
STARK · Munich
ABOUT US STARK is a new kind of defence technology company revolutionizing the way autonomous systems are deployed across multiple domains. We design, develop ...
STARK is a new kind of defence technology company revolutionizing the way autonomous systems are deployed across multiple domains.
We design, develop and manufacture high-performance unmanned systems that are software-defined, mass-scalable, and cost-effective.
This provides our operators with a decisive edge in highly contested environments.
We're focused on delivering deployable, high-performance systems - not future promises. In a time of rising threats, STARK is
bolstering the technological edge of NATO Allies and their Partners to deter aggression and defend Europe - today.
Minerva is STARK's command and control software — the brain that connects operators to autonomous systems across multiple domains
in real time. The Minerva team is a small, senior software group based in Berlin and Munich, working directly with our systems and
hardware teams to build mission-critical C2 capabilities deployed in active operational environments.
We move fast, ship real software, and operate under constraints most engineers never encounter — low-bandwidth networks,
air-gapped devices, high-stakes decision loops. There is no room for abstraction for its own sake. Everything we build ends up in
the hands of real operators in the field.
As a Senior Software Engineer, Mission Autonomy , build the intelligence behind real UAV swarming - the algorithms that decide
which vehicle attacks which target, how the swarm re-organises when conditions change mid-mission, and how 4+ loitering munitions
coordinate autonomously to overwhelm adversary defences.
You will design and implement the swarm decision-making layer at the heart of Minerva Frontline, our Mission Management Software.
This means building the optimisation and planning algorithms that sit above our existing mission planning engine, turning a set of
operator-level objectives and battlefield conditions into coordinated, multi-vehicle strike missions—then dynamically re-planning
them when the battlefield shifts.
This is Genesis-stage work. There is no off-the-shelf library for what we're building. You will work shoulder-to-shoulder with our
Software Architect and our backend team to take swarm coordination from concept to live flight demonstration. If you want to solve
hard multi-agent problems that have real consequences in the physical world, this is the role.
constraint satisfaction) that optimally assign multiple vehicles to multiple targets in high-threat environments.
threats appear, targets move, or a drone is jammed, your software will re-evaluate the entire battlefield and push new
coordinates instantly.
layer will decompose abstract operator objectives into specific vehicle assignments.
vehicles. Once validated in simulation, you will step out into the field to deploy your code onto live aircraft.
efficiency, and deterministic reliability are non-negotiable. You must be comfortable owning and scaling this codebase.
distributed coordination algorithms out of theory and shipping them into production or rugged field environments.
a research paper on CBBA (Consensus-Based Bundle Algorithm), you can map out a working C++ prototype by the end of the week.
services, telemetry feeds, state management, and the operator's user interface.
mathematically, build the solution, and travel to live flight trials to watch your code execute in the real world.
ABOUT US Über STARK STARK ist ein neuartiges Defence-Tech-Unternehmen, das die Art und Weise revolutioniert, wie autonome Systeme in unterschiedlichen Einsatzdomänen eingesetzt werden. Wir entwickeln, konstruieren und produzieren hochleistungsfähige unbemannte Systeme, die softwaredefiniert, skalierbar in der Massenproduktion und kosteneffizient sind. Dadurch verschaffen wir unseren Anwendern einen entscheidenden Vorteil in hochumkämpften Einsatzumgebungen. Unser Fokus liegt auf einsatzbereiten Hochleistungssystemen – nicht auf Zukunftsversprechen. In einer Zeit zunehmender Bedrohungen stärkt STARK den technologischen Vorsprung der NATO-Verbündeten und ihrer Partner, um Aggressionen abzuschrecken und Europa schon heute zu verteidigen. Über das Team Minerva ist die Command-and-Control-Software (C2) von STARK – das „Gehirn“, das Operatoren in Echtzeit mit autonomen Systemen über verschiedene Domänen hinweg verbindet. Das Minerva-Team ist eine kleine, hochqualifizierte Gruppe erfahrener Softwareentwickler mit Standorten in Berlin und München. Es arbeitet eng mit den Hardware- und Systemteams zusammen, um missionskritische C2-Fähigkeiten zu entwickeln, die in realen operativen Umgebungen eingesetzt werden. Wir arbeiten schnell, liefern echte Software aus und bewegen uns in Rahmenbedingungen, die die meisten Softwareingenieure nie erleben: Netzwerke mit geringer Bandbreite, isolierte (air-gapped) Systeme und hochkritische Entscheidungsprozesse. Bei uns gibt es keine technische Spielerei ohne praktischen Nutzen. Alles, was wir entwickeln, landet direkt in den Händen von Anwendern im Einsatz. Deine Mission ABOUT THE TEAM Wir suchen einen Senior Software Engineer (all genders), der das technische Gesicht von Minerva Frontline gegenüber unseren internen Hardware-Teams, Pilotkunden und Programmpartnern ist. Du bringst Frontline in neue interne und kundenseitige Projekte, verantwortest die technische Integration und gewinnst Vertrauen durch technische Exzellenz – nicht durch Projektmanagement. Wir sind als Team füreinander da! YOUR MISSION Du arbeitest an der Schnittstelle zwischen Software, Hardware und operativer Realität: Du setzt das C++-Backend auf, das UAV-Schwärme orchestriert, integrierst neue Plattformen in laufende Systeme und stellst sicher, dass die Führungs- und Kontrollprozesse auch in isolierten, bandbreitenlimitierten taktischen Umgebungen reibungslos funktionieren. Wenn im Feld etwas ausfällt, bist du vor Ort und behebst das Problem – unter Zeitdruck und mit dem Kunden direkt an deiner Seite. RESPONSIBILITIES Integration und Deployment * Installation, Konfiguration und Inbetriebnahme von Minerva Frontline in Kundenumgebungen. * Arbeit mit Edge-Hardware, eingeschränkten Netzwerken und taktischer Infrastruktur. * Integration neuer UAV-Plattformen und Funktionen in die Frontline-Plattform. Analyse und Fehlerbehebung * Technische Ansprechperson vor Ort für komplexe Systemprobleme. * Analyse und Behebung von Problemen wie: * Ausfällen oder Verschlechterungen der Schwarm-Telemetrie * gRPC-Konnektivitätsproblemen * Fehlern bei der Übersetzung von MAVLink-Kommandos in reale Drohnenaktionen * Fehlerdiagnose und Problemlösung in Echtzeit. Schnittstelle zwischen Kunde und Entwicklung * Übersetzung von Feedback von Operatoren, Piloten und Kunden in konkrete technische Anforderungen. * Enge Zusammenarbeit mit den Engineering-Teams zur Umsetzung von Verbesserungen, Fehlerbehebungen und Plattformintegrationen. Validierung im Einsatz * Teilnahme an Flugtests und Erprobungskampagnen. * Sicherstellung, dass Softwarebefehle zuverlässig und präzise in physische Drohnenaktionen umgesetzt werden – auch unter realen Einsatzbedingungen. Entwicklung von Tools * Entwicklung eigener Werkzeuge, wenn Standardlösungen nicht ausreichen: * Skripte * Diagnose-Tools * Integrations- und Testumgebungen * Ziel ist es, Deployments reproduzierbar, effizient und robust zu gestalten. Arbeit auf dem Feld * Direkte Zusammenarbeit mit Hardware-Ingenieuren, Drohnenplattformen und Testequipment. * Regelmäßige Einsätze bei Kunden und auf Testgeländen gehören fest zum Aufgabenbereich. QUALIFICATIONS * Bachelor- oder Masterabschluss in Informatik, Robotik, Systems Engineering oder vergleichbare praktische Erfahrung. * Sehr gute Kenntnisse in modernem C++ (C++17/20/23). * Sicher im Lesen, Debuggen und Anpassen produktiver C++-Codebasen. * Erfahrung im Aufbau und Betrieb komplexer verteilter Systeme. * Praktische Kenntnisse in: * Echtzeitfähigen verteilten Systemen * gRPC * Flatbuffers * WebSockets * MAVLink / MAVSDK * Nachweisbare Erfahrung bei der Einführung und dem Betrieb von Softwarelösungen bei externen Kunden. * Erfahrung in der Zusammenarbeit mit Hardware-Teams während Flugtests und Plattformintegrationen. * Bereitschaft zu regelmäßigen Reisen innerhalb Deutschlands (bis zu 40 %). * Aufgrund der Art unserer Arbeit müssen Kandidatinnen und Kandidaten die Voraussetzungen für eine entsprechende Sicherheitsüberprüfung erfüllen. Interessiert? Wenn du gemeinsam mit uns die Zukunft der europäischen Verteidigung gestalten möchtest und dich in dieser Beschreibung wiederfindest, freuen wir uns auf deinen Lebenslauf in englischer Sprache. Wir freuen uns darauf, dich kennenzulernen! Deine Ansprechpartnerin ist Sally Grütte-Pad, Interim Lead TA via talent@stark-defence.com
ABOUT US STARK is a new kind of defence technology company revolutionizing the way autonomous systems are deployed across multiple domains. We design, develop and manufacture high-performance unmanned systems that are software-defined, mass-scalable, and cost-effective. This provides our operators with a decisive edge in highly contested environments. We're focused on delivering deployable, high-performance systems — not future promises. In a time of rising threats, STARK is bolstering the technological edge of NATO Allies and their Partners to deter aggression and defend Europe — today. ABOUT THE TEAM The Data Operations team owns the entire data lifecycle behind STARK's AI stack: collection, acquisition, generation, curation, and management. We run our own data-collection campaigns across Europe, evaluate new sensors and platforms, and build the internal data platform that turns raw recordings into ready-to-use datasets. Everything we produce feeds directly into the perception and autonomy systems deployed on STARK's platforms — a real data advantage is built, not bought. The team is scaling up right now: real scope, direct impact, no legacy. YOUR MISSION Data is the fuel of STARK’s AI stack — you build the engine that makes it usable. You own the software backbone of our data platform: the metadata systems, ETL pipelines, data contracts, catalogs, databases, and internal tools that let engineers find, understand, validate, and reuse terabytes of multi-sensor field data in minutes, not days. You treat data context as a product: structured, searchable, version-aware, documented, and traceable from raw recording to processed asset, annotation delivery, dataset, and downstream ML workflow. Today, much of this is manual, scattered, or implicit — your job is to automate it away, support labeling efforts with the right data tooling, and turn operational data into reliable systems. RESPONSIBILITIES * Design, implement, and maintain our metadata database and data catalog (datasets, recordings, sensors, labels, lineage) * Build and operate ETL/ingest pipelines that bring field recordings, synthetic data, and external deliveries into our cloud storage (GCP) * Own the data management and labeling lifecycle end-to-end: coordinate and communicate with external labeling companies and data subcontractors, track deliveries, run QA reports, and build the operational workflows they work in * Develop internal enabling tools for the whole AI organization: dataset search and filtering, APIs/backend, dashboards, and self-service data access * Run data migrations and indexing jobs; keep the catalog consistent and fast as data volume grows * Handle admin support and user access management — and then automate these support tasks so they stop being manual work * Establish good engineering hygiene in a young codebase: tests, typing, docs, logging, CI/CD * Shape the long-term architecture and vision of the data platform together with the team QUALIFICATIONS * Strong Python * Solid SQL/PostgreSQL, including schema design * Experience with data modeling and metadata systems * Experience designing and operating ETL/data pipelines * Docker and CI/CD basics * Hands-on with object storage (GCS, S3, or similar) * Good software engineering hygiene: tests, docs, typing, logging * Organized and pragmatic: you can prioritize between a quick fix and a proper solution, and you know when each is right * Not allergic to support tasks — but technical enough to automate the support away * Comfortable coordinating with external vendors and non-technical stakeholders NICE TO HAVE * Familiarity with ML datasets and labeling workflows (images, video, lidar; annotation formats like COCO) * Experience with synthetic data generation or GenAI-assisted data workflows (auto-labeling, data augmentation, foundation-model-based curation) * Experience with GCP services beyond storage (BigQuery, Cloud Run, IAM) * Experience with data versioning / dataset tooling (DVC, LakeFS, FiftyOne, or similar) * Experience in a startup environment — comfortable with ambiguity and changing priorities * Exposure to robotics data formats (ROS bags, MCAP, PX4 logs)
ABOUT US STARK is a new kind of defence technology company revolutionising the way autonomous systems are deployed across multiple domains. We design, develop, and manufacture high-performance unmanned systems that are software-defined, mass-scalable, and cost-effective — providing operators with a decisive edge in contested environments. We are focused on delivering deployable, high-performance systems — not future promises. In a time of rising threats, STARK is bolstering the technological edge of NATO Allies and their Partners to deter aggression and defend Europe, today. ABOUT THE TEAM You will join a growing, highly collaborative test engineering team focused on pushing our loitering munition platforms to their absolute limits. You will work directly alongside veteran flight test, propulsion, and senior RF engineers, while benefiting from dedicated project management support. Our team culture is fast-paced and deeply hands-on; we value engineering autonomy and the ability to troubleshoot complex systems on the fly. We are actively expanding our capabilities, moving from localized pre-compliance testing to establishing a fully equipped, world-class internal ground testing workshop. YOUR MISSION As a Senior Ground Test Engineer, you will be a driving force behind expanding STARK’s physical testing capabilities and building up our internal workshop infrastructure. While initially supporting our critical E3 (EMI/EMC) campaign alongside our senior RF specialists, your broader mission will be to establish and execute ground testing pipelines for environmental chambers, vibration, shock, and systems integration. Operating with high autonomy, you will procure the necessary equipment and coordinate with external test partners to ensure our systems reliably meet strict military qualification standards. RESPONSIBILITIES * Build up and equip our internal ground test workshop, identifying hardware needs, managing procurement for test tools, and establishing our in-house pre-compliance testing environment. * Expand testing capabilities beyond the initial E3 campaign to introduce environmental certification pipelines, including climate and environmental mechanical conditions. * Execute standard integration ground testing on new and existing systems to validate and prove system behavior against rigorous technical requirements. * Coordinate test campaigns with external partners and commercial test facilities (such as IABG), managing logistics, resource readiness, and scheduling for formal certifications. * Perform hands-on troubleshooting and root-cause analysis during test execution, implementing immediate on-the-spot fixes or documenting detailed findings to drive design improvements. * Collaborate cross-functionally with electronics design, systems engineering, and flight test teams to transform test data into actionable requirements for next-generation platforms. * Author comprehensive test documentation, including Test Requests (TRQs), procedural step-by-step instructions, test matrices, and formal data recording sheets. * Ensure strict adherence to safety protocols, regulatory requirements, and military standard testing methodologies throughout all test campaigns. QUALIFICATIONS * Professional Experience: 5+ years of hands-on ground testing, qualification, or hardware integration experience within the defense, aerospace, or UAV sectors. * Testing Diversification: Direct experience executing ground qualification testing under military or aerospace standards (e.g., STANAG 4370, MIL-STD-810) specifically across environmental, climatic, or dynamic (vibration/shock) regimes. * Workshop Setup: Experience specifying, procuring, and setting up laboratory or workshop test equipment (diagnostic tools, sensors, data acquisition systems). * Autonomy: A highly independent, proactive working style ("eigenständig") with a proven track record of driving test campaigns from preparation through to final reporting. * Problem Solving: Strong diagnostic and troubleshooting skills, with the ability to safely isolate anomalies in complex electrical and mechanical systems. * Language Skills: Professional working proficiency in English; conversational German language knowledge is advantage. NICE TO HAVE * Direct testing experience with loitering munitions, unmanned aerial systems (UAS), or guided tactical hardware. * Existing relationships or familiarity with European test houses and certification bodies (such as IABG). * Experience with automated test script generation or data post-processing tools (e.g., Python, MATLAB, Nominal). * Testing Diversification: Direct experience executing ground qualification testing under military or aerospace standards (e.g., STANAG 4866 4867 4868, MIL-STD-461 -464, AECTP-100 to 600, DO-160) specifically across environmental, climatic, or dynamic (vibration/shock) regimes.