Maritime Field Engineer

Who we are

Helsing is a defence AI company. Our mission is to protect our democracies. We aim to achieve technological leadership, so that open societies can continue to make sovereign decisions and control their ethical standards.

As democracies, we believe we have a special responsibility to be thoughtful about the development and deployment of powerful technologies like AI. We take this responsibility seriously.

We are an ambitious and committed team of engineers, AI specialists and customer-facing programme managers. We are looking for mission-driven people to join our European teams – and apply their skills to solve the most complex and impactful problems. We embrace an open and transparent culture that welcomes healthy debates on the use of technology in defence, its benefits, and its ethical implications.

The role

As a Maritime Field Engineer, you will be central to maturing Helsing's military AI products from proof of concept to large-scale operational rollout. Working at the boundary between software, hardware and the maritime environment, you will test combined systems throughout the product development lifecycle — in the lab, at the waterfront, and at sea. You will collaborate closely with software and AI engineers, product managers and end users in a tight iteration loop, providing the critical feedback that shapes how our products evolve. Your work will directly assure that Helsing's products are safe, reliable and ready for deployment, ensuring that what we build performs when it matters most.

The day-to-day

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Test combined software and hardware products end to end in the lab and in the field, capturing data and providing structured feedback to Helsing's software and AI engineers to drive product improvement

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Prepare, transport, mobilise and demobilise equipment at test locations — including ports and offshore environments — and execute tests at sea

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Install AI software onto edge computing devices using Helsing's in-house deployment tools, ensuring systems are correctly configured for field conditions

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Repair and maintain marine mechanical and electrical systems in the field, minimising downtime and keeping test programmes on schedule

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Design, refine and improve test plans and safety standard operating procedures, raising the bar for how Helsing conducts field operations

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Define the resources required to maintain an effective and efficient field testing operation — for example, procuring hardware, trialling new software tools for inventory management and QA, or establishing support vessels and waterfront storage

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Advise on training course design and in-service support procedures, helping to shape how end users interact with Helsing's products

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Travel to testing locations across the UK, France, Germany and beyond as required

You should apply if you

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Have strong technical aptitude and can understand complex hardware and software products at a systems level — you are driven to understand how something works, or why it does not

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Communicate clearly in writing and speech, producing concise documentation and explaining technical concepts effectively to both engineering and non-engineering audiences

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Have independently owned critical workstreams, identified problems and taken the initiative to resolve them without waiting for direction

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Are committed to protecting liberal democratic values by contributing to the defence and security sector

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Are comfortable working at sea for periods of up to two weeks

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Have a practical, hands-on approach to working with hardware, equipment and field environments

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.

Nice to Have

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Experience testing software and/or hardware products at any stage of maturity, from prototype to production system

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Experience working on the water in an operational or technical capacity

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Experience training end users on complex hardware and/or software products, or providing in-service support

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Experience planning and executing maritime trials

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Recognised industry qualifications to operate workboats up to 24m at sea

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

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

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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

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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

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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

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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

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Competitive salary and stock options (ESOP)

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

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Learning: €500/£450 yearly allowance

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

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Social: regularly company events and monthly social allowances

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

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

These are the core benefits across all locations, there may be additional benefits in certain locations.

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.

Helsing's Candidate Privacy and Confidentiality Regime can be found here.