Technical Co-Founder, Firmware/Software
Hawkline is searching for a technical co-founder to own firmware and software for FieldLine, a tethered aerial camera platform for live sports coverage. Early work is hands-on embedded development (STM32, PX4/ROS2/uXRCE-DDS) to get Unit 1 through flight test, growing into technical leadership, architecture decisions, and shared ownership of company direction. Equity-first: 10-20%.
- Compensation
- Not disclosed
- Location
- Georgetown
- Work setup
- Not specified
- Seniority
- Lead
- Employment
- Not specified
- Experience
- 20+ years
- Category
- Embedded
- Posted
Skills
Must have
- Deep software/firmware and embedded systems background
- Hands-on firmware and systems work with STM32, PX4/ROS2/uXRCE-DDS
- Prior experience in a high-ownership technical role (founder, technical lead, or similar)
- Comfortable with real, early-stage risk; equity-first opportunity at a pre-seed company
- Wants to build a company, not just a product
Nice to have
- Experience with robotics, aerospace, or UAV platforms
- 8+ years of experience
Full description
Compensation: 10.0% – 20.0%
About Hawkline
Hawkline is building FieldLine, a tethered aerial camera platform designed to close the gap between elite broadcast-grade aerial coverage (SkyCam) and static sideline analytics (Hudl), bringing dynamic, live aerial coverage to high school athletics and mid-size live events at a price point and safety profile that actually fits how most of the market operates.
We're pre-revenue, in the hardware bring-up stage, with core system architecture locked and bench validation underway. The founder is a senior mechanical engineer with 20+ years across defense, aerospace, and robotics, currently carrying mechanical design, electrical/power architecture, firmware, and the business side largely solo. What's missing isn't technical vision or direction. It's a partner to go deep on the software/firmware side specifically, so the system gets the same level of depth there that it already has on the mechanical and electrical side.
The Role
This isn't a job posting in the traditional sense. It's a search for a genuine technical co-founder to take real ownership in the engineering organization as the company scales past a single-founder structure. You'd be joining at the earliest possible stage, with significant influence over technical direction, hiring, and architecture decisions going forward.
What that looks like in practice, early on:
Hands-on firmware and systems work (STM32, PX4/ROS2/uXRCE-DDS) to get Unit 1 through flight test
Technical leadership as the team grows: defining how future engineering hires are structured and led
Shared ownership of major technical decisions, from architecture to build-vs-buy calls to regulatory/safety strategy
A genuine seat at the table on company direction, not just execution of a pre-set roadmap
Who you are
Deep software/firmware and embedded systems background: robotics, aerospace, or UAV platforms preferred, 8+ years preferred
Complementary to a mechanical/electrical/systems-strong founder. You're the one who takes firmware, autonomy, and software architecture from "functional" to genuinely robust
Prior experience in a high-ownership technical role, whether as a founder, technical lead, or similarly high-autonomy position
Comfortable with real, early-stage risk: this is an equity-first opportunity at a company that hasn't closed its seed round yet
Someone who wants to build a company, not just a product
What we offer
Substantial equity ownership commensurate with a genuine co-founder role
Real influence over both the technical and strategic direction of the company