Sr. Electrical Harness Engineer

The posting, as 9 Mothers wrote it

Job Title: Senior Electrical Harness Engineer

About 9 Mothers

The modern battlefield has changed. Cheap, autonomous suicide drones have turned the tactical advantage upside down, and the world is looking for a solution. At 9 Mothers, we aren’t just "innovating"—we are building the shield.

Backed by top-tier investors, we develop AI powered machines designed to intercept and neutralize Group 1/sUAS threats in real-time. Our flagship product is a low-power, counter-drone system built for the edge—on vehicles, at bases, or in a soldier's pack.

Why 9 Mothers?

While others build for "awareness" or "long-term research," we build for the immediate survival of those in harm’s way. We are a team of hackers, engineers, and mission-driven builders who value field-ready capability over polished slide decks. If you want to see your code or hardware in the field next month—not next year—this is your playground.

Position Summary

EDDA's cables are its nerves, and we're hiring the person who owns them: every harness in the product — power, signal, data and fiber — from wire list through connector selection, routing across moving axes, bench prototyping, qualification and production sourcing. You have shipped rugged, high-flex-life harnesses and are equally at home with copper, fiber and hybrid builds.

EDDA is the low-cost counter-UAS solution, so the job is one judgment made hundreds of times: rugged where it matters, cost-efficient where it doesn't. MIL-spec circular connectors and continuous-flex cable where a harness crosses the elevation axis and takes recoil; a less-rugged sealed connector and standard jacket where it sits bolted inside the base. You defend each call with test data and a cost roll-up.

What You'll Own

• Power: battery, bus and motor-drive feeds — conductor sizing, voltage drop, thermal budgets, fusing, grounding.
• Signal and data: encoder, sensor, CAN, Ethernet, USB and camera links, with the shielding they need.
• Fiber and hybrid: EMI-immune, high-bandwidth links between sensor heads and compute, including copper/fiber hybrids through one rugged connector.
• Moving axes: continuous-flex and torsion-rated cables, service loops, cable carriers and slip-ring interfaces across EDDA's azimuth and elevation joints.
• Connectors and sealing: rugged circular MIL-spec where it earns its place, less-rugged sealed or overmolded connectors where it doesn't.
• Manufacturing and sourcing: formboard drawings, IPC/WHMA-A-620 workmanship, contract-manufacturer qualification, second sources and cost-down.

Essential Duties

• Architect the harness system: turn the electrical architecture into a harness topology — segmentation, connector locations, grounding and shield strategy, service loops and slip-ring boundaries — that is buildable, field-serviceable and cheap to make.
• Design and specify: wire lists, schematics, 3-D routings and formboar

[…]
pass a background check.

Nice‑to‑Have

• MIL-STD-810 shock, vibration, temperature, sand/dust and immersion; MIL-STD-461 EMI/EMC.
• Harnesses on weapon-mounted or recoil-loaded systems.
• Slip rings and rotary joints — electrical, fiber and hybrid.
• Expanded-beam and MIL-PRF-29504 fiber termini; OTDR and fusion splicing.
• Overmolding and potting design rules and tooling.
• UAS or counter-UAS platform experience.
• Security clearance or the ability to obtain one.

Benefits

• Meaningful Early Equity: You aren't just an employee; you are a foundational owner. Your contributions directly drive the value of your stake in the company.
• Direct Roadmap Influence: Forget the bureaucracy of big defense. You will have a seat at the table, directly shaping our product and technology trajectory from day one.
• Mission-Critical Work: We don't build for "what if." We build systems the Department of War actively needs to counter immediate, real-world threats.
• The Builder's Playground: Work in a brand-new lab fully optimized for rapid prototyping, equipped with NVIDIA Jetsons, high-end scopes, and 3-D printers.
• 100% Employer-Paid Premiums: We cover 100% of your medical, dental, and vision insurance premiums and cover 50% of healthcare premiums for your dependents.
• Unlimited PTO: We value results, not clock-watching. Take the time you need to stay sharp and recharge.
• Zero Red Tape: You report to the founders. You have the autonomy to make technical decisions that would take months of committee approval at a larger firm.
• Austin-Based Culture: Join an onsite team in Austin, TX, where we prioritize high-bandwidth collaboration and rapid field-testing.
• Relocation Assistance: We want the best talent in the room. If you aren't in Austin yet, we’ll help you get here, to make your transition to the Silicon Hills seamless.

About the Interview

• Virtual interview (45 min via MS Teams)
• Onsite interview in Austin (1.5 hr in-person)