We are seeking an experienced Senior Firmware & Integration Engineer to design, develop, and deliver embedded firmware for STM32-based systems at Archaius. This role sits at the intersection of firmware, hardware integration, and systems engineering—you will own subsystems end to end, from schematic review and board bring-up through secure boot, field update, and production test. You’ll work shoulder to shoulder with a small, fast-moving team of electrical, RF, mechanical, and software engineers building advanced drone systems for demanding environments. The ideal candidate is a self-directed engineer who thrives in a startup where roles are fluid, priorities shift quickly, and everyone pitches in. You bring deep STM32 expertise, strong instincts for secure firmware lifecycle practices, and the confidence to mentor junior engineers while still getting your hands dirty at the bench

About Archaius Inc

Archaius Inc. is a small venture-backed company in RTP, NC that has developed disruptive technology for drone electronic warfare. Our mission is to give tactical teams decisive edge in contested environments.

Description

Primary Responsibilities

Design, develop, and maintain embedded firmware for STM32 microcontrollers in bare-metal and RTOS environments, with an emphasis on real-time performance and reliability.
Architect and implement low-level drivers and communication protocols including I2C, SPI, UART, CAN, and USB for sensors, actuators, radios, and peripheral subsystems.
Own the secure boot and flash lifecycle: design and maintain secure bootloaders, firmware signing, encrypted flash storage, secure update and rollback mechanisms, and production flash provisioning from development through deployment.
Lead board bring-up and initial hardware integration, working directly from schematics and collaborating with electrical engineers to resolve clocking, pin-mux, power sequencing, and signal integrity issues.
Define and maintain interprocessor communication interfaces between controllers, compute modules, and peripheral devices.
Develop parameterization and configuration management frameworks that support field-configurable behavior without reflashing.
Build manufacturing test firmware and support test fixture development, ensuring repeatable, automated production validation.
Contribute to systems engineering activities including requirements decomposition, interface control documents, and validation and verification test planning.
Analyze field telemetry and failure data, perform root-cause analysis, and deliver corrective firmware releases with clear release notes.
Participate in code reviews, enforce high-quality coding standards, and document firmware designs and interfaces thoroughly.
Mentor junior and mid-level engineers, helping them grow in embedded development, debugging technique, and engineering rigor.

Key Requirements:

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent hands-on experience.
5–8 years of professional embedded firmware development experience from concept through production, with meaningful time spent on STM32 families (Cortex-M4/M7 or similar).
Strong proficiency in C for embedded systems: interrupts, memory-mapped I/O, DMA, real-time constraints, and concurrency on resource-constrained targets.
Experience designing and implementing secure boot sequences, firmware signing, encrypted flash, and field-update mechanisms with rollback and recovery.
Hands-on experience with JTAG/SWD debuggers, oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, protocol analyzers, and prototype bench setups.
Ability to read schematics and work directly with hardware engineers from first-article bring-up through production.
Practical experience with at least one RTOS (FreeRTOS, Zephyr, or similar) and bare-metal architectures.
Clear, concise written and verbal communication; comfort producing interface documentation, release notes, and design briefs.
A collaborative, low-ego mindset suited to a small team where everyone wears multiple hats and moves fast.
U.S. citizenship or permanent residency status.

Preferred skills

Experience defining interprocessor communication across multiple controllers or compute domains.
Familiarity with EMI/EMC interactions at the firmware-hardware boundary and low-power design techniques.
Experience building manufacturing test frameworks and bench automation using Python.
Exposure to hardware driver development for power management ICs, ADCs/DACs, or motor controllers.
Background in systems engineering practices: requirements management, DFMEA, or MBSE tools.
Experience with CI/CD pipelines for firmware (reproducible builds, automated flash-and-test, version tagging).
Prior work in aerospace, defense, or other high-reliability embedded domains.
Comfort operating in a fast-moving, resource-constrained startup environment where initiative and adaptability are valued over process.

Benefits/Statements/Salary

Archaius provides a comprehensive benefits package that includes medical, dental, and vision insurance with company contributions for employees and their families. We offer a 401(k) and HSA, both employee-contribution plans, unlimited flexible paid time off for full-time employees, and paid holidays. All employees receive advance notice of our company-wide breaks each year, which include a two-week winter shutdown, a one-week summer break in early July, and a Wednesday through Friday break over Thanksgiving. Full-time employees receive these breaks as paid time off. Full-time in-office employees also receive DoorDash-provided lunches four days per week, up to a daily limit, and all employees receive free DashPass.

Equal Opportunity Statement

Archaius Inc is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or veteran status.

High-Risk Travel Statement

This position may involve overseas travel, including to environments with elevated risk factors. Employees are expected to acknowledge and assume responsibility for the inherent risks associated with such assignments.