Freelance Linux Kernel Developer Jobs in Arizona

Position Description
Swarmbotics AI is seeking a skilled and experienced Software Deployment Engineer to own the deployment, management, and security of the software running on the embedded, heterogeneous processors within our autonomous swarm systems. This individual contributor role will be responsible for building and maintaining CI/CD pipelines, fleet provisioning infrastructure, and containerized deployment workflows that keep our robots running reliably and securely in the field.
This role is critical to ensuring seamless hardware-software integration across our fleet of autonomous Unmanned Ground Vehicles, from initial board bring-up through production deployment and ongoing updates. The Software Deployment Engineer will work closely with embedded, autonomy, and systems engineering teams to ensure reproducible, secure, and scalable deployment processes across edge devices and supporting cloud environments.
The ideal candidate has deep expertise in Linux-based embedded systems, NVIDIA Jetson platforms, containerized deployments, and DevOps practices tailored for robotics systems operating in constrained or intermittently connected environments. This individual is comfortable building processes from scratch in a fast-moving startup where execution, security, and meticulous documentation are essential.
Required Qualifications

• Strong desire to work in a fast-paced, fluid startup environment
• Ability to work onsite in the Phoenix, AZ area
• Minimum 3 years of experience in a DevOps, SRE, or embedded systems deployment role
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related technical field
• Deep expertise in Linux internals and system-level configuration
• Hands-on experience with NVIDIA Jetson platforms, including board bring-up, BSP customization, and JetPack/L4T environments
• Experience designing and maintaining CI/CD pipelines using tools such as GitHub Actions, CircleCI, Jenkins, or similar
• Experience with configuration management and automation tools, preferably Ansible
• Proficiency in containerization (Docker) tailored for resource-constrained edge environments
• Proficiency in scripting languages such as Python and Bash
• Solid understanding of cybersecurity principles for embedded and edge devices, including secure boot, root of trust, kernel hardening, and supply chain security
• Strong commitment to documentation, reproducibility, and idempotent deployment practices
• Excellent communication and problem-solving skills
• Excitement about contributing to the defense of the United States and its allies
• Must be eligible to obtain and maintain a U.S. Secret security clearance

Preferred Qualifications

• Hands-on experience with hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) and software-in-the-loop (SIL) testing
• Experience with declarative configuration management approaches such as Nix or NixOS
• Experience with bootloaders such as U-Boot and secure boot implementations
• Experience with container orchestration platforms such as Kubernetes for edge or cloud environments
• Knowledge of network protocols and embedded systems security
• Experience deploying embedded systems in air-gapped or intermittently connected environments
• Experience with supply chain risk management and software bill of materials (SBOM) practices
• Familiarity with ROS and robotics software stacks
• Experience with NVIDIA GPU programming environments such as CUDA or TensorRT
• Experience with a CatBs framework is preferred but not required

The preceding description is not designed to be a complete list of all duties and responsibilities required for the position. Swarmbotics is an equal-opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will be treated with respect and receive equal consideration for employment without regard to race, color, caste, creed, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, disability, uniform service, Veteran status, age, or any other protected characteristic per federal, state, or local law.