Skyways

Chief Technology Officer

Austin, Texas, U.S.

Full-Time

On-site

TLDR

Lead the engineering efforts to scale autonomous cargo aircraft operations into a production-ready system while integrating software, hardware, and autonomy seamlessly.

Skyways designs, builds, and operates fully autonomous long-range cargo aircraft. Founded in 2017, the company has spent the last eight years developing and deploying autonomous logistics systems for real-world operations. Our V2 aircraft carries 30 lbs up to 500 miles, while our next-generation V3 carries 100 lbs over 1,000+ miles with 20+ hours of endurance. Both use a hybrid-electric architecture that takes off like a helicopter and cruises like a plane, enabling long-range autonomous delivery without traditional runway infrastructure. Today, Skyways aircraft operate across three continents in controlled national airspace under FAA oversight and in support of U.S. military operations. We are transitioning from prototype development to full-rate production and scaling toward large autonomous cargo fleets. Backed by Y Combinator and a $37M AFWERX STRATFI award from the U.S. Air Force, Skyways is creating a new form of transportation to advance our civilization from Austin, Texas. The Opportunity We’re hiring a CTO to take what already works and make it scale. Right now, the system flies. The team is strong. The pieces exist. What’s missing is tight ownership across the full stack to turn this into a production system that is reliable, repeatable, and fast to iterate on. This role owns that. You will run engineering across autonomy, software, hardware, and systems integration. You will work directly with flight ops and manufacturing. You will decide where we invest, what we cut, and how we move faster without breaking things that matter. This is not a role where you inherit a clean system. It’s a role where you shape it. What You'll Do:

Own engineering execution across the full system

Turn a working aircraft into a production-ready, repeatable platform

Scale the team without turning it into a slow, process-heavy organization

Make fast, high-quality decisions that unblock the team

Work closely with flight ops and manufacturing so what we build actually works in the field

Be the technical counterpart to the CEO in customer and investor conversations

What You'll Bring:

You’ve built and shipped real systems, not just led teams that talk about them

You’ve taken something from prototype to production and dealt with the mess that comes with it

You can operate across disciplines and connect the system end-to-end

You know how to increase speed without losing reliability

You’re comfortable owning outcomes, not just direction

Bonus Points:

You’ve worked on aircraft, UAVs, or other safety-critical systems that operate in the real world
You’ve dealt with certification, regulatory constraints, or government customers
You’ve built systems that combine hardware, software, and autonomy into one integrated product
You’ve scaled a team from early stage to production without losing speed
You’ve seen what breaks when you go from “it works once” to “it works every time”

Want to join our mission? Apply to learn more!

Due to U.S. government contract requirements, this role is limited to U.S. citizens, U.S. permanent residents, or candidates from specific countries authorized under applicable export control regulations.

Skyways is an Equal Opportunity employer committed to diversity in the workplace. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, protected veteran status or any other factor protected by applicable local, state or federal laws.

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Skyways

Skyways is developing fully autonomous unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) aimed at transforming air transportation. Targeting both commercial and defense markets, Skyways blends innovative design with real-world application, having already built and flown aircraft in collaboration with customers and government partners.

Founded: Founded 2017
Employees: 1-10 employees
Industry: Aerospace & Defense

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