Senior Machine Learning Engineer II (EO/IR Image Analysis)

Description

The company builds rockets, spacecraft and the subsystems they carry, including solar panels, flight software, star trackers, optical systems, separation systems and radios.

The Space Systems division has supported more than 1,700 missions, from interplanetary exploration and in-space manufacturing to national security and defense work, with partners such as NASA, the Space Development Agency and the U.S. Space Force.

The optical systems group builds space, ground and airborne sensing payloads for Department of Defense and Intelligence Community customers, drawing on more than 20 years of electro-optical and infrared work.

This role supports Tranche 3 of the Space Development Agency's Proliferated Warfighter Space Architecture and later programs by building deep learning networks for EO/IR image processing.

The team works under pressure and against tight deadlines.

Responsibilities

• Build computer vision algorithms and deep neural networks for image and video processing pipelines.
• Design, train and deploy machine learning models for optical systems.
• Use physics-based image simulation frameworks to expand training and validation data.
• Partner with researchers and engineers on AI, machine learning and computer vision work.
• Prototype quickly and refine designs so they can be integrated into operational systems.
• Troubleshoot, fix bugs in and maintain existing and new systems.
• Track new ML research and assess tools, frameworks and methods.

Requirements

• A bachelor's degree and 8+ years of experience, or a master's or Ph.D. in computer science, electrical or computer engineering, mechanical engineering, physics or a related field.
• Solid grounding in ML fundamentals, including choosing, designing, training, validating, testing and deploying models.
• Experience building deep learning networks such as CNNs for computer vision, image processing or analysis tasks like object detection, segmentation and tracking.
• Strong mathematics, particularly linear algebra and optimization theory.
• Proficiency in Python and in deep learning libraries such as Keras, TensorFlow and PyTorch.
• Working knowledge of software engineering basics: version control, testing, CI/CD and containerization.
• Proficiency in C, C++ or Rust.
• Experience curating high-quality, real-world datasets for training deep learning models.
• TS/SCI security clearance.

Conditions

Based in Long Beach, CA.

U.S. citizenship is required because of program requirements.

You must be able to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government security clearance.

The role may involve long periods of sitting, standing, walking and computer work, plus occasional exposure to moderate noise, dust and fumes in production areas.

Base salary is $153,000 - $204,000 USD; total compensation including base and equity is $130,000 - $229,100 USD.

Pay is set case by case based on level and factors such as job-related knowledge and skills, education and experience; the range is shown to meet Virginia pay transparency rules.

For U.S. offices, ITAR rules require you to be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, refugee or asylum holder, or eligible for authorization from the U.S. Department of State or Commerce.

For New Zealand offices, background checks including nationality checks happen before any offer. Under ITAR you may be ineligible unless you hold citizenship of Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland, the European Union or a NATO member, and ineligible dual citizenship or nationality may also rule you out.

Benefits

• Company stock as part of total compensation; the anticipated annual equity grant depends on function, level, experience and other factors, and realized value depends on vesting and stock price.
• Employee Stock Purchase Program with a 15% discount on company stock.
• Medical, dental and vision coverage, plus flexible spending and dependent care accounts.
• Paid vacation, paid sick time and 11 paid holidays.
• Paid parental leave.
• Disability and life insurance.
• 401(k) retirement plan with company match.
• Other discounts and perks.