Staff Navigation Engineer

SandboxAQ Inc.

Job Overview

Location

United States

Job Type

Full-time

Full Job Description

📋 Description

• As a Staff Navigation Engineer on SandboxAQ’s MagNav Team, you will play a pivotal role in developing next-generation magnetic navigation (MagNav) systems that serve as a resilient alternative to GNSS, directly contributing to national security and advanced aerospace capabilities through innovative AI-driven navigation solutions.
• You will join a small, agile, and highly specialized engineering team responsible for prototyping, developing, and producing cutting-edge algorithms for novel navigation systems, working at the intersection of quantum sensing, AI, and aerospace engineering to solve complex real-world guidance, navigation, and control challenges.
• Your day-to-day responsibilities will include developing and implementing state estimation and localization algorithms using batch estimation and optimization techniques to improve navigation accuracy, particularly in GPS-denied or degraded environments.
• You will collaborate closely with applied science teams to integrate and conceive novel navigation techniques for quantum signals, translating theoretical research into practical software implementations for MagNav systems.
• You will be responsible for conceiving, designing, analyzing, and developing software components of the navigation solution, ensuring algorithmic robustness, scalability, and performance under real-world conditions.
• You will identify key performance metrics for navigation solutions and develop, implement, and automate testing, verification, and validation procedures to ensure system reliability and accuracy.
• You will work with hardware/software integration teams to interface navigation algorithms with sensor data from real-world systems, including IMUs, magnetometers, and other quantum-enabled sensors.
• You will develop and maintain simulation environments to test and validate navigation algorithms under diverse operational scenarios, ensuring readiness for flight and field deployment.
• You will contribute to a culture of technical excellence by writing clean, maintainable C++ code, adhering to git-based workflows, and implementing unit tests to support continuous integration and delivery.
• You will engage in cross-functional collaboration with physicists, engineers, and AI specialists to advance the state of the art in navigation technology, leveraging SandboxAQ’s unique multidisciplinary expertise.
• About the team or company: SandboxAQ is a high-growth, Alphabet-incubated company delivering AI and quantum-powered solutions to global challenges in navigation, cybersecurity, life sciences, and financial services, backed by leading investors and a braintrust of industry leaders.
• The company fosters a culture of innovation, collaboration, and ownership, where employees are empowered to take initiative, tackle ambiguous problems, and drive impact in a fast-moving, mission-driven environment.
• What the person can learn or achieve in this role: You will deepen your expertise in advanced navigation algorithms, sensor fusion, and real-time systems while working on cutting-edge MagNav technology with direct applications in defense and aerospace.
• You will gain hands-on experience with quantum-enabled sensing, AI-integrated navigation systems, and multidisciplinary R&D, positioning yourself at the forefront of next-generation navigation innovation.

🎯 Requirements

• Master’s Degree in Electrical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field specializing in robotics, with 5+ years of professional development experience.
• U.S. Citizenship is required due to U.S. Government contract obligations.
• Proficiency in C++ programming language, with strong software engineering practices including git-based version control and unit testing.
• Demonstrated experience with state estimation and localization techniques such as Kalman Filtering, Particle Filtering, and Bayesian Filtering.
• Hands-on experience with hardware/software integration of navigation sensors, including IMUs, magnetometers, and GNSS/INS systems.
• Experience developing and validating simulation environments for navigation algorithms and sensor fusion systems.

🏖️ Benefits

• Competitive base salary, performance-based incentives or bonuses, and equity participation as part of a total compensation package designed to reward impact and innovation.
• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees and dependents, with generous employer premium contributions to support health and well-being.
• Retirement savings plan with company matching, paid parental leave, and inclusive family-building benefits to support long-term financial and personal security.
• Flexible paid time off, company-wide seasonal breaks, and support for flexible work arrangements to promote sustainable performance and work-life balance.
• Access to continuous learning and growth opportunities through on-the-job development, cross-functional collaboration, and internal learning and development programs.

Skills & Technologies

Git

Senior

Onsite

Degree Required

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SandboxAQ Inc.

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About SandboxAQ Inc.

SandboxAQ is an enterprise AI company spun out of Alphabet in 2022, focused on applying large quantitative models to solve complex problems in cybersecurity, encryption, sensing, and simulation. Its software and hardware solutions combine AI with quantum-inspired methods to help government and Fortune 500 clients secure data, accelerate materials discovery, and optimize sensing for healthcare and navigation. Based in Palo Alto with global offices, the company partners with large systems integrators and cloud vendors to deploy scalable, physics-aware AI platforms for defense, life sciences, and financial services organizations.

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