Systems Safety Engineer

Who we are

Helsing is a defence AI company. Our mission is to protect our democracies. We aim to achieve technological leadership, so that open societies can continue to make sovereign decisions and control their ethical standards. 

As democracies, we believe we have a special responsibility to be thoughtful about the development and deployment of powerful technologies like AI. We take this responsibility seriously. 

We are an ambitious and committed team of engineers, AI specialists and customer-facing programme managers. We are looking for mission-driven people to join our European teams – and apply their skills to solve the most complex and impactful problems. We embrace an open and transparent culture that welcomes healthy debates on the use of technology in defence, its benefits, and its ethical implications. 

The role

As a (Senior) System Safety Engineer at Helsing, you will be responsible for defining, implementing, and executing a comprehensive System Safety and Functional Safety program for our advanced AI-driven defense software and hardware platforms. In this role, you will apply rigorous safety methodologies to identify hazards, mitigate risks, and ensure that our cutting-edge technologies are safe for deployment. You will collaborate closely with systems, software, hardware, and delivery teams to embed safety into the architecture from day one, while helping to mature and standardize Helsing’s internal safety processes across all product lines.

The day-to-day

• Safety Program Execution: Establish, implement, and maintain the System Safety Program Plan (SSPP) in strict accordance with MIL-STD-882E tasks and methodologies.

• Functional Hazard & Risk Assessment: Lead and execute comprehensive system-level hazard analyses, including Preliminary Hazard Analysis (PHA), System Hazard Analysis (SHA), Subsystem Hazard Analysis (SSHA), and Operating and Support Hazard Analysis (O&SHA) per MIL-STD-882E.

• Functional Safety Engineering: Define Functional Safety Concepts (FSC) and Technical Safety Concepts (TSC). Identify safety-critical functions (SCF) and map software/hardware safety integrity levels to ensure robust fail-safe and fault-tolerant architectures

• Safety Requirements Management: Derive, flow down, and manage software and hardware functional safety requirements. Ensure end-to-end traceability from hazard mitigation down to verification and validation (V&V) test cases using engineering tools.

• Safety Case Deliverables: Author and compile comprehensive Safety Assessment Reports (SAR), Hazard Logs, and Functional Safety Cases to demonstrate that risks have been mitigated

• Cross-Functional Collaboration: Act as the primary safety point of contact for engineering teams. Guide developers, system architects, and test engineers on how to design-in safety, ensuring compliant software development lifecycles.

• Stakeholder & Audit Management: Present safety cases, hazard analyses, and risk-acceptance arguments to internal stakeholders, customers, and regulatory authorities. Support safety reviews, audits, and certification processes.

You should apply if you

• Expertise in Military standard: Deep, hands-on experience applying MIL-STD-882E processes, tasks, and risk assessment matrices in a defense or aerospace environment.

• Expertise in Aviation standard: Deep, hands-on experience applying ARP4761A and ARP4754B (for programs requiring mixed military and civil-derived certifications)

• Functional Safety Principles: Strong understanding of functional safety standards and concepts (e.g., IEC 61508, ISO 26262) particularly regarding software-intensive systems, software safety critical indices, and hazard mitigation techniques.

• Systems Engineering & Requirements Traceability: Strong background in systems engineering, including experience capturing, decomposing, tracing, and verifying safety requirements using tools such as Jama Software, IBM DOORS, or similar.

• Analytical Tools & Methodologies: Proficiency in classical safety analysis techniques, including Fault Tree Analysis (FTA), Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA/FMECA), and Functional Hazard Assessment (FHA).

• Communication & Influence: Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with a proven ability to translate complex safety concepts into clear, actionable design requirements for multidisciplinary engineering teams.

• Language Skills: Fluency in English is required; German is a strong asset.

Note: We operate in an industry where women, as well as other minority groups, are systematically under-represented. We encourage you to apply even if you don’t meet all the listed qualifications; ability and impact cannot be summarised in a few bullet points.

Nice to Have

• Experience in Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) or Model-Based Safety Analysis (MBSA)

• Experience in innovative safety methodologies or safety analysis disciplines (e.g., STPA, SOTIF)

Join Helsing and work with world-leading experts in their fields 

• Helsing’s work is important. You’ll be directly contributing to the protection of democratic countries while balancing both ethical and geopolitical concerns

• The work is unique. We operate in a domain that has highly unusual technical requirements and constraints, and where robustness, safety, and ethical considerations are vital. You will face unique Engineering and AI challenges that make a meaningful impact in the world

• Our work frequently takes us right up to the state of the art in technical innovation, be it reinforcement learning, distributed systems, generative AI, or deployment infrastructure. The defence industry is entering the most exciting phase of the technological development curve. Advances in our field of world are not incremental: Helsing is part of, and often leading, historic leaps forward

• In our domain, success is a matter of order-of-magnitude improvements and novel capabilities. This means we take bets, aim high, and focus on big opportunities. Despite being a relatively young company, Helsing has already been selected for multiple significant government contracts

• We actively encourage healthy, proactive, and diverse debate internally about what we do and how we choose to do it. Teams and individual engineers are trusted (and encouraged) to practise responsible autonomy and critical thinking, and to focus on outcomes, not conformity. At Helsing you will have a say in how we (and you!) work, the opportunity to engage on what does and doesn’t work, and to take ownership of aspects of our culture that you care deeply about

What we offer

• Competitive salary and VSOP options

• Relocation support: up to €2,500 and 4 weeks temporary accommodation

• Learning: €500/£450 yearly allowance

• Health & wellness: gym membership and mental health support (Nilo.health)

• Social: regularly company events and monthly social allowances

• Enhanced parental leave: 22 weeks fully paid for primary caregivers & 6 weeks for secondary caregivers.

• Family support: 5 days of paid family emergency leave, 100% remote work option during pregnancy and phased return to work

These are the core benefits across all locations, there may be additional benefits in certain locations.

Helsing is an equal opportunities employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability or gender identity. Please do not submit personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade union membership, data concerning your health, or data concerning your sexual orientation.

  Helsing's Candidate Privacy and Confidentiality Regime can be found here.