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Shield AI

Senior Engineer, Computer Vision (C++) (R5195)

Shield AI is hiring a Senior Engineer, Computer Vision (C++) (R5195) in Melbourne, Australia. Level rates it ; you can apply on Shield AI.

Level's read on this job

  • Level rates this role Builds AI ●●●●: the job is building AI systems.
  • The posting mentions AI evaluation and computer vision among its tools and skills.
  • Level classes it as a senior role.
  • Shield AI has 659 other open roles on Level.

AI in this role

ai-evaluationcomputer-vision
Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai. Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and YouTube.

Job Description:

This role is for a Computer Vision C++ Engineer to support the development of real-time perception capabilities for Shield AI's autonomous systems.

The Computer Vision Engineer will be responsible for designing, developing, and integrating advanced computer vision algorithms into high-performance C++ software pipelines. The role will focus on building custom perception capabilities from the ground up, with an emphasis on real-time performance, reliability, and deployment in edge compute environments. This position is required to increase the team's capacity and technical depth in real-time computer vision, image processing, and applied machine learning.

The successful candidate will bring strong C++ software engineering skills, experience developing high-performance or real-time systems, and a deep understanding of computer vision fundamentals. They should be capable of translating research concepts into deployable software and comfortable working on bespoke algorithms rather than relying only on existing libraries. Experience with areas such as object detection, image classification, target recognition, semantic segmentation, feature extraction, object tracking, video analytics, dataset curation, model evaluation, or deployment of trained perception models would be highly valuable.

The role will also support the development and integration of learned perception models into real-time computer vision pipelines. This may include adapting detection, classification, recognition, or segmentation models for operational imagery; improving model performance across varied lighting, viewpoint, background, and environmental conditions; evaluating false positives and false negatives; and working with representative datasets to improve robustness. Familiarity with combining learned models with classical computer vision techniques, optimizing inference for edge deployment, and integrating model outputs into C++ perception systems would be beneficial. Candidates with a Master's or PhD in Computer Science, Engineering, Robotics, Computer Vision, Machine Learning, or a related field would be well aligned with the technical needs of the team, though strong applied industry experience is also highly relevant.

Required qualifications:

  • Degree in Computer Vision, Computer Science, Engineering, or related technical field.
  • Deep proficiency in C++, with proven experience developing software in high-performance, real-time environments.
  • Demonstrated experience designing and implementing custom computer vision algorithms from scratch, rather than exclusively applying existing libraries.
  • Solid foundational understanding of computer vision, image processing, and machine learning principles.
  • Strong software engineering fundamentals, including data structures, algorithms, performance optimization, and version control.
  • Proven ability to own technical work from ambiguous requirements through algorithm design, implementation, integration, and delivery.
  • Ability to collaborate effectively with multidisciplinary cross-functional teams, including AI experts, robotics engineers, and optical engineers, to deliver reliable edge solutions.

Preferred qualifications:

    We do not expect candidates to have all of the following. Experience in any of these areas will help you stand out.
  • Master’s or PhD in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field.
  • Experience with object detection, target tracking, 3D reconstruction, SLAM, camera calibration, or behaviour analysis.
  • Background in automated video surveillance or other related real-time vision systems.
  • Familiarity with industry-standard vision toolkits, such as OpenCV.
  • Exposure to deep learning methodologies for image classification, recognition, or sequence modelling.
  • Practical experience integrating deep learning models into broader computer vision systems for real-time deployment scenarios.
  • Previous experience in the Defence sector, autonomous unmanned systems, or similar mission-critical domains.
#LI-LD1 #LC
Salary compensation is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, licenses and certifications, and specific work location. All offers are contingent on a cleared background and possible reference check. Shield AI is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, colour, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know.

How we rate this

Senior Engineer, Computer Vision (C++) (R5195) at Shield AI rates 95 out of 100 for how much of the daily work is AI. That makes it Builds AI (AI Level 4 of 4). The level is about AI in the job, not seniority.

Classification

Builds AI. The job is building AI systems.

  1. ●●●● Builds AI80 to 100
  2. ●●●○ Works on AI60 to 79
  3. ●●○○ Uses AI40 to 59
  4. ●○○○ Little AI0 to 39

Levels come from how often the tools, models and workflows of the role are named in the posting itself. Read the description and count the AI tools, models and workflows it names.

Prepare for this job

Built from this posting and from similar jobs on Level.

Skills and AI tools this role asks for

AI EvaluationComputer vision

Questions you could be asked

  1. How do you decide that one model's output is better than another's for a given task?
  2. Walk me through a computer vision problem you solved, from raw data to a deployed model.
  3. How would you decide a model or AI system is ready to ship?
  4. Tell me about a time a model underperformed in production. How did you find out, and what did you change?

Adapt your resume

  • List these exact terms on your resume: AI Evaluation and Computer vision. An applicant tracking system matches the wording, not the idea.
  • Attach one line of real, concrete experience to at least one of them. A tool named with nothing behind it rarely survives a human read.
  • Lead with what you built, trained or shipped. This role is judged on the AI system itself, not the tools around it.

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