Lead Electrical Engineer Verified today
About Starcloud
Starcloud is building a network of data centers in space, starting at kilowatts and scaling to gigawatt capacity. By moving compute into orbit, we tap abundant solar power and radiate heat directly into space, escaping the constraints of Earth-based data centers. We launched our first spacecraft last year with three more flying over the next 18 months, each with a different architecture. We're a small team building in person in Redmond, WA.
The Role
You'll own the electrical architecture, design, analysis, testing, and flight execution of every electrical system on our spacecraft. This is a hands-on leadership role combining deep individual technical contribution with building and leading the electrical engineering team. You'll have real freedom to pursue novel architectures, test them fast on the ground, and validate them in orbit.
What You'll Do
- Own the complete electrical architecture: power generation, storage, distribution, conversion, avionics, compute interfaces, harnessing, and grounding across spacecraft and payloads.
- Lead the hard trades on power architecture, battery sizing, solar array interfaces, power conversion, redundancy, fault protection, and avionics integration, optimized across performance, mass, cost, reliability, and schedule.
- Prototype and test novel architectures rapidly on the ground and validate them in orbit.
- Deliver flight hardware end to end: from concept through design, procurement, manufacturing, integration, test, qualification, and launch.
- Own electrical test at board, subsystem, and spacecraft level. Turn test data and on-orbit telemetry into better designs for successive spacecraft.
- Build the electrical engineering team: hire, manage, and mentor engineers. Set standards, design-review practices, and verification workflows.
- Partner cross-functionally with mechanical, thermal, avionics, software, systems, manufacturing, test, and operations teams.
What We're Looking For
- BS in Electrical, Computer, or Aerospace Engineering, or equivalent experience.
- 8+ years of hands-on electrical engineering: design, analysis, hardware development, integration, and test.
- Deep command of power electronics, power distribution, batteries, solar arrays, grounding, EMI/EMC, harnessing, and avionics interfaces.
- A track record delivering electrical hardware optimized for performance, reliability, manufacturability, cost, and schedule.
- Comfortable managing engineers while staying deeply hands-on.
- Thrive in fast, highly iterative hardware development with an appetite for unconventional designs and disciplined engineering under uncertainty.
Nice to Have
- Experience formally leading an electrical engineering team.
- Spacecraft electrical hardware or other mission-critical hardware that has survived a harsh environment.
- High-power systems: spacecraft or data center power, automotive power electronics, grid-scale power, industrial controls, robotics, aviation, or defense.
- Hands-on PCB development, harness fabrication, connector selection, EMI/EMC control, and integration under real manufacturing constraints.
Eligibility
This role requires access to information controlled under U.S. export laws. Candidates must be a U.S. person (citizen, national, lawful permanent resident, or protected individual) under ITAR/EAR.
Compensation and Benefits
Annual salary: $200,000 to $250,000 USD.
Starcloud offers stock options, discretionary bonuses, medical, vision, dental, 401(k) with company match, disability and life insurance, paid parental leave, vacation, holidays, and sick leave.
Additional Requirements
- Willingness to work extended hours and weekends as necessary to support critical project milestones.
- Must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or eligible for authorization under U.S. export regulations.