data
Posted Apr 23Machine Learning Engineer, Senior
at 9 Mothers
Austin, United StatesOn-site
Responsibilities
- - Own the dataset pipeline end-to-end, including data collection, labeling, curation, augmentation, synthetic data generation, and closed-loop retraining based on field performance.
- - Build and maintain training infrastructure, including experiment tracking, compute orchestration, and evaluation harnesses.
- - Define metrics and evaluation methodologies that correlate to real-world operational performance.
- - Support deployment of trained models into the production perception stack, and address discrepancies between training and deployed performance.
Requirements
- Location: Onsite — Austin, TX Employment Type: Direct Hire, Full‑Time Job Title: Senior ML Engineer Company Overview 9 Mothers Defense develops AI-enabled systems to counter unmanned aerial threats.
- Our first product, EDDA, is an autonomous counter-sUAS point-defense platform designed to detect, track, and neutralize Group 1 drone threats.
- Position Summary 9 Mothers is seeking a Machine Learning Engineer to design, train, and maintain the models that power our counter-sUAS perception stack.
- The Machine Learning Engineer is responsible for model research, dataset engineering, and the training infrastructure that supports detection, classification, and discrimination of aerial targets.
- We don’t use RAG, LLMs, or pre-built cloud APIs.
- You should be capable of building models from scratch and have a fundamental understanding of the problem space.
- Essential Duties - Design, train, and iterate on machine learning models for detection, classification, and tracking of aerial targets.
- experience shipping machine learning systems into production under real-world operational requirements. - Fluency in PyTorch or JAX, including full training loop development beyond fine-tuning off-the-shelf models. - Strong software engineering skills beyond model development, including ownership of training infrastructure. - Proficiency in Python; working knowledge of C++ or Rust at the training-to-deployment boundary. - U.S. citizenship and ability to pass a background check. Preferred Qualifications -
- Experience with detection or tracking of small, fast, or adversarially perturbed targets. - Synthetic data generation and sim-to-real methodologies. -
- experience in defense or other safety-critical machine learning applications. - Active security clearance, or eligibility to obtain one. - Passion for building robots or engineering projects as a hobby
- - The Builder's Playground: Work in a brand-new lab fully optimized for rapid prototyping, equipped with NVIDIA Jetsons, high-end scopes, and 3-D printers.
- Live coding test with the Director of Engineering (45 min via MS Teams) 3.
Benefits
- Benefits - Meaningful Early Equity: You aren't just an employee; you are a foundational owner.
- - 100% Employer-Paid Premiums: We cover 100% of your medical, dental, and vision insurance premiums and cover 50% of healthcare premiums for your dependents.
- - Unlimited PTO: We value results, not clock-watching.
- Paid take-home consulting agreement ($500, ~4-8 hours) 6.
Additional details
- Our stack requires building from the ground up to solve high-stakes problems under strict Size, Weight, and Power (SWaP) constraints.
- - Analyze field data to identify and address model failure modes.
- Experience training models for edge deployment, including quantization-aware training and knowledge distillation. - Prior
- Your contributions directly drive the value of your stake in the company. - Direct Roadmap Influence: Forget the bureaucracy of big defense.
- You will have a seat at the table, directly shaping our product and technology trajectory from day one.
- - Mission-Critical Work: We don't build for "what if." We build systems the Department of War actively needs to counter immediate, real-world threats.
- Take the time you need to stay sharp and recharge. - Zero Red Tape: You report to the founders.
- You have the autonomy to make technical decisions that would take months of committee approval at a larger firm. - Austin-Based Culture: Join an onsite team in Austin, TX, where we prioritize high-bandwidth collaboration and rapid field-testing. - Relocation Assistance: We want the best talent in the room.
- If you aren't in Austin yet, we’ll help you get here, to make your transition to the Silicon Hills seamless.
- Offer Equal Employment Opportunity 9 Mothers is an Equal Opportunity Employer.