Note: At this stage we are keen to connect with interested candidates ahead of Q426/Q127.
THE LAST FRONTIER
The Arctic is a place of extremes: unforgiving, untamed, and undergoing rapid change. A literal defrosting reveals a multi-trillion-dollar opportunity spanning energy, defence, logistics, research, and infrastructure.
Arctic Research and Development (ARD) was founded on a paradox. The Arctic is both the next great economic frontier and one of the most hostile environments on Earth. Rich in resources and strategically vital, yet bone-chillingly cold, dark for months, and fundamentally inhospitable to humans. This paradox—an explosion of activity in a place that resists human presence—is why we exist.
Our solution is autonomy.
We build systems that operate reliably and intelligently in the Arctic, so that humans don't always have to.
Founded by record-holding pioneers with decades of polar experience, we take calculated risks on hard problems that matter. If you want to build and deploy ground-up technology with real-world impact, at an inflection point in history that won’t reappear, we’d like to talk.
THE ROLE
We're looking for a Perception Engineer to build the eyes for autonomous systems operating in the world's most sensor-hostile environment. You'll develop computer vision and sensor fusion systems that cut through Arctic whiteout, polar night darkness, and ice fog — where traditional perception stacks fail. This isn't lab work: you'll deploy ML models on edge hardware that operates at -40°C, where every watt counts and failure means mission abort.
CORE RESPONSIBILITIES
Design and deploy perception pipelines for Arctic autonomous platforms (surface, subsurface, aerial)
Fuse multi-modal sensor data (vision, LiDAR, radar, IMU, GNSS) for situational awareness and autonomy
Build ML models for ice classification, terrain mapping, and obstacle detection in low-visibility conditions
Train, evaluate, and harden ML models against snow cover, ice glare, low sun angles, and polar night conditions
Create synthetic training data and simulation environments for Arctic-specific scenarios
Work closely with mechanical, electrical, RF, and autonomy teams to co-design sensor placement, calibration, and integration
Support field deployments in the Arctic and iterate rapidly based on real-world data
WHAT WE VALUE
5+ years industry experience in robotics, autonomy, or real-world ML perception systems
Strong foundation in computer vision, SLAM, and multi-sensor fusion
Proficiency in Python and C++ with production-grade engineering practices
Experience with perception frameworks (ROS / ROS2, OpenCV, PyTorch, TensorFlow, etc.)
Comfort working with real sensors, calibration workflows, and noisy data
A track record of shipping perception systems that work outside controlled environments
Willingness to operate in safe but extreme cold environments during R&D field testing
WHAT WE OFFER
Competitive compensation
Private Health Insurance
Dental & Vision
Equity — meaningful options as an early employee at an early-stage company
Real field exposure — travel to Arctic sites and Outposts when needed
Mission-driven culture — focus on impact, not hours logged
Small team, real ownership — what you build matters and ships
Job details are sourced from the employer's original posting.
Open job postingAbout the company
Arctic Research and Development is a company focused on research and development activities.