Who we are

The role

The day-to-day

• Own the end-to-end hardware design of UAV systems, from early-stage prototyping through to flight-ready builds
  
  
• Integrate mechanical, electronic, and sensor subsystems into cohesive, manufacturable drone architectures
  
  
• Develop and iterate physical prototypes rapidly, balancing performance, weight, and durability constraints
  
  
• Define and execute hardware validation and flight-readiness testing, including bench, integration, and field trials
  
  
• Collaborate closely with software, firmware, and avionics teams to ensure seamless hardware/software integration
  
  
• Produce clear design documentation, schematics, and BOMs in accordance with company quality standards
  
  
• Evaluate and select COTS components, working with suppliers to meet technical and programme requirements

You should apply if you

• Have hands-on experience designing and building UAV or similar complex autonomous hardware systems
  
  
• Are comfortable working across both mechanical and electronic domains — from airframe structures to PCB layout and power systems
  
  
• Have a strong prototyping mindset, with experience taking hardware from concept to flying article at pace
  
  
• Are proficient with CAD tools (e.g. SolidWorks, Siemens NX) and comfortable with electronics design tools (e.g. Altium)
  
  
• Have experience defining and running hardware validation and test campaigns
  
  
• Thrive in fast-moving environments where iteration speed and engineering judgement matter equally
  
  
• Exhibit excellent written and verbal communication skills in English

Note: We operate in an industry where women, as well as other minority groups, are systematically under-represented. We encourage you to apply even if you don’t meet all the listed qualifications; ability and impact cannot be summarised in a few bullet points.

Join Helsing and work with world-leading experts in their fields 

• Helsing’s work is important. You’ll be directly contributing to the protection of democratic countries while balancing both ethical and geopolitical concerns

• The work is unique. We operate in a domain that has highly unusual technical requirements and constraints, and where robustness, safety, and ethical considerations are vital. You will face unique Engineering and AI challenges that make a meaningful impact in the world

• Our work frequently takes us right up to the state of the art in technical innovation, be it reinforcement learning, distributed systems, generative AI, or deployment infrastructure. The defence industry is entering the most exciting phase of the technological development curve. Advances in our field of world are not incremental: Helsing is part of, and often leading, historic leaps forward

• In our domain, success is a matter of order-of-magnitude improvements and novel capabilities. This means we take bets, aim high, and focus on big opportunities. Despite being a relatively young company, Helsing has already been selected for multiple significant government contracts

• We actively encourage healthy, proactive, and diverse debate internally about what we do and how we choose to do it. Teams and individual engineers are trusted (and encouraged) to practise responsible autonomy and critical thinking, and to focus on outcomes, not conformity. At Helsing you will have a say in how we (and you!) work, the opportunity to engage on what does and doesn’t work, and to take ownership of aspects of our culture that you care deeply about

What we offer

• Competitive salary and VSOP options

• Relocation support: up to €2,500 and 4 weeks temporary accommodation

• Learning: €500/£450 yearly allowance

• Health & wellness: gym membership and mental health support (Nilo.health)

• Social: regular company events and monthly social allowances

• Enhanced parental leave: 22 weeks fully paid for primary caregivers & 6 weeks for secondary caregivers

• Family support: 5 days of paid family emergency leave, 100% remote work option during pregnancy and phased return to work

• A hands-on onboarding program (affectionately labelled “Infraduction”), in which you will be building tooling and applications to be used across the company. This is your opportunity to learn our tech stack, explore the company, and learn how we get things done - all whilst working with other engineering teams from day one 

Helsing is an equal opportunities employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability or gender identity. Please do not submit personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade union membership, data concerning your health, or data concerning your sexual orientation.

Job Title: Hardware Design Engineer

Reports to: Director of Hardware Engineering

Department: Engineering

💼 About the role

We’re seeking an experienced hardware design engineer to expand our cryptographic hardware IP team. You would be joining a mature design team with a proven track record of delivering market leading cryptographic IP, your role would expose you to the latest cryptographic standards and allow you to develop for the latest technologies.

We hope that you have at least 5 years of experience working on hardware design of complex IPs targeted at deployment on latest generation FPGAs, preferably with some experience working with cryptographic and security IPs.

 We have been established since 2018, so you would be directly working with the founders and inventors of this deep tech startup. The technology is already a couple of years in the making, its feasibility having been established, funding secured, and it has a clear path to market. This is a great opportunity for career progression and to get a head start in a rapidly expanding segment of the technology industry.

⚒️ What you’ll be doing

• Design and implementation of hardware IP blocks and subsystems.
• Tailoring implementations to FPGAs
• Working with verification engineers to create verification and test plans.
• Creation of reliable, reusable and excellently structured hardware design flows.
• Providing feedback to architects on feasibility of implementation and specification quality.
• Ensuring clean lint and implementation reports for IP blocks and subsystems.

🎯 Required Skills And Qualifications

• A commitment to high quality engineering in all areas of their work, including advocating for the best long-term solutions over the easiest or quickest.
• Optimising designs for both area and performance in FPGA technologies.  
• Experience building hardware IP blocks from scratch, and owning the process from initial specification through to customer delivery.
• Confidence bringing up a design using a basic “designers testbench”.
• Experience with standard commercial EDA Design tooling flows.
• Knowledge of common bus protocols (e.g. AMBA AXI4, AHB).
• Experience building and simulating hardware/software co-designs.
• Confidence in debugging RTL simulations issues.
• Degree or equivalent in Electronics/Computer Science or other related discipline.

🖥️ Specific Technologies You Are Confident Using

• FPGA and emulation experience. We use Xilinx FPGAs extensively for prototyping and hardware/firmware co-development.
• Logical IP design using SystemVerilog.
• Version control using Git.
• Writing System and subsystem level tests in C, using CMake as a build system.
• Confidence using tools like Bash, TCL, CMake and Makefiles safely and sensibly.

👍 Preferred Skills And Qualifications

• Python scripting for flows and automation 
• Experience debugging gate level simulations.
• Knowledge of Industry standard SoC Security Architectures
• Knowledge of tamper resistance and/or power side-channel security countermeasures.
• Experience using Gitlab CI, or otherwise principles of continuous integration and testing.

🏆 Some of the perks of working with us:

• Unparalleled opportunities to learn and accelerated career development.
• A collaborative, team environment with people who truly love what they do.
• Competitive salary and share option scheme.
• Flexible and hybrid working, and a working from home budget.
• Private health insurance for yourself and your family.
• 25 days annual leave (plus bank holidays and two wellness weeks).
• 50% gym membership discount.
• The chance to work with a spirited, smart, and friendly team!

Interested? Apply today to be part of the future of secure hardware! 🚀