Network and Security Engineer, Defense

Applied Intuition, Inc. is powering the future of physical AI. Founded in 2017 and now valued at $15 billion, the Silicon Valley company is creating the digital infrastructure needed to bring intelligence to every moving machine on the planet. Applied Intuition services the automotive, defense, trucking, construction, mining and agriculture industries in three core areas: tools and infrastructure, operating systems, and autonomy. Eighteen of the top 20 global automakers, as well as the United States military and its allies, trust the company’s solutions to deliver physical intelligence. Applied Intuition is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, with offices in Washington, D.C.; San Diego; Ft. Walton Beach, Florida; Ann Arbor, Michigan; London; Stuttgart; Munich; Stockholm; Bangalore; Seoul; and Tokyo. Learn more at applied.co .

We are an in-office company, and our expectation is that full-time employees primarily work from their Applied Intuition office 5 days a week. However, we also recognize the importance of flexibility and trust our employees to manage their schedules responsibly. This may include occasional remote work, starting the day with morning meetings from home before heading to the office, or leaving earlier when needed to accommodate family commitments. This in-office expectation does not apply to contractor positions

About the Role

We are looking for a Network and Security Engineer to own the architecture of high-performance, high-assurance networks for our defense programs. You will design networks that move terabits of radar, camera, and vehicle data with low, predictable latency, and you will secure those networks to the standard needed for classified environments up to Impact Level 6 (IL6). This is a senior, hands-on individual contributor role for someone who has spent a career solving hard networking and security problems and wants to keep doing so directly, while shaping technical direction across our defense programs and growing into broader technical leadership. At Applied, we encourage engineers to own technical and product decisions, work closely with customers and users, and contribute to a thoughtful, dynamic team culture.

At Applied Intuition, you will:

• Architect and build high-bandwidth network fabrics (100/400/800GbE) that carry mixed radar, EO/IR camera, and vehicle bus data from the sensor edge to compute and storage

• Design for deterministic, low-latency transport using techniques such as Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN), precision time synchronization (PTP/IEEE 1588), RDMA/RoCEv2, and multicast for sensor distribution

• Bridge in-vehicle networks (automotive Ethernet, CAN, and legacy military buses) with modern IP-based backbones in rugged, size- and power-limited platforms

• Design and implement security architectures that support IL5/IL6 accreditation, including network segmentation, encryption in transit (MACsec, IPsec, CSfC-style layered encryption), PKI, and cross-domain data flows

• Apply zero trust principles across on-prem, tactical edge, and cloud environments rather than relying on perimeter-only defenses

• Automate network and security configuration with infrastructure as code, and build continuous compliance checks into deployment pipelines in place of manual, document-driven processes

• Build observability into the network through streaming telemetry, flow analysis, and security monitoring so that problems and threats surface quickly

• Translate Navy and DoD guidance into practical engineering decisions, adopting the intent of those standards while pushing toward modern, maintainable solutions

• Work directly with customers, government stakeholders, and product teams across Applied to understand mission needs and deployment constraints

• Set the technical roadmap for defense networking and security, lead design reviews, mentor engineers across teams, and serve as a trusted technical voice with customers and government stakeholders

We’re looking for someone who has:

• 15+ years of experience in network engineering and network security engineering, including significant time architecting large-scale or mission-critical networks

• Deep expertise in designing and operating high-throughput data center or HPC networks (routing, switching, QoS, congestion control, and performance tuning)

• Hands-on experience securing networks in regulated or classified environments, including segmentation, encryption, and identity-based access controls

• Strong working knowledge of security frameworks such as NIST 800-53 and the DoD Risk Management Framework (RMF)

• Scripting and automation ability in Python, Go, or Bash, and experience with infrastructure as code tools (Ansible, Terraform, Nornir, or similar)

• A track record of setting technical direction for multi-engineer efforts as an architect, technical lead, or senior IC, and mentoring other engineers along the way

• A track record of owning complex technical problems end to end and driving them to completion in a fast-paced environment

• Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance (active TS/SCI preferred)

• BS/MS degree in computer science, electrical engineering, or equivalent experience

Security Requirements:

• Must be a U.S. Citizen

• Must hold or be eligible to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance

For more information about U.S. security clearances: click here .

Nice to Have:

• Experience with sensor data transport such as GigE Vision, VITA 49, or other high-rate radar and camera streaming protocols

• Familiarity with open architecture approaches such as MOSA, SOSA, and VPX-based systems

• Experience with SmartNICs, DPUs, DPDK, or eBPF for packet processing and in-network security

• Experience with Commercial Solutions for Classified (CSfC), Type 1 encryption devices, or cross-domain solutions

• Exposure to Navy and DoD frameworks such as DISA STIGs, the DoD Zero Trust Reference Architecture, and NAVWAR/NAVSEA cybersecurity guidance

• Experience with in-vehicle and avionics networks (automotive Ethernet, ARINC 664/AFDX, MIL-STD-1553)

Compensation at Applied Intuition for eligible roles includes base salary, equity, and benefits. Base salary is a single component of the total compensation package, which may also include equity in the form of options and/or restricted stock units, comprehensive health, dental, vision, life and disability insurance coverage, 401k retirement benefits with employer match, learning and wellness stipends, and paid time off. Note that benefits are subject to change and may vary based on jurisdiction of employment.

Applied Intuition pay ranges reflect the minimum and maximum intended target base salary for new hire salaries for the position. The actual base salary offered to a successful candidate will additionally be influenced by a variety of factors including experience, credentials & certifications, educational attainment, skill level requirements, interview performance, and the level and scope of the position.

Don’t meet every single requirement? If you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

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