Firmware Engineer (Embedded Systems) at First Order… · Austin

FIRST ORDER EFFECTS

Firmware Engineer (Embedded Systems)

Infrastructure for the Autonomous Era · First in. First up.

On-site · Austin, TX

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MESH has to think for itself. You are our first embedded hire, and you own the firmware and software that turn a box of parts into a coordinated power plant: real-time control on the MCUs and orchestration on embedded Linux. You set the foundation the whole software effort is built on, and you get to be the one who makes the box come alive on the bench and in the field.

Who We Are

First Order Effects (FOE) is building America's Infrastructure Prime for the robotic era. Autonomous ships, drones, and robots are rewriting how the world moves, fights, and builds - but none of them work without infrastructure to power them, connect them, and launch and recover them. That's what we build.

We've Built Cutting Edge Systems at Legendary Companies

Our team comes from SpaceX, Anduril, Saronic, Lockheed Skunk Works, Forterra, and Fuse Energy. Before founding FOE, we built satellite ground stations that closed a national comms gap in days, deployed multi-megawatt power systems at commercial speed, and shipped autonomous surface vessels into Navy fleet production. We've built infrastructure at lightspeed before - now we're applying that playbook to an entire company.

The Role

• Architect and write the firmware that runs MESH: generator start and stop sequencing, real-time power and current monitoring, contactor control, and safety interlocks.
• Own the RTOS MCU layer, including deterministic timing, drivers, and comms, and the embedded Linux orchestration on the command PCBA.
• Define the interfaces between firmware, the control PCBAs, the inverter, and the battery.
• Build the telemetry, logging, and health monitoring that let us trust the system in the field.
• Set the foundation: toolchain, build system, hardware-in-the-loop, and the patterns the next embedded hires inherit.

What You'll Do

• Ship firmware on real hardware where reliability is non-negotiable, the way it works in defense, aerospace, robotics, automotive, or energy.
• Write C and C++ down at the hardware level: SPI, I2C, UART, CAN, Ethernet, interrupts, and deterministic timing.
• Work across RTOS or bare metal and embedded Linux, including Yocto or Buildroot, drivers, and userspace.
• Debug across the hardware and software line with a scope, logic analyzer, and JTAG.

What We're Looking For

• Experience with power systems, battery management, inverters, or generator controls.
• A background in safety-critical firmware or functional safety.

Compensation

$100,000–$250,000 base + founding-team equity sized for the role + benefits. If you're an outlier, we'll pay like it.

ITAR requirement

To conform to U.S. Government export regulations (ITAR/EAR), applicants must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3). Candidates must be eligible to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance; active clearance not required.

FOE is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with FOE is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

Sovereignty is built, not declared — come build it with us.