Senior Electrical Engineer, Drone

About the Role

As an Electrical Engineer on our drone program, you will design the power systems that keep our aircraft in the air: battery packs, high-voltage distribution, and power conversion from the battery through propulsion and avionics. You’ll be part of the full product design lifecycle, from concept and prototype through flight test and production, and your work will directly shape the flight time, performance, and safety of our uncrewed aircraft.

At Applied Intuition, you will:

• Own the power system architecture and electrical requirements across both HV and LV domains, translating mission and duty-cycle profiles (long-term storage, extended unattended standby, high-power operational phases, multiple charge/discharge cycles) into energy, power, thermal and interface budgets.

• Lead HV domain design: battery pack and BMS integration, HV PDU/BDU (contactors, precharge, fusing, isolation monitoring), bidirectional on-board charger / AC export inverter, HV→28 V DC-DC converters, HV harness and connectors, and short-circuit and fuse coordination.

• Own the HV safety architecture: HVIL, E-stop, isolation monitoring, manual service disconnect, active discharge and lockout/tagout procedures; lead hazard analysis (HARA, FMEA/FMEDA) for the power system.

• Lead LV domain design: Backup battery, PDU and the always-on power management controller that orchestrates all power-state transitions, with tight quiescent-current budgets for long unattended standby.

• Define the CAN/J1939 network architecture, message databases, fault handling and state machines across BMS, PDU, converters, charger and the system management computer.

• Lead supplier engagement: RFI/RFQ, technical evaluation, source selection, and management of suppliers from prototype samples through production.

• Collaborate with mechanical engineering on thermal management and packaging, with electrical engineering on interfaces to powered subsystems, and with software/firmware on controls and diagnostics.

• Produce and maintain design documentation: block diagrams, ICDs, schematics, harness drawings, requirement compliance matrices and design review packages.

We’re looking for someone who has:

• BS, MS, or PhD in Electrical Engineering or a related field (power electronics, energy systems)

• At least 5 years of hands-on experience designing and integrating high-voltage (400–800 V) battery and power systems for EVs, commercial/off-highway vehicles, energy storage or defense platforms.

• Direct experience with battery pack and BMS integration, HV distribution (contactors, precharge, fusing, IMD) and HV safety (HVIL, isolation, service disconnect).

• Working knowledge of power conversion (DC-DC converters, inverters, bidirectional on-board chargers) and the ability to specify, evaluate and integrate COTS power electronics.

• Experience with 12/24/28 V vehicle power distribution, power-state management, low-quiescent always-on design and CAN/J1939 networks.

• Familiarity with MIL-STD-810, MIL-STD-461 and MIL-STD-1275, and with battery standards (UN 38.3, UL 1973, UL 9540A); ISO 26262 functional safety is a plus.

• Proficient in schematic capture, harness design tools and system-level analysis (energy and thermal budgets in MATLAB/Simulink or Python).

• Skilled in HV lab safety and test equipment: HV power supplies, battery cyclers/emulators, insulation testers, oscilloscopes with HV differential probes and CAN tools (e.g., Vector CANoe, PCAN).

• Track record of managing suppliers and taking a system from concept through qualification and production.

• Open-minded and collaborative team player, eager to assist others.

• Excellent technical writing skills for clear communication and documentation.

Security Requirement:

• U.S. citizenship or US Green card holder required