Head of Software — Embedded Systems, AI & Computer Vision

A profitable, well-funded Australian deeptech scaleup is hiring a hands-on Head of Software to take ownership of a proprietary hardware-and-software platform at exactly the point it matters most: the transition from first release to dependable, repeatable delivery at scale. The company builds intelligent, privacy-first thermal-sensing hardware and pairs it with custom firmware, computer vision and on-device machine learning to turn raw thermal data into decisions customers can act on, across smart buildings, industrial monitoring and connected care.

This is a genuinely hands-on leadership role. You will set technical direction, review architecture and stay close to the code — not sit in a purely people-management seat. You will lead a small, senior team, including embedded and ML specialists with 15–20+ years of experience each, plus a wider group of engineers and interns, and you will be a core voice in company strategy as a member of the leadership team.

What you will own

• Architecture and evolution of the core software platform, keeping module boundaries coherent as it scales

• Embedded firmware development and hardware bring-up, setting performance goals and technical standards

• Release discipline: a CI pipeline, clear release gates, and automated testing from unit to on-device level

• The model-to-production path, partnering closely with the ML team on data capture and annotation

• Mentoring and building bench strength across the team, so every critical area has a backup owner

• Delivery planning alongside leadership, balancing new capability against reliability and technical debt

• Customer-facing integration conversations and input into the software product roadmap

What you will bring

• 10+ years of software or firmware experience, including 3+ years leading or managing an engineering team

• Strong embedded C/C++ on resource-constrained MCUs, shipped in production, not just prototypes

• Proven ownership of a non-trivial system architecture end to end

• Comfort working close to hardware: bring-up, debugging, drivers, toolchains

• CI/CD and test automation experience for embedded software

• A product mindset — you've taken something from early-stage through to a shipped, supported product, not just a research environment

• A relevant technical background is valued; a specific degree is not required — demonstrated, hands-on delivery matters more than credentials

Highly regarded, not essential

• Edge computer vision or ML, or on-device inference experience

• STM32 and/or NPU-class platforms such as Himax WE2

• Cloud or OTA update systems for fielded devices

• Early-stage or hardware start-up experience

Genuine depth across software, ML/CV and embedded all at once is rare. Strong embedded or product leaders with working familiarity in the others are encouraged to apply.

The details

• Type: Permanent, full-time

• Location: Sydney, St Leonards — hybrid (1–2 days from home)

• Salary: $230,000–$270,000 base + superannuation, depending on experience (AUD)

This search is being run by the Sonitec recruitment team on a confidential basis. The company name and full role context are shared once initial suitability is confirmed. If this sounds like your next move, get in touch with the Sonitec recruitment team.