Principal Optical Test & Automation Engineer

K2 is building the largest and highest-power satellites ever flown, unlocking performance levels previously out of reach across every orbit. Backed by $450M from leading investors including Altimeter Capital, Redpoint Ventures, T. Rowe Price, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Alpine Space Ventures, and others – with an additional $500M in signed contracts across commercial and US government customers – we’re mass-producing the highest-power satellite platforms ever built for missions from LEO to deep space.

The rise of heavy-lift launch vehicles is shifting the industry from an era of mass constraint to one of mass abundance, and we believe this new era demands a fundamentally different class of spacecraft. Engineered to survive the harshest radiation environments and to fully capitalize on today’s and tomorrow’s massive rockets, K2 satellites deliver unmatched capability at constellation scale and across multiple orbits.

With multiple launches planned through 2026 and 2027, we're Building Bigger to develop the solar system and become a Kardashev Type II (K2) civilization. If you are a motivated individual who thrives in a fast-paced environment and you're excited about contributing to the success of a groundbreaking Series C space startup, we’d love for you to apply.

The Role

K2’s plan doesn't stop at satellite buses. Operating our own vehicles and manifesting regular rides to space uniquely positions K2 to design, test, and deploy-at-scale ambitious optical payloads in MEO, GEO, cis-lunar, and deep space on unprecedented timelines. The satellite bus is the platform – the payloads are the mission.

As a Principal Optical Test & Automation Engineer, you will be responsible for the strategic roll out, design, commissioning (build, alignment, and bring-up), and maintenance of all optical test and automation infrastructure. In this role, you will have one of the best system engineering vantage points with which to understand how each optical payload works, identify when flight hardware isn’t behaving as intended, and suggest when hardware complexity can be offloaded to software and test. You will own the design and development of:

• flight-like hardware-in-the-loop infrastructure for developing software and algorithms;

• automation of sub-system and end-of-line testing and calibration; and

• robotic active alignment (** for only the highest volume payloads)

...all of which are themselves sophisticated optical assemblies.

The sophistication and variety of optical test infrastructure we are targeting will require meaningful innovation, but you will have the resources and full support of K2 to make this possible and help raise the bar for the next generation of space technology companies. K2 believes that this is how you build optical systems at scale, and that this is the future of space exploration.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with hardware designers to determine where there are opportunities to offload hardware complexity to software, test, or automation of active alignment, and understand how to test all critical performance requirements.

• Translate those opportunities into elegant designs for ground support equipment capable of reliably and quickly performing their intended function, and write test procedures that ensure successful use and deterministic results. This ground support equipment should be “a joy to interact with” and produce insightful test reports and visuals that help engineers pin-point where hardware is deviating from expectations.

• Collaborate with software and avionics teams to determine optimal strategy for on-orbit telemetry collection and access. Prepare automated reports and dashboards illustrating on-orbit performance across the fleet with an eye towards correlating on-orbit performance with results from ground testing.

• Execute careful selection of off-the-shelf test and automation equipment that can be leveraged in many different setups.

• Prepare design reviews for optical ground support equipment to get stakeholder buy-in and communicate expectations to the hardware, software, and test teams.

• Commission all optical ground support systems – procurement, building, alignment, and demonstration of successful intended functionality.

• Forecast staffing needs, define roles, and interview candidates to ensure the optical payloads team is staffed appropriately to meet optical test and automaton deliverables on schedule.

• Mentor the engineers supporting you to make them more capable and autonomous in the realm of optical test in the future – scoping work, providing feedback throughout, and reviewing and signing off on the quality of their work.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in physics, optics, computer science, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, or a related technical field.

• 8+ years of experience in the design, manufacture, and test of optical systems.

Nice to Have

• Experience designing and deploying optical payloads at every phase of the product life cycle (requirements generation, design, analysis, tolerance, procure, build, align, test, deploy, operate).

• Experience developing modular, reusable test automation software and drivers in Linux, Python, C++, Rust, etc.

• Experience conducting experimental research, data analysis, and visualizing esoteric datasets.

• Understanding of the failure modes of electrical, mechanical, and optical systems in space environment.

Compensation and Benefits:

• Base salary range for this role is $190,000 - $290,000 + equity in the company

• Salary will be based on several factors including, but not limited to: knowledge and skills, education, and experience level

• Comprehensive benefits package including paid time off, medical/dental/vision coverage, life insurance, paid parental leave, and many other perks

If you don’t meet 100% of the preferred skills and experience, we encourage you to still apply! Building a spacecraft unlike any other requires a team unlike any other and non-traditional career twists and turns are encouraged!

If you need a reasonable accommodation as part of your application for employment or interviews with us, please let us know.

Export Compliance

As defined in the ITAR, “U.S. Persons” include U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents (i.e., Green Card holders), and certain protected individuals (e.g., refugees/asylees, American Samoans). Please consult with a knowledgeable advisor if you are unsure whether you are a “U.S. Person.”

The person hired for this role will have access to information and items controlled by U.S. export control regulations, including the export control regulations outlined in the International Traffic in Arms Regulation (ITAR). The person hired for this role must therefore either be a “U.S. person” as defined by 22 C.F.R. § 120.15 or otherwise eligible for a federally issued export control license.

Equal Opportunity

K2 Space is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with K2 Space is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.