Defence Software Systems Engineer — Real-Time AI & ISR

We are hiring a Defence Software Systems Engineer — Real-Time AI & ISR Noctra

If you do not read this entire posting, do not apply.

This role is remote in the first phase, and we are open to international candidates. Where you are based matters less than your relevance, technical depth, and ability to contribute to what we are building.

Noctra is a Norwegian defence technology company building real time AI, ISR, and decision support systems for Arctic and allied operations.

We are not building consumer software.

We are not building ordinary SaaS.

We are building systems that must function in environments where data is incomplete, connectivity is degraded, latency matters, and failure has real consequences.

We already have a working technical foundation.

Now we need someone who can help take the system further into a more robust, deployable, and operationally credible platform.

The role

This is not a generic software engineering role. This is not a research only AI role. This is not a place to learn fundamentals.

This is for someone who understands how to build and harden real systems that combine real time pipelines, AI inference, sensor fusion, edge deployment, and decision support software.

You will work closely with the founders and technical leadership on the core software system.

Your work may include:

• Designing and improving real time ingestion and processing pipelines
• Building and hardening sensor fusion logic across imperfect and asynchronous inputs, improving tracking, persistence, and state estimation under degraded conditions
• Reducing end to end latency across the pipeline
• Improving reliability outside controlled environments
• Supporting edge deployment and performance constrained execution
• Helping shape APIs, infrastructure, and system architecture around the operational platform
• Contributing to a software stack built for sovereign, offline capable, and NATO relevant deployment contexts

What we are looking for:

You likely have strong experience in one or more of the following:

• Real time systems
• ISR or sensor fusion systems
• Edge AI or edge deployment
• Computer vision in operational environments
• Tracking, perception, or autonomy systems
• Distributed or latency sensitive software systems
• API and platform engineering for operational software.
• Software reliability in mission critical environments

More important than tool names:

• You have built systems that actually run
• You understand failure modes, not just ideal case architecture
• You care about robustness, not only demos
• You are comfortable working in an early stage environment where parts of the system and role are still being defined.
• You can work across ambiguity without becoming vague

Defence background requirement:

This role is intended primarily for candidates with prior background from the armed forces, the defence sector, or closely related operational defence environments.

At this stage, we are only looking to speak with people who already understand the realities of defence relevant work, whether through direct military experience, defence systems, defence operations, or similarly close operational exposure.

If you do not have this kind of background, this role is very unlikely to be the right fit, and your application will generally not be reviewed.

The only exception is if you have unusually strong and clearly provable relevance from a very closely related domain. In that case, please send your CV and a detailed explanation directly to [email protected] before applying here.

Work structure and flexibility:

We have intentionally listed this role in a flexible way because we want to structure the collaboration around the right person, not around a rigid template.

At this stage, we are open to several formats, including:

• Full time
• Part time
• Fractional
• Task based work with clear deadlines and ownership

What matters most to us is not a rigid number of hours per week or fixed office style schedules. What matters is the strength of your background, the relevance of your experience, your fit with the company and team, and your ability to take real ownership and deliver meaningful work.

We care far more about contribution, reliability, and quality of execution than about whether the work happens in a traditional fixed hour format. If the scope is clear, the ownership is strong, and the work gets done properly, we are very open to shaping the structure around that.

Compensation

Compensation in the initial phase is only equity based.

The amount will vary depending on:

• The scope of the role
• The level of responsibility
• The type of contribution
• How deeply involved you are
• How long you stay with us as the company develops
• The actual value of the contribution over time

We are therefore not looking at this through a narrow one size fits all hiring model. We are looking for the right people, and we are open to building the right structure around them.

What this is

• Early stage
• Technically demanding
• Equity based in the initial phase
• High trust and high ownership
• A real opportunity to help shape the software foundation of the company

What this is not

• A mature backlog driven engineering environment
• A generic AI startup role
• A narrow isolated coding position
• A low ownership role with a finished structure waiting for you

Application:

Please send your CV to:

[email protected]

We are not looking for a large number of people. We are looking for the right one.