Senior Forward-Deployed Engineer

Satlyt
Satlyt

San Francisco, CA, USA

Posted on Oct 8, 2026

You will be responsible for getting Satlyt deployed into customer environments, from initial technical discovery through integration, testing, and production operation.

This is not a traditional pre-sales role. You will build, integrate, debug, and ship while working directly with satellite operators, aerospace companies, defense customers, payload providers, and infrastructure partners.

Satlyt is building the secure AI operating layer for satellites. Our platform enables spacecraft to operate as programmable compute nodes, allowing satellite operators to deploy software workloads, run AI at the edge, orchestrate distributed compute, manage networking, and process data before it reaches the ground.

  • Own technical integrations with customers from discovery through production deployment

  • Understand customer spacecraft, compute, networking, telemetry, security, and mission architectures

  • Design deployment architectures for running Satlyt on customer hardware

  • Deploy and troubleshoot containerized workloads in constrained and intermittently connected environments

  • Integrate Satlyt with

    • Flight software

    • Customer APIs

    • Telemetry systems

    • Ground infrastructure

    • Networking stacks

  • Build prototypes and proofs of concept that can move into production

  • Diagnose hardware, software, networking, and systems integration issues

  • Translate recurring customer requirements into reusable Satlyt product capabilities

  • Support technical discovery, demonstrations, proposals, and architecture discussions

  • Build tools and documentation that make each future integration faster

  • Support mission testing and on-orbit deployments

  • Work closely with the CTO and core engineering team

  • 4+ years of experience in software engineering, infrastructure, distributed systems, networking, robotics, aerospace, defense technology, or a similarly complex technical environment

  • Strong Linux fundamentals

  • Strong programming ability in

    • Python

    • Go

    • Rust

    • C++

    • Similar systems languages

  • Experience with Docker, containers, Kubernetes, or similar orchestration technologies

  • Strong networking fundamentals

  • Experience debugging real production systems

  • Ability to understand unfamiliar technical architectures quickly

  • Strong customer-facing communication skills

  • Ability to operate independently with ambiguous requirements

  • Strong ownership and execution mindset

  • Satellite flight software

  • Satellite mission operations

  • Embedded Linux or ARM

  • Edge computing

  • DTN or HDTN

  • BPv7, CFDP, or ION

  • AI inference on constrained hardware

  • Kubernetes at the edge

  • Telecom infrastructure

  • Cybersecurity

  • Robotics or autonomous systems

  • Defense or government systems