Zipline · 2 hours ago
Embedded Software Engineer (Data Platform), Autonomy
South San Francisco, CA
Full-time
Onsite
Senior Level, Lead/Staff
$175K/yr - $210K/yr
5+ years expZipline is on a mission to transform the way goods move, seeking an embedded software engineer for their Data Platform team. This role involves building robust infrastructure to collect and process data from their drone fleet, focusing on data management and real-time decision-making for autonomous operations.
DeliveryDronesElectric VehicleHome Health CareLogisticsRoboticsSupply Chain Management
Responsibilities
Design and implement core data platform infrastructure that runs onboard our drone fleet, providing reliable APIs and tools for engineering teams to instrument their systems
Build high-performance data collection and processing pipelines on resource-constrained embedded Linux systems
Create reusable frameworks and platforms that make it easy for engineering teams to collect data vital to improving their systems
Design intelligent data management systems that prioritize critical telemetry data, efficiently process sensor data, and make real-time decisions about what data to store
Design data protocols and formats that enable seamless integration with cloud processing and ML pipelines
Optimize data pipelines for resource-constrained compute nodes and reduce the need for processing data offboard entirely
Implement onboard data retention policies that balance storage constraints with debugging and compliance requirements
Build monitoring and observability into the platform itself to detect issues, track usage patterns, and enable troubleshooting
Design systems that gracefully handle edge cases, network failures, and resource constraints while maintaining data integrity
Work closely with avionics, autonomy, and systems engineers to understand data requirements and build platform features that serve their needs
Collaborate with backend data teams to ensure telemetry handoff meets requirements for fleet analytics, data processing, and model training
Develop tools for analyzing data flow characteristics, identifying bottlenecks, and troubleshooting platform issues
Build hardware-in-the-loop test infrastructure to validate the data platform under realistic conditions
Participate in and lead design reviews to ensure data observability and platform integration are considered in new features
Qualification
Required
5+ years of professional software engineering experience with strong proficiency in Rust or similar systems languages
Proven experience building backend services, APIs, and data infrastructure at scale, preferably with exposure to high-throughput data pipelines or streaming systems
Strong foundation in data systems architecture: serialization formats, message queues, distributed systems concepts, and real-time data processing
Experience designing platform infrastructure or developer tools that other engineering teams depend on, with clear APIs and comprehensive documentation
Track record of diagnosing and resolving complex technical issues in production: performance bottlenecks, race conditions, data inconsistencies, or system reliability problems
Demonstrated ability to learn new technical domains quickly and apply engineering principles to novel problem spaces
Strong technical communication skills with examples of design documents, RFCs, or technical proposals that influenced system architecture
Preferred
Experience with embedded Linux, IoT systems, edge computing, or other resource-constrained environments
Background in robotics, autonomous systems, hardware integration, or other domains bridging software and physical systems
Familiarity with real-time systems concepts, performance profiling, memory management, or low-level optimization
Experience with cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure) and infrastructure-as-code
Track record working on safety-critical, highly regulated, or mission-critical systems where reliability is paramount
Benefits
Equity compensation
Discretionary annual or performance bonuses
Sales incentives
Benefits such as medical, dental and vision insurance
Paid time off
Company
Zipline
Zipline designs, manufactures, and operates drones to deliver vital medical products.
1001-5000 employees
H1B Sponsorship
Zipline has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships. Please note that this does not
guarantee sponsorship for this specific role. Below presents additional info for your
reference. (Data Powered by US Department of Labor)
Distribution of Different Job Fields Receiving Sponsorship
Represents job field similar to this job
Trends of Total Sponsorships
2025 (54)
2024 (39)
2023 (29)
2022 (20)
2021 (16)
2020 (3)
Funding
Current Stage
Late StageTotal Funding
$1.92BKey Investors
Tiger Global ManagementU.S. Department of StateScottish Mortgage Investment Trust
2026-01-21Series Unknown· $600M
2025-11-25Grant· $150M
2024-06-01Series G· $350M
Leadership Team
Keller Rinaudo Cliffton
Co-founder & CEO
Keenan Wyrobek
Founder, CTO and Product Architect
Recent News
2026-01-23
felicis.com
2025-12-26
Company data provided by crunchbase