardware qualification, or flight operations.\n\nYou have strong opinions loosely held. You can defend a technical position, accept feedback, change course when the system demands it, and make appropriate tradeoffs in support of the mission.\n\nYou are collaborative, low-ego, and rigorous.\n\nYou want founding-level ownership and are motivated by building a company, not just completing assigned tasks.\n\nYou are excited to help build not only the product, but also the engineering organization behind it.\n\nBenefits\nHealth Insurance - We cover the full base premium for Blue Shield's Bronze plan. If you would like more coverage, you can upgrade to the Gold plan and cover the difference in premium. You are also welcome to add dependents and a spouse to your plan.\n\nDental & Vision - We cover the base premiums for both dental and vision through Guardian. Coverage for dependents and a spouse is available as well.\n\n401(k) - We offer a 401(k) with a 4% company match.\n\nEquity - You will receive meaningful equity in the company, so you share in what we build together.\n\nPTO & Sick Time - We offer unlimited PTO and sick time, and we trust you to take the time you need to rest and recharge.\n\nWhy Join Us?\nBuild ambitious, world-first space hardware alongside an exceptional technical team.\n\nOwn core GNC architecture for autonomous spacecraft and proximity operations.\n\nBuild and lead one of the most important technical functions at the company.\n\nWork on systems where algorithms, hardware, autonomy, and operations all have to come together.\n\nDefine the product, culture, technical standards, and trajectory of a breakthrough company from the beginning.\n\nTake on significant technical and organizational challenges and create outsized impact.\n\nITAR / Citizenship Requirements\nTo conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a: (i) U.S. citizen or national; (ii) U.S. lawful permanent resident, also known as a green card holder; (iii) refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157; (iv) asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158; or be eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.","description_format":"text","description_chars":11884,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":8,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":{"level":"bachelor","optional":false},"security_clearance":true,"languages":[]},"benefits":["Equity","Health insurance","Unlimited PTO"],"hiring_locations":[{"name":"United States","iso":"US","kind":"country"}],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Commercial Aviation"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-10-24T13:26:12Z"}],"visa":[],"liveness":{"score":9,"band":"cold","label":"Long shot","p_open":1,"p_active":0.333,"p_room":0.28,"age_days":139,"expected_fill_days":28,"reasons":["conf:4","velocity","win:tail","crowd:"],"computed_at":"2026-11-04T06:34:25Z"},"pay":{"stated_usd_annual":275000,"is_top_pay":true},"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/pillar-space-systems-founding-lead-gnc-engineer","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/pillar-space-systems-founding-lead-gnc-engineer.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-11-04T13:42:23Z","cache_seconds":300,"methodology":"https://alion.io/methodology","terms":"https://alion.io/terms","contact":"https://alion.io/contact","api":"https://alion.io/developers","about":"Alion is a live layer of people, companies and AI agents: who they are, whether they are real and active right now, what they do and how to work with them, readable by people and by agents and paid per call.","catalog":"https://alion.io/catalog.json","usage":{"tier":"crawler_verified","counted_by":"address","units_charged":1,"used_today":20693,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-11-05T00:00:00Z"}},"offers":[{"id":"company.slices","title":"One company in depth, by slice","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002,"plus_per_slice":{"credits":0.05,"usd":0.005}},"unit":"per company, plus each slice with data","note":"the employer in depth","call":{"mcp_tool":"get_company","arguments":{"id":4398852},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=4398852"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Fpillar-space-systems-founding-lead-gnc-engineer"},{"id":"market.stats","title":"A market slice: pay, demand and time to fill","status":"live","price":{"credits":1,"usd":0.1},"unit":"per slice","note":"pay, demand and time to fill for this role and place","call":{"mcp_tool":"market_stats"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=market.stats&for=job%2Fpillar-space-systems-founding-lead-gnc-engineer"},{"id":"job.search","title":"Open jobs by role, technology, place, pay and visa","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002},"unit":"per posting in a list","note":"similar open postings","call":{"mcp_tool":"search_jobs"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=job.search&for=job%2Fpillar-space-systems-founding-lead-gnc-engineer"},{"id":"company.verify","title":"Is this company real and active right now","status":"pilot","price":null,"unit":"per company","request":{"url":"https://alion.io/catalog/request","method":"POST","body":"{\"offer\": \"company.verify\", \"for\": \"job/pillar-space-systems-founding-lead-gnc-engineer\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Fpillar-space-systems-founding-lead-gnc-engineer"}],"agent":{"mcp":"https://alion.io/mcp/jobs","mcp_open":"https://alion.io/mcp/open","next":[{"tool":"get_job","arguments":{"id":3206734}},{"tool":"search_jobs","arguments":{"company":"pillarspace.com","detail":"compact"}},{"tool":"match_people","arguments":{"job_id":3206734},"note":"people open to offers who fit this vacancy"}],"note":"The same data through MCP tools: https://alion.io/mcp/open needs no sign-in (compact searches, postings, people); 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