Director of Engineering – Autonomous Systems & AI

Overview

Director of Engineering – Autonomous Systems & AI
Wing Xpand is expanding what’s possible with autonomous systems. Locations:
Chicago (Schaumburg), IL. Type:
Full-Time.

Wing Xpand is seeking a Director of Engineering to lead multi-disciplinary engineering teams across hardware, electrical, embedded software, autonomy, and AI-enabled sensing systems. This is a hands-on technical leadership role for an experienced engineering leader who thrives in fast-moving environments and balances technical excellence, execution speed, and team development. You will partner closely with product, manufacturing, and leadership to deliver field-ready autonomous systems that meet demanding operational requirements.

You will be responsible for technical direction, execution accountability, and engineering culture, ensuring Wing Xpand delivers reliable, scalable, and differentiated autonomous platforms.

Wing Xpand is seeking a Director of Engineering to lead multi-disciplinary engineering teams across hardware, electrical, embedded software, autonomy, and AI-enabled sensing systems. This is a hands-on technical leadership role for an experienced engineering leader who thrives in fast-moving environments and knows how to balance technical excellence, execution speed, and team development. You will partner closely with product, manufacturing, and leadership to deliver field-ready autonomous systems that meet demanding operational requirements.

You will be responsible for technical direction, execution accountability, and engineering culture, ensuring Wing Xpand continues to deliver reliable, scalable, and differentiated autonomous platforms.

• Engineering Leadership & Strategy:
  Lead Wing Xpand’s engineering organization across hardware, electrical, embedded software, autonomy, and AI systems; set technical vision and engineering strategy aligned with company goals, product roadmaps, and customer requirements; own engineering execution across multiple concurrent programs and domains (air, ground, maritime); establish engineering best practices for design, testing, documentation, and release.
• Autonomous Systems & AI Execution:
  Oversee development of multi-domain autonomous platforms integrating sensors, AI threat detection, networking, and edge computing; guide system architecture decisions spanning aircraft, payloads, autonomy stacks, and data pipelines; ensure AI-enabled sensing and detection systems meet performance, reliability, and operational requirements; balance rapid iteration with system robustness for real-world deployments.
• Program Execution & Delivery:
  Partner with Product Management and Program Management to deliver programs on time and on contract; ensure engineering teams are aligned to milestones, priorities, and customer deliverables; identify risks early and drive resolution across teams; support prototype, flight test, OT&E, and transition-to-production efforts.
• Team Development & Culture:
  Recruit, mentor, and develop high-performing engineers across disciplines; create a culture of ownership, accountability, collaboration, and technical excellence; provide clear technical leadership while empowering engineers to execute; support career growth and progression for engineers at all levels.
• Cross-Functional & External
  
  Collaboration:
  
  Work closely with manufacturing to ensure design for manufacturability (DFM) and scalable production; collaborate with business development and leadership to support customer engagements, proposals, and technical briefings; translate customer needs and operational feedback into engineering priorities; serve as a technical authority in discussions with government, defense, and commercial stakeholders.

• 10+ years of experience in engineering roles, with at least 5 years in engineering leadership or management positions.
• Strong technical background spanning hardware, embedded systems, and software.
• Experience delivering autonomous systems, robotics, aerospace, defense, or AI-enabled platforms.
• Proven ability to lead multi-disciplinary engineering teams in fast-paced environments.
• Experience executing programs from concept →…