Senior Controls Engineer Jobs in Rhode Island (NOW HIRING)

At REGENT, we’re on a mission to revolutionize regional transportation between coastal cities. We're not just building vehicles, we're creating a new category of transportation: the Seaglider. These groundbreaking wing-in-ground-effect craft travel just above the water’s surface, combining the speed of an airplane with the low operating costs of a boat. Capable of 180 miles at 180 mph on today's battery tech (and up to 400 miles with next‑gen batteries), Seagliders will unlock fast, affordable, and sustainable coastal transit for passengers and cargo - connecting cities, islands, and communities like never before.

Backed by leading investors and powered by a team of passionate, forward‑thinking engineers, builders, and operators, we’re now scaling from a breakthrough prototype to full production - and building the team to make it happen.

We're looking for a Senior Mission Software Engineer to drive development and integration of the Seaglider's vehicle‑level software: the system that ties guidance, navigation, control, communications, and health monitoring together. You'll build and integrate the software for our first production Seagliders — spanning multiple avionics units, high‑rate control loops, and mission logic — and help take our platform from prototype to production‑ready, with major milestones ahead in hardware integration, sea trials, and autonomy.

If you’re energized by working at the intersection of cutting‑edge innovation, real‑world impact, and hands‑on engineering, you’ll be in the right place - and we’d be thrilled to have you on the team!

• Build the vehicle software framework: implement and evolve the interfaces between subsystems (perception, controls, UI) and the data flows that tie them together, within the vehicle‑level architecture.

• Integrate software on real vehicles: hardware bring‑up, sensor drivers, and tuning during test campaigns, on both our prototype and production programs.

• Build for reliability: telemetry and logging, fault management and fail‑safe behavior, test harnesses, and a software update process with rollback.

• Support test operations: own the software integration schedule for upcoming tests and debug issues in the field when the clock is running.

• Partner with autonomy: define and build the vehicle‑side interface the autonomy stack plugs into.

• Raise the bar: mentor earlier career engineers and uphold coding guidelines and review practices.

• Experience developing software for vehicles or robots, ideally in aerospace (avionics, UAV, eVTOL) or automotive (ADAS, autonomous vehicles).

• Strong C++ for complex systems: memory management, multi‑threading, performance in embedded or near‑embedded environments.

• Real‑time experience (RTOS or real‑time frameworks) and software that talks directly to sensors and actuators.

• A track record of integrating software on actual vehicles — bring‑up, driver debugging, tuning in test.

• Systems programming depth: networking (UDP/TCP, CAN), threading, IPC, and long‑duration robustness.

• Familiarity with safety‑critical principles (fail‑safe states, watchdogs, redundancy); experience under design assurance obligations (DO‑178C or comparable) is a plus — our production program develops to certification‑grade evidence practices.

• Bonus: avionics protocols (ARINC 429, CAN), implemented Kalman filters or control loops, embedded CI/DevOps, GPU and high‑rate data processing, prior startup experience.

• Collaborative Team Player: You know great vehicle software is built across disciplines, not in isolation. You work naturally across software, controls, perception, systems, and hardware teams, communicating clearly across technical boundaries and helping teams stay aligned as designs evolve and integration challenges emerge.

• Creative Problem Solver: You’re energized by hard problems that don’t have an obvious answer. You’re willing to dig into software, logs, interfaces, hardware, and test data to understand what’s really happening, and you follow problems through to resolution rather than stopping at the edge of your own code.

• Adaptable & Agile: You’re comfortable building in a fast‑moving startup where priorities, requirements, and designs evolve quickly. You know how to make progress without perfect information, balance speed with technical rigor, and introduce the right amount of structure, tooling, and documentation to help the team move faster as we scale.

• Ownership Mindset: You take responsibility for what your software enables on the vehicle, not just the code you write. You have a strong bias toward shipping, testing, and learning in the real world, and you’re willing to get hands‑on with the hardware when that’s what it takes to make the product work.

• Broad Technical Curiosity: You’re motivated by solving the problem, not staying inside the boundaries of a single specialty. You’ve worked across different parts of the software stack, enjoy learning unfamiliar systems, and are willing to go wherever the product needs you most.

• Competitive compensation including a robust equity incentive plan.

• Comprehensive health, dental, and vision insurance - we cover 100% of your premiums.

• 401(k) with company matching, so you can plan for the future.

• Generous flexible time off, paid parental leave, and company‑wide holiday breaks.

• Relocation packages available for those moving to join our team.

• Daily, free catered lunches

• Learning & professional development opportunities

If you’re ready to take on an exciting challenge, grow with us, and make a lasting impact, we want to hear from you. Even if you don’t meet every requirement, but you see yourself contributing to our mission, we encourage you to apply! We value diverse skillsets and experiences and believe in the potential of passionate individuals to make a big impact.

Equal Opportunity Employer

REGENT is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive work environment. Employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, or any other characteristic protected by law.