Staff Discovery Engineer

Anduril Industries

Confirmed live today Low trust

Quick summary

Work type
On-site
Location
Costa Mesa, CAWashington, DC
Salary
$220,000–$292,000 / yr
Posted
123 days ago
Freshness
Confirmed live today

Market check

Salary context

Above market

How this pay compares to similar roles

Similar $212k
This role $256k
$149k $307k
below market most similar roles pay here above market

This role pays more than 84% of similar roles. Most pay $182,000–$241,906 — the blue band above. At the midpoint, this role pays about $256k versus about $212k for comparable roles.

Based on 240 similar postings.

Employer

About Anduril Industries

Anduril Industries is a defense technology company that builds advanced hardware and software systems for national security, including autonomous drones, surveillance systems, and the Lattice AI command platform.

Anduril Industries currently has 901 open roles on FindRole.

Listed pay typically runs $166,000–$220,000 across 858 roles with salary data.

Most-posted roles

View all roles at Anduril Industries

At a glance

TL;DR · Staff Discovery Engineer

The Staff Discovery Engineer joins the Discovery team to tackle unproven concepts across space, missiles, air, sensors, autonomy, and cyber. This role involves owning new concepts from initial ideas through analysis, prototyping, and testing to reach validated answers. You will build models, simulations, and test setups, pressure-testing work to surface hidden assumptions and failure modes. The position requires proficiency in physics-math scripting environments like Python with numpy/scipy, MATLAB/Simulink, or Julia, alongside experience with AI tools for research and coding. You will collaborate with Hardware, Software, and GNC teams to translate results into design decisions. The work focuses on solving hard technical problems by reasoning from first principles to prove out new technologies for defense applications, requiring an active U.S. Top Secret security clearance.

What you'll do

  • Own new concepts from initial idea through analysis, prototyping, and testing to reach validated answers.
  • Rapidly learn new technical domains by reviewing references and building models against known results.
  • Build or adapt models, simulations, and test setups using existing tools or custom-built solutions.
  • Pressure-test internal and external work by hunting for failure modes and surfacing hidden assumptions.
  • Use AI tools as a force multiplier for research, coding, and analysis while verifying all outputs.
  • Translate technical results into design decisions by working with Hardware, Software, and GNC teams.
  • Communicate complex data and results to engineers, leadership, and customers through visual presentations.

What we're looking for

  • Currently possesses and is able to maintain an active U.S. Top Secret security clearance.
  • Demonstrated experience working in more than one technical area.
  • Proven experience designing, building, testing, or fielding real-world products in any field.
  • Proficiency in at least one physics-math scripting environment such as Python, MATLAB/Simulink, or Julia.
  • Strong written, verbal, and visual communication skills.
  • 12+ years in a relevant science/engineering field (preferred).
  • Math, physics, or engineering degree, or similar (preferred).
  • Proficiency with AI tools and experience in several domains like space systems, missiles, or autonomy (preferred).

More like this

Similar roles

Staff Discovery Engineer

Anduril Industries

Washington, DC +1 123 days ago $220,000–$292,000
Python NumPy SciPy MATLAB Simulink Julia AI Tools STK Astrogator AFSIM HFSS Fluent GNC Sensor Fusion Autonomy Radar EW Acoustics Simulations
10+ yrs exp

Discovery Engineer

Anduril Industries

Costa Mesa, CA +1 57 days ago $167,000–$222,000
Python NumPy SciPy MATLAB Simulink Julia AI Tools STK Astrogator AFSIM HFSS Fluent GNC Sensor Fusion Autonomy Radar EW Acoustics Simulations
4+ yrs exp

Discovery Engineer

Anduril Industries

Washington, District of Columbia +1 57 days ago $167,000–$222,000
Python NumPy SciPy MATLAB Simulink Julia AI Tools GNC Sensor Fusion Radar Autonomy STK Astrogator AFSIM HFSS Fluent
4+ yrs exp

Senior Discovery Engineer

Anduril Industries

Costa Mesa, CA +1 57 days ago $191,000–$254,000
Python NumPy SciPy MATLAB Simulink Julia AI Tools GNC Sensor Fusion Radar Autonomy STK Astrogator AFSIM HFSS Fluent
8+ yrs exp

Senior Discovery Engineer

Anduril Industries

Washington, District of Columbia +1 57 days ago $191,000–$254,000
Python NumPy SciPy MATLAB Simulink Julia AI Tools GNC Sensor Fusion Radar Autonomy STK Astrogator AFSIM HFSS Fluent
8+ yrs exp

Deputy Chief Engineer, Discovery

Anduril Industries

Costa Mesa, CA +2 25 days ago $191,000–$254,000
Python NumPy SciPy MATLAB Simulink Julia AI Tools GNC Sensor Fusion Radar Autonomy STK Astrogator AFSIM HFSS Fluent Cyber Simulations
10+ yrs exp