Mission Director - Aerial Combat

About Applied Intuition

Applied Intuition, Inc. is powering the future of physical AI. Founded in 2017 and now valued at $15 billion, the Silicon Valley company is creating the digital infrastructure needed to bring intelligence to every moving machine on the planet. Applied Intuition services the automotive, defense, trucking, construction, mining and agriculture industries in three core areas: tools and infrastructure, operating systems, and autonomy.

Eighteen of the top 20 global automakers, as well as the United States military and its allies, trust the company’s solutions to deliver physical intelligence. Applied Intuition is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, with offices in Washington, D.C.;
San Diego;
Ft. Walton Beach, Florida;
Ann Arbor, Michigan;
London;
Stuttgart;
Munich;
Stockholm;
Bangalore;
Seoul; and Tokyo. Learn more at

We are an in-office company, and our expectation is that employees primarily work from their Applied Intuition office 5 days a week. However, we also recognize the importance of flexibility and trust our employees to manage their schedules responsibly. This may include occasional remote work, starting the day with morning meetings from home before heading to the office, or leaving earlier when needed to accommodate family commitments.

The Mission Director for Aerial Combat serves as the senior relationship and strategic shaping lead for Applied Intuition’s aerial combat portfolio, with particular focus on our Drone Stack campaign. Reporting to the Head of Growth, you will be responsible for identifying and shaping strategic opportunities within aerial combat mission areas, building deep credibility with senior government stakeholders, and positioning Applied Intuition as the autonomy software provider of choice for group 1-3 unmanned aerial systems.

You will operate as an executive-level expert who understands the problem set, the capability gaps, and the decision makers across Air Force, Army, Combatant Commands, and SOCOM aerial combat portfolios.

• Cultivate senior-level trust-based relationships with PEOs, Program Managers (O-6+), requirements officers, and CTO offices within US Air Force PEO ISR SOF, NAVAIR, SOCOM (Defense Autonomous Warfare Group), and US Army PM UAS

• Shape opportunities 12-18 months in advance by influencing requirements, acquisition strategies, and program structures well before they reach the public domain

• Lead strategic customer discovery to understand long-term capability roadmaps, budget trajectories across PPBE cycles, and political dynamics within the aerial combat community

• Open doors and build deep credibility as Applied Intuition’s senior voice on aerial combat autonomy, translating operational warfighter problems into technology requirements that drive program shaping

• Maintain back channel sources of information across the aerial combat community and weapons community; and establish senior-level escalation paths when strategic deals encounter political or programmatic obstacles

• Make critical ‘pursue vs. walk away’ decisions and partner with Account Executives, Capture Managers, and Engineers to convert strategic shaping into a winning pipeline.

• 15–25 years of experience in or around DoD aerial combat operations and acquisition (Military O-5/O-6 with operational aviation background, GS-15/SES in acquisition or requirements, or senior Industry BD/strategic growth leadership)

• Executive-level expertise in and knowledge of the PPBE cycle, the POM process, and how to navigate Congressional authorization/appropriation dynamics

• Specific, warm relationships within US Air Force PEO ISR SOF, NAVAIR, SOCOM (particularly Defense Autonomous Warfare Group), or US Army PM UAS

• Deep understanding of aerial combat capability gaps and force structure challenges and comfort operating at the “white space” stage of programs, identifying opportunities that don’t yet have formal names, budget lines, or acquisition strategies

• Active Secret or Top Secret security clearance

• Prior experience as a Program Manager at DARPA, DIU, AFWERX, Army Applications Lab, or SOFWERX

• Deep…