Product Manager

ABOUT APPLIED INTUITION Applied Intuition, Inc. is powering the future of physical AI. Founded in 2017 and now valued at $15 billion, the Silicon Valley company is creating the digital infrastructure needed to bring intelligence to every moving machine on the planet. Applied Intuition services the automotive, defense, trucking, construction, mining and agriculture industries in three core areas: tools and infrastructure, operating systems, and autonomy. Eighteen of the top 20 global automakers, as well as the United States military and its allies, trust the company’s solutions to deliver physical intelligence. Applied Intuition is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, with offices in Washington, D.C.; San Diego; Ft. Walton Beach, Florida; Ann Arbor, Michigan; London; Stuttgart; Munich; Stockholm; Bangalore; Seoul; and Tokyo. Learn more at applied.co. We are an in-office company, and our expectation is that employees primarily work from their Applied Intuition office 5 days a week. However, we also recognize the importance of flexibility and trust our employees to manage their schedules responsibly. This may include occasional remote work, starting the day with morning meetings from home before heading to the office, or leaving earlier when needed to accommodate family commitments. ABOUT THE ROLE Applied Intuition's DroneStack team builds autonomous software and hardware that enables swarms of unmanned aircraft to find, fix, track, target, and engage in contested and denied environments. Our technology — from the Acuity ISR+Strike autonomy stack to the Axle edge compute hardware — is deployed on real platforms with real operators, across multiple airframe vendors and mission sets.  The team has proven the technology through successful field demonstrations and live deployments. Now the challenge shifts: we need to move from delivering bespoke solutions for individual programs to building products that scale across customers, platforms, and theaters. That's where you come in. We're hiring a Product Manager to own strategy, research, and execution for DroneStack. You won't need to arrive as a drone or defense expert — what matters is that you're a fast, rigorous learner who can immerse yourself in a complex technical domain and emerge with clarity about what to build and why. You'll conduct primary research with military operators in the US and abroad, translate what you learn into product strategy, and work with a strong engineering team to ship products that give warfighters a decisive edge. AT APPLIED INTUITION, YOU WILL: * Own product strategy for DroneStack. Define the roadmap that transitions the team from program-driven deliveries to a scalable, multi-customer product line. Make hard prioritization calls across ISR, strike, hardware, and tooling. * Become the voice of the operator. Conduct primary user research — in the field, at bases, and with international partners — to deeply understand how operators plan, execute, and debrief autonomous missions. Travel up to 20% of the time, including internationally. * Drive the programs-to-products transition. Identify the patterns across current customer engagements and define the abstractions, configurations, and interfaces that turn one-off solutions into repeatable products. * Shape product design and experience. Work with engineering to design operator interfaces (mission control, mission planning, mission review) that are intuitive enough for non-technical users to operate without engineering support in the field. * Set the technical direction with engineering. Partner with the engineering manager and technical leads to balance near-term delivery commitments with long-term product architecture. You don't need to write the code, but you need to understand the system well enough to make informed tradeoffs. * Build and communicate a market thesis. Develop a point of view on where the autonomous drone market is heading — across DoD service branches, allied nations, and commercial applications — and position Applied Intuition to capture it. * Represent the product internally and externally. Be the connective tissue between DroneStack engineering, Applied Intuition's defense business development team, and customers. Present at demos, program reviews, and industry events. WE'RE LOOKING FOR SOMEONE WHO HAS: * 5–7 years of product management experience across at least two meaningfully different environments (different industries, product types, company stages, or customer segments). We value breadth and adaptability over narrow specialization. * A track record of shipping products, not just features. You've owned a product end-to-end — from research and strategy through design, build, launch, and iteration. You've made the hard calls about what not to build. * Exceptional research instincts. You know how to learn a market from scratch: talking to users, studying workflows, reading doctrine, attending field exercises, and synthesizing what you find into actionable product direction. You've done this at least once in a domain that was new to you. * Comfort with deep technical systems. You don't need a background in autonomy, robotics, or aerospace — but you should have experience working on technically complex products (hardware + software, real-time systems, developer tools, infrastructure, etc.) and be energized by learning how things work at a systems level. * Strong design sensibility. You care about how products feel to use, not just what they do. You've collaborated closely with designers or driven UX decisions yourself, particularly for workflow-heavy or operations-focused tools. * Clear, structured communication. You can write a crisp product brief, present a strategy to senior leadership, and run a productive design review with engineers. You tailor your communication to the audience — whether that's a general officer or a software engineer. * BS/BA degree in a technical or analytical field (Computer Science, Engineering, Physics, Mathematics, Economics, or similar). Advanced degrees are welcome but not required. NICE TO HAVE: * Experience with defense or government customers, even outside of autonomy (understanding of acquisition cycles, program structures, or operational environments) * Experience working on products that span hardware and software * Prior work at an early-stage or high-growth company where you wore multiple hats * Exposure to international markets or customers * Experience founding a company or leading a 0-to-1 product initiative SECURITY REQUIREMENTS: * Must be a U.S. Citizen * Must hold or be eligible to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance For more information about U.S. security clearances: click here. Compensation at Applied Intuition for eligible roles includes base salary, equity, and benefits. Base salary is a single component of the total compensation package, which may also include equity in the form of options and/or restricted stock units, comprehensive health, dental, vision, life and disability insurance coverage, 401k retirement benefits with employer match, learning and wellness stipends, and paid time off. Note that benefits are subject to change and may vary based on jurisdiction of employment. Applied Intuition pay ranges reflect the minimum and maximum intended target base salary for new hire salaries for the position. The actual base salary offered to a successful candidate will additionally be influenced by a variety of factors including experience, credentials & certifications, educational attainment, skill level requirements, interview performance, and the level and scope of the position. Please reference the job posting’s subtitle for where this position will be located. For pay transparency purposes, the base salary range for this full-time position in the location listed is: $185,000 - $270,000 USD annually.  Don’t meet every single requirement? If you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles. Applied Intuition is an equal opportunity employer and federal contractor or subcontractor. Consequently, the parties agree that, as applicable, they will abide by the requirements of 41 CFR 60-1.4(a), 41 CFR 60-300.5(a) and 41 CFR 60-741.5(a) and that these laws are incorporated herein by reference. These regulations prohibit discrimination against qualified individuals based on their status as protected veterans or individuals with disabilities, and prohibit discrimination against all individuals based on their race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or national origin. These regulations require that covered prime contractors and subcontractors take affirmative action to employ and advance in employment individuals without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status or disability. The parties also agree that, as applicable, they will abide by the requirements of Executive Order 13496 (29 CFR Part 471, Appendix A to Subpart A), relating to the notice of employee rights under federal labor laws.

ABOUT APPLIED INTUITION Applied Intuition, Inc. is powering the future of physical AI. Founded in 2017 and now valued at $15 billion, the Silicon Valley company is creating the digital infrastructure needed to bring intelligence to every moving machine on the planet. Applied Intuition services the automotive, defense, trucking, construction, mining and agriculture industries in three core areas: tools and infrastructure, operating systems, and autonomy. Eighteen of the top 20 global automakers, as well as the United States military and its allies, trust the company’s solutions to deliver physical intelligence. Applied Intuition is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, with offices in Washington, D.C.; San Diego; Ft. Walton Beach, Florida; Ann Arbor, Michigan; London; Stuttgart; Munich; Stockholm; Bangalore; Seoul; and Tokyo. Learn more at applied.co. We are an in-office company, and our expectation is that employees primarily work from their Applied Intuition office 5 days a week. However, we also recognize the importance of flexibility and trust our employees to manage their schedules responsibly. This may include occasional remote work, starting the day with morning meetings from home before heading to the office, or leaving earlier when needed to accommodate family commitments. ABOUT THE ROLE As a Product Manager for DefenseOS, you will own the product vision, strategy, and roadmap for a defense operating system derived directly from Applied Intuition's commercial automotive VehicleOS product, as the product peer to a director-level engineering lead. You will drive the product through customer discovery, requirements definition, prioritization, and close partnership with engineering, design, and operations — owning outcomes through influence rather than managing a team. As the first instantiation of this broadly applicable defense product, you will own the product for a navy warship operating system that integrates combat systems, communications systems, and hull, mechanical, and electrical (HM&E) systems on unmanned surface vessels and traditional surface combatants. A central part of the work is shaping the product strategy for a zonal architecture — location-based zone controllers and centralized compute replacing a federated, domain-based design — and defining how it integrates with existing defense-unique systems built by primes that were not delivered with modernized software and data interfaces. Your work will influence the scope, sequencing, field-readiness, and adoption of the DefenseOS product. AT APPLIED INTUITION, YOU WILL This is an individual-contributor role: you own the product and drive outcomes through influence across engineering, design, and operations — without direct reports. * Own the product vision, strategy, and roadmap for DefenseOS — defining how Applied's commercial VehicleOS is adapted into a navy warship operating system, the first instantiation of this broadly applicable defense product. * Lead customer and user discovery directly with Navy program offices, operators, and crews to translate operational needs, acquisition requirements, and field constraints into a prioritized product roadmap. * Define the product strategy for a zonal architecture — location-based zone controllers and centralized compute replacing a federated, domain-based design — including how it integrates with existing defense-unique systems built by primes (combat, communications, and HM&E subsystems) that lack modernized software and data interfaces; decide what to bridge, in what sequence, and where to build versus partner. * Write clear requirements, define success metrics, and make the prioritization and scope trade-offs that keep engineering focused on the highest-value, field-relevant work. * Partner closely with engineering, hardware/integration, and operations to sequence delivery across simulation, integration lab, and live-platform testing on unmanned surface vessels and traditional surface combatants. * Own the trade-offs between speed, quality, and scope under acquisition and field constraints. * Work with design to shape operator interfaces and workflows grounded in how crews actually operate. * Partner with defense customers and shipbuilders/integrators as a design-informed product lead, translating their needs into the roadmap. * Communicate product strategy, status, risk, and trade-offs to senior leadership and external stakeholders, and provide product input into program and business decisions. * Build the feedback loops — usage signals, customer input, and program data — that justify investment and shape the roadmap over time. WE'RE LOOKING FOR SOMEONE WHO HAS * Bachelor's degree in a technical field (Computer Science, Engineering, or related) or equivalent experience; advanced degree or deep technical background a plus. * 8+ years of product management experience shipping complex technical products, including owning a product line end to end, ideally platforms spanning both hardware and software, real-time/embedded, or systems-of-systems. * Demonstrated ability to own a product end to end as an individual contributor: vision, roadmap, requirements, prioritization, launch, and iteration against measurable outcomes. * Thrives as an IC — comfortable owning a product area and driving cross-functional outcomes through influence rather than managing direct reports. * Strong technical literacy — enough to engage credibly with engineers on architecture trade-offs (e.g., zonal versus federated domain architectures, hardware/software integration, interfaces and data flow) and make informed scope decisions, without managing the implementation. * Experience defining product strategy for integrating with legacy, proprietary, or closed third-party systems that lack modern software and data interfaces — deciding what to bridge and how to sequence the integration work. * Skilled at customer and user discovery: translating ambiguous operational problems into clear, prioritized requirements. * Comfort in a fast-paced, highly ambiguous environment, and the ability to make and defend trade-offs between speed, quality, and scope. * Excellent written and verbal communication, including clear status, risk, and decision communication to senior leadership. * US citizenship is required. You must already hold, or be eligible to receive, an active US Top Secret security clearance upon onboarding to this role. NICE TO HAVE * Product management (or equivalent) experience on software-defined vehicles or analogous platforms where a zonal architecture and centralized compute replaced distributed, domain-based controllers. * Familiarity with naval/maritime subsystems (combat, C5I, HM&E), DoD acquisition and requirements processes, and delivery in regulated environments (RMF/ATO, IL5/IL6); prior naval or operational experience a plus. SECURITY REQUIREMENTS: * Must be a U.S. Citizen * Must hold or be eligible to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance For more information about U.S. security clearances: click here. Compensation at Applied Intuition for eligible roles includes base salary, equity, and benefits. Base salary is a single component of the total compensation package, which may also include equity in the form of options and/or restricted stock units, comprehensive health, dental, vision, life and disability insurance coverage, 401k retirement benefits with employer match, learning and wellness stipends, and paid time off. Note that benefits are subject to change and may vary based on jurisdiction of employment. Applied Intuition pay ranges reflect the minimum and maximum intended target base salary for new hire salaries for the position. The actual base salary offered to a successful candidate will additionally be influenced by a variety of factors including experience, credentials & certifications, educational attainment, skill level requirements, interview performance, and the level and scope of the position. Please reference the job posting’s subtitle for where this position will be located. For pay transparency purposes, the base salary range for this full-time position in the location listed is: $185,000 - $270,000 USD annually. Don’t meet every single requirement? If you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles. Applied Intuition is an equal opportunity employer and federal contractor or subcontractor. Consequently, the parties agree that, as applicable, they will abide by the requirements of 41 CFR 60-1.4(a), 41 CFR 60-300.5(a) and 41 CFR 60-741.5(a) and that these laws are incorporated herein by reference. These regulations prohibit discrimination against qualified individuals based on their status as protected veterans or individuals with disabilities, and prohibit discrimination against all individuals based on their race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or national origin. These regulations require that covered prime contractors and subcontractors take affirmative action to employ and advance in employment individuals without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status or disability. The parties also agree that, as applicable, they will abide by the requirements of Executive Order 13496 (29 CFR Part 471, Appendix A to Subpart A), relating to the notice of employee rights under federal labor laws.