Senior Hardware Engineer (AI/ML)

Location: Hybrid in Reston, Virginia, United States, with access to labs and test ranges; remote options are also mentioned in the benefits, and applicants must meet U.S. government work-authorization requirements.

Salary: $160,000–$230,000 USD per year, with possible bonus, equity, and other incentive compensation.

Company

hirify.global develops explainable and trustworthy AI platforms for mission-critical decisions in enterprises, government, defense, finance, telecom, and regulated industries across cloud, on-premises, and edge environments.

What you will do

• Design and develop high-performance, low-latency hardware including FPGA/ASIC platforms, GPUs, edge compute units, and custom boards for AI/ML inference on ISR and C2 sensor streams.
• Collaborate with ML engineers on end-to-end MLOps pipelines covering model deployment, monitoring, and lifecycle management at the edge.
• Harden AI capabilities into rugged, field-ready hardware products that can be reused and resold across multiple mission areas.
• Translate field-driven operational requirements into product roadmap inputs and platform investment decisions.
• Lead hardware verification, testing, and certification against U.S. defense standards, including MIL-SPEC, DO-178C, and cybersecurity requirements.
• Produce technical documentation and integration materials, and participate in reviews with systems architects, software leads, and acquisition stakeholders.

Requirements

• Ability to obtain a U.S. Top Secret security clearance.
• 5+ years of experience developing hardware for defense, national-security, or related mission-critical systems, with end-to-end delivery experience.
• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Systems Engineering, or a related technical field.
• Expertise in signal-processing hardware, sensor-fusion architectures, and AI/ML inference acceleration using FPGA, ASIC, GPU, or dedicated AI processors.
• Hands-on experience with hardware-software integration, firmware development, and MLOps at the edge.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced, multidisciplinary environment and translate operational requirements into scalable hardware solutions.
• Applicant must be a U.S. Citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual under 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain required U.S. government authorizations.

Nice to have

• U.S. Top Secret security clearance.
• Experience in cybersecurity, cyber-physical systems, space system architecture, ELINT/RF, digital signal processing, or realtime stream processing.
• Prior military service or direct operational exposure in ISR, C2, intelligence, or communications.
• Experience at a defense prime, systems integrator, or high-growth AI/technology company delivering mission systems.
• Knowledge of trusted or explainable AI, LLM ecosystems, or mission-AI workloads.
• Familiarity with defense acquisition processes, MIL-SPEC testing, and cybersecurity compliance such as NIST 800-53 and RMF.

Culture & Benefits

• Mission-driven work on AI solutions supporting national security and other high-stakes applications.
• Collaborative environment with senior technical leaders and multidisciplinary specialists.
• Flexible hybrid work environment with offices in Reston, Virginia, and Austin, Texas, plus remote options and flexible working hours.
• RSUs, role-appropriate total rewards, and possible bonuses or commission plans.
• Unlimited PTO, 14 paid company holidays, paid parental leave, and medical, dental, vision, and life insurance from day one.
• 401(k) plan with employer matching.