Software Engineer Los Angeles, CA

K2 is building the largest and highest‑power satellites ever flown, unlocking performance levels previously out of reach across every orbit. Backed by $450M from leading investors such as Altimeter Capital, Redpoint Ventures, T. Rowe Price, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Alpine Space Ventures, and others – with an additional $500M in signed contracts across commercial and U.S. government customers – we’re mass‑producing the highest‑power satellite platforms ever built for missions from LEO to deep space.

The rise of heavy‑lift launch vehicles is shifting the industry from an era of mass constraint to one of mass abundance. We believe this new era demands a fundamentally different class of spacecraft engineered to survive the harshest radiation environments and to fully capitalize on today’s and tomorrow’s massive rockets. K2 satellites deliver unmatched capability at constellation scale and across multiple orbits.

With multiple launches planned through 2026 and 2027, we’re “Building Bigger” to develop the solar system and become a Kardashev Type II (K2) civilization.

The software team at K2 builds our stack primarily in Rust because we believe modern programming languages should be fun and correct. We see Rust as a key enabling technology that allows us to be more effective as software engineers across the entire stack – from GNC algorithms and flight‑computer application software to embedded software on microcontrollers and many other domains.

As part of the team you will develop and verify the software that flies some of the largest spacecraft ever flown. You will write mission‑critical code that controls propulsion systems, attitude control systems, and power systems to ensure safe and reliable operation of the vehicle. In your first 6 months you will develop core pieces of the software architecture, including strategies for fault tolerance, real‑time control, and telemetry downlink.

In your first year you will implement larger systems and begin verifying your code using software and hardware‑in‑the‑loop simulators. In your first two years you will operate your code on multiple spacecraft, demonstrating robust performance in demanding missions.

• Create software architecture for real‑time, fault‑tolerant control of a 20kW+ spacecraft
• Develop software applications for control of spacecraft subsystems, including propulsion, guidance/attitude control, thermal, power, and communications systems
• Design and implement state machines for robust operation of the spacecraft
• Author drivers for microcontroller peripherals and external sensors
• Create and utilize robust tools to enable rapid deployment of quality code
• Perform data analysis and anomaly investigation to identify and resolve software bugs
• Support integration and testing of the spacecraft subsystems
• Build and maintain infrastructure to increase reliability when developing and testing software

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, computer engineering, electrical engineering, mathematics, or a STEM discipline, or 3+ years of professional software engineering experience
• Experience developing in Rust

• Spacecraft flight software development experience
• Fluency with Linux systems programming and driver development
• Experience with continuous integration and continuous delivery systems
• Experience with hard real‑time embedded systems (bare‑metal or RTOS)
• Experience authoring  systems in Rust
• Basic knowledge of electronics, computer architecture, and control systems
• Experience developing or working with state machines
• Experience with software verification and testing methods
• Experience with software and network performance analysis and debugging
• Experience working in Rust production environments
• Experience with fault‑tolerant software design and implementation
• Experience defining and creating test systems for both hardware‑in‑the-loop and hardware‑out‑of‑the-loop

• Base salary range: $123,000 – $160,000 + equity in the company
• Salary determined by knowledge, skills, education, and experience
• Comprehensive benefits package including paid time off, medical/dental/vision coverage, life insurance, paid…