Drone Test & Field Engineer

SE3 Labs

🚀 JOIN SE3 LABS AS DRONE TEST & FIELD INTERN Help us get our autonomous systems airborne and pushed to their limits. Turn advanced designs into robust, field-proven, real-world solutions. Early team, deep tech, high impact. ABOUT SE3 SE3 Labs is building Spatial AI by combining 3D computer vision with large language models (LLMs). We believe the ability to reason about and act within physical space is foundational to unlocking the next generation of automation, from construction to smart infrastructure, and ultimately, defence. Now, we’re building the physical platform to bring Spatial AI to life. That means high-performance, real-world robotic systems (starting with UAVs) and we’re looking for a hands-on operator who’s ready to fly, demonstrate and perfect these machines with us. ABOUT THE ROLE As our Drone Assembly Working Student/ Freelancer, you’ll play a key role in getting and keeping our fleet of autonomous drones in the air. Working as part of our development team, you will bring new drones to life where hardware and software come together and test their capabilities systematically in the real world. Your contribution will determine how well we understand our technology and define the path of our future development. WHAT YOU’LL WORK ON * Integrate & Checkout: Work hand-in-hand with our hardware & software developers and technicians to complete integration and get new UAVs to flight readiness. * Fly, Test-Fly, Deploy and Fly: Flash, tune and operate drones from backpackable quadcopters to multi-meter wingspan fixed-wings. * Test & Feedback: You drive qualification and development flight testing in the field * Improve & Suggest: Spot bugs and design flaws, propose & evaluate improvements, and help us move faster and build better. YOUR PROFILE * You bring hands-on experience assembling, tuning and operating drones: 3+ years professionally or equivalent in racing / competition / enthusiast projects * You’ve completed a technical apprenticeship, Bachelors or training in a relevant technical field * You are familiar with ground control software (Such as QGroundCcontrol and Mission Planner) and flight control software (Ardupilot and PX4) * You care about precision, quality and a systematic problem-solving approach * You are proactive, willing to improvise and have a strong sense of ownership * Conversational English is a must; German is a strong plus ESPECIALLY VALUED BONUS SKILLS * Familiarity with using a command line and basic scripting * Data analysis skills (log interpretation, root cause-, frequency domain analysis) * You’re skilled in soldering wires and troubleshooting electronics, sensors, etc. * Familiarity with CAD and 3D printing PERKS & BENEFITS * Competitive hourly salary: between 20 to 24 EUR * Make your passion your job: If you love drones, you will relish this role * 31 Paid Days Off: 30 vacation days plus your birthday off * Well-being Access: Free membership to gyms, yoga, and wellness through EGYM Wellpass * Team Offsites: We go on 2 company retreats per year, our last ones were in Italy and Greece * Mentorship: Work closely with experienced engineers and get paired with a professional mentor to support your growth OUR PROCESS 1. Intro Call (20 min): Let’s get to know each other (conducted by Michael, our Chief of Staff) 2. Technical Interview (45 min): (with Francisco, our Drone Software & Test Specialist )

SE3 Labs

UAV TEST PILOT Help us get our autonomous systems airborne and pushed to their limits. Turn advanced designs into robust, field-proven, real-world solutions. Early team, deep tech, high impact. ABOUT SE3 SE3 Labs is building Spatial AI by combining 3D computer vision with large language models (LLMs). We believe the ability to reason about and act within physical space is foundational to unlocking the next generation of automation, from construction to smart infrastructure, and ultimately, defense. Now, we’re building the physical platform to bring Spatial AI to life. That means high-performance, real-world robotic systems (starting with UAVs) and we’re looking for a hands-on operator who’s ready to fly, perfect and demonstrate these machines with us. ABOUT THE ROLE As our UAV Test Pilot, you’ll be the central operator flying our entire fleet of autonomous drones. Working as part of our development team, you will be the first to operate new drone and payload prototypes and evaluate them in demanding real-world conditions. Your contribution will determine how well we understand our technology and define the path of our future development. WHAT YOU’LL WORK ON * Prepare & Launch: Integrate and tune new airframes and payloads with the team and bring systems to flight readiness * Fly & Evaluate: Run structured tests across quadcopters, up to three-meter wingspan fixed-wings, and eVTOL platforms * Stress the System: Execute realistic field scenarios and identify performance limits, failure modes, and reliability issues * Improve the Product: Spot bugs and design flaws, and work with engineers to improve performance and robustness * Demonstrate & Train: Demonstrate our systems to partners and end users on our test-base and in the field across Europe. YOUR PROFILE * You’ve completed a technical apprenticeship or training in a relevant technical field * You have substantial hands-on experience assembling, tuning, repairing, and flying drones, whether professionally, in military service, or through serious FPV / builder / enthusiast projects. * You are intimate with Q Ground Control, Ardupilot or PX4 * You bring a diligent and structured approach to flying * You are comfortable travelling, working outdoors in all weather, and operating in the field * You’re skilled in soldering wires and troubleshooting drones * You deliver precision and a systematic approach to communication and problem-solving * You are proactive, willing to improvise and have a strong sense of ownership * Conversational English is a must; German is a strong plus * Driving license class B, BE is a plus ESPECIALLY VALUED BONUS SKILLS * Completed military training and/or understanding of army processes * Regulatory experience (EASA SORA or similar frameworks) * Hands-on repair or tinkering on electronics, radio equipment etc. * Experience running environmental tests like vibration, EMI or thermal, ideally MIL-Spec * Familiarity with CAD and 3D printing PERKS & BENEFITS * Make your passion your job: If you love drones, you will relish this role * AI-boosted workplace: We empower every employee with best-in-class AI tools and agents, giving you unlimited access to the latest advancements and a true productivity edge * Real Ownership: Get early, real stock to participate directly in SE3’s growth * 31 Paid Days Off: 30 vacation days plus your birthday off * Well-being Access: Free membership to gyms, yoga, and wellness through EGYM Wellpass * Team Offsites: We go on 2 company retreats per year, our last ones were in Italy, Greece and Spain * Mentorship: Work closely with experienced engineers and get paired with a professional mentor to support your growth OUR PROCESS 1. Intro Call (20 min): Let’s get to know each other (conducted by Michael, our Chief of Staff) 2. Technical Interview (45 min): A deeper dive into your goals, problem-solving approach and technical understanding (with Francisco, our Founding Drone Engineer) 3. Onsite Trial/Case (2 hrs): We’ll troubleshoot and fly something together, just like on the job (together with our Hardware Team) 4. Team Dinner/Lunch: See if it’s a culture fit on both sides (can be integrated into the Onsite to accommodate long journeys)

SE3 Labs

🚀 JOIN SE3 LABS AS (SENIOR) TECHNICAL FIELD ENGINEER — ROBOTICS INTEGRATION & DEPLOYMENT Be the person who makes advanced autonomous systems work in the real world. Move across the full stack: drones, sensors, calibration, autonomy software, perception, networking, payloads, field operations, and partner environments. When the system is not mission-ready, you create clarity, find the root cause, and help make it robust.   ABOUT SE3 SE3 Labs is building Spatial AI by combining 3D computer vision with large language models. We believe the ability to reason about and act within physical space is foundational to unlocking the next generation of automation, from construction to smart infrastructure, and ultimately, defence. Now, we’re bringing Spatial AI into the sky through high-performance UAVs that can perceive, localize, coordinate, and act in the real world. This requires more than strong algorithms and good hardware. It requires systems that can be configured, calibrated, tested, deployed, demonstrated, debugged, and improved under real field conditions. We’re looking for a hands-on engineer who wants to work close to the product, close to the field, and close to the full autonomy stack. Someone who is not limited to one layer, but follows the problem wherever it leads.   ABOUT THE ROLE As (Senior) Technical Field Engineer — Robotics Integration & Deployment, you will own the last mile between SE3’s engineering team and real-world use. You will bring together UAVs, payloads, sensors, onboard compute, autonomy software, operator tools, and partner environments into systems that are ready to fly, test, demonstrate, and deploy. This is a highly hands-on, full-stack field engineering role. When something is not working, you go where the evidence leads: recalibrate a sensor, solve an issue in the perception stack, debug a radio link, inspect a harness, analyse a flight log, adapt an autonomy behavior, fix a configuration issue, improve a checklist, or bring the right evidence back to the engineering team. The problems you will work on are complex, dynamic, and multivariable. You will often have partial information, limited time, imperfect tools, and a system where hardware, software, environment, and operator behavior interact in non-obvious ways. Your job is to create clarity, choose the right debugging path, and drive the system toward a robust long-term solution. You will work closely with perception, robotics software, embedded, hardware, and flight-test teams. You will not just operate systems; you will make them better. Your work will determine how quickly SE3 moves from prototype to repeatable deployment, from demo to product, and from individual systems to operational fleets.   WHAT YOU’LL WORK ON * Create Clarity in complex situations: Separate symptoms from root causes, know when to trust intuition and when not to, devise efficient debugging workflows, reproduce failures, analyse logs, and drive lasting solutions that make the system more robust long term. * Cross-Stack Engineering: Move across hardware, software, sensors, calibration, perception, networking, autonomy, and operator workflows. When the root cause requires it, contribute directly to the layer that matters, from sensor calibration and deployment configuration to perception-stack behavior, autonomy logic, networking, or hardware integration. * Autonomy & System Integration: Bring together UAVs, payloads, onboard compute, cameras, IMUs, radios, ground stations, autonomy software, operator interfaces, and deployment tooling into field-ready systems. Configure and validate perception-stack behavior, mission logic, autonomy behaviors, operator workflows, and system responses under real operating conditions. * Tooling, Automation & AI Workflows: Build and use intelligent debugging, analysis, and agent-based workflows to understand complex system behavior faster. Improve scripts, checklists, dashboards, log pipelines, diagnostics, configuration tools, and deployment workflows. * Testing & Acceptance: Define and run acceptance tests for platforms, payloads, software releases, and deployment configurations. Own readiness checks across calibration, software flashing, networking, sensors, and pre-mission setup. Make readiness measurable, repeatable, and hard to fake. * Fieldability Ownership: Spot design flaws, integration gaps, recurring failure modes, and process bottlenecks. Turn field evidence into better hardware, software, procedures, and product decisions. * Field Service & Deployment: Install, configure, maintain, and support SE3 systems at test ranges, customer sites, partner demonstrations, exercises, and real-world deployments. Make sure our autonomous platforms perform reliably where it matters. * Partner & End-User Interface: Demonstrate systems to partners and end users, support training, translate field feedback into engineering requirements, and represent SE3 with technical credibility outside the lab.     YOUR PROFILE * Most importantly, you’re structured, fast-moving, and mission-driven. You don’t wait for perfect information. You create clarity, iterate fast, and prefer finding and fixing root causes over applying patches. * You hold a B.Sc., M.Sc. PhD, technical apprenticeship, military technical training, or equivalent practical background in Robotics, Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Embedded Systems, Mechatronics, or a related field. * You bring hands-on experience integrating, testing, operating, or troubleshooting complex robotic, UAV, embedded, automotive, industrial automation, or defence systems. * You are comfortable moving between hardware and software: Linux systems, sensors, radios, flight controllers, payloads, power systems, mechanical interfaces, networking, and operator tools. * You can read logs, inspect telemetry, use a command line, run scripts, flash devices, debug configurations, trace network issues, and communicate findings clearly. * You are not afraid of real hardware and field constraints. You use the right tools, inspect connectors, diagnose wiring or power issues, work with lab equipment, and stay systematic when the problem is messy. * You enjoy working directly with partners, operators, and end users. You can explain technical problems clearly, build trust in stressful situations, and represent SE3 professionally outside the lab. * You are proactive, hands-on, and willing to travel for field tests, partner demonstrations, and deployments across Europe and other strategic markets. * You speak fluent English; German is a strong plus. A driving license is required. Given the nature of SE3’s work in the defence sector, candidates must be eligible to work on defence-related projects and, where required, obtain the relevant security clearance.     ESPECIALLY VALUED BONUS SKILLS * Experience with ROS2, Docker, Linux, edge compute devices, C++/Python, Bash, Git, or deployment automation. * Experience with UAVs, PX4, ArduPilot, QGroundControl, Mission Planner, MAVLink, flight logs, mission planning, and airspace coordination. * Experience with networking and radio systems, including WiFi networks, LTE/5G modems, VPNs, telemetry links, antenna placement, RF interference, tactical communication links, and debugging connectivity issues in the field. * Experience soldering, crimping, repairing harnesses, using multimeters, oscilloscopes, spectrum analysers, serial consoles, or other lab and field equipment. * Experience with perception or autonomy systems, especially localisation, camera/IMU calibration, sensor synchronization, object detection, mapping, navigation, or mission autonomy. * Experience interpreting sensor data, robot logs, flight logs, frequency-domain data, vibration issues, EMI issues, thermal issues, or intermittent hardware failures. * Experience with environmental testing such as vibration, thermal, ingress protection, EMI/EMC, or MIL-STD-style qualification workflows. * Experience creating acceptance tests, runbooks, troubleshooting guides, fleet dashboards, release checklists, or field-support processes.   PERKS & BENEFITS * Real Ownership: Get equity early, real stock options to participate directly in SE3’s growth * Work Environment to Excel at: Find a high-quality and modern toolset, flat hierarchy and a skilled, driven team which will push the limits together with you. We are an AI-first company empowering every employee with best-in-class AI tools and agents, giving you unlimited access to the latest advancements and a true productivity edge. * 31 Paid Days Off: 30 vacation days plus your birthday off * Well-being Access: Free membership to gyms, yoga, and wellness through EGYM Wellpass * Team Offsites: We go on 2 company retreats per year, our last ones were in Italy and Greece * Mentorship: Work closely with experienced engineers and get paired with a professional mentor to support your growth   OUR PROCESS 1. Intro Call (20 min): Let’s get to know each other 2. Technical Interview (60 min): We dive into your experience with robotics systems in the field, complex debugging, system integration, and your technical background. 3. Onsite Trial/Case (1.5 hrs): We’ll integrate, diagnose, debug, or test something together, just like on the job. 4. Team Dinner/Lunch: See if it’s a culture fit on both sides