About the role
Founded in 2015, Shield AI is a venture-backed deep-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include the V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, Hivemind Enterprise, and the Hivemind Vision product lines. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and the Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai . Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn , X , Instagram , and YouTube . Job Description: Shield AI is seeking an X-BAT Training Design Lead to architect and scale the training ecosystem for next-generation autonomous aircraft systems. This role sits at the intersection of operations, engineering, and human performance, owning how pilots, operators, and support personnel are prepared to effectively employ and sustain X-BAT across its full lifecycle. Unlike a traditional training role, this position focuses on designing the system of training , ensuring that training evolves alongside rapid system development, flight testing, and operational deployment. The Training Strategist will work closely with engineering, flight test, operations, and product teams to translate complex system capabilities into scalable, mission-ready training programs that enable safe, effective, and confident real-world use. \n
What you'll do: Design and implement the end-to-end training strategy for X-BAT operators, maintainers, and mission support personnel Define training pipelines aligned to system maturity, spanning development, flight test, deployment, and sustainment Establish training standards, certification frameworks, and readiness criteria to support operational excellence Ensure training systems are scaled with program growth and deployment needs Oversee development of structured training curricula, including operator qualification, mission planning and execution, maintenance, troubleshooting, and system education Translate complex system behaviors (autonomy, avionics, mission systems) into clear, digestible learning modules Ensure alignment between training materials, technical documentation, and real-world system configurations Partner with engineering and product teams to stay current on system updates, new capabilities, and limitations Integrate flight test insights and operational lessons learned into continuously evolving training content Collaborate with operations teams to validate training effectiveness in mission environments Work closely with technical writers to ensure consistency across training and documentation Define and implement modern training methodologies, including simulation-based training, scenario-driven mission exercises, and blended learning approaches Evaluate and integrate training technologies such as simulators, virtual environments, and AI-assisted tools Ensure training supports both individual proficiency and team-based mission execution Develop metrics and evaluation frameworks to assess training effectiveness and operator readiness Establish certification processes, checkrides, and proficiency benchmarks Continuously refine training based on performance data, mission feedback, and system updates Maintain alignment between training content and evolving system baselines Rapidly update training materials in response to flight test results, software releases, hardware changes, and operational feedback Support fielded units with ongoing training, refresher programs, and updates Manage training knowledge systems, ensuring content is structured, version-controlled, and accessible Build repeatable processes for maintaining and distributing training materials Identify gaps in training coverage and proactively develop solutions Required