Careers at Helion

About Helion We are a fusion power company based in Everett, WA, with the mission to build the world's first fusion power plant, enabling a future with unlimited clean electricity. Our vision is a world with clean, reliable, and affordable energy for everyone. Since Helion's founding in 2013, we have raised $1.5 billion from long-time investors such as Sam Altman, Mithril, and Capricorn Investment Group as well as new investors including Thrive Capital, LightSpeed Venture Capital, SoftBank, and others to propel us forward. Our current prototype, Polaris, has reached record-breaking plasma temperatures of 150 million degrees Celsius (13 keV). Helion is continuing to iterate and on the path to the world's first fusion power plant, Orion. This is a pivotal time to join Helion. You will tackle real-world challenges with a team that prizes urgency, rigor, ownership, and a commitment to delivering hard truths – values essential to achieving what no one has before. Together, we will change the future of energy, because the world can't wait. What You Will Be Doing As a Senior Software Engineer on the Plant Control team, you will design, build, and scale the software systems that operate Helion’s fusion generators and the Orion fusion power plant. You will work across control systems, diagnostics, data infrastructure, operator interfaces, automation, and integration with electrical, mechanical, firmware, and science teams. This is a generalist software role for someone who is comfortable moving between architecture and implementation, prototypes and production systems, and high-level plant design and hands-on machine operation. You will own software that interfaces with real hardware, supports rapid engineering iteration, and helps turn experimental fusion systems into reliable power plant infrastructure. You will work onsite at our Everett, WA office. You Will Design, build, and maintain software for plant control, diagnostics, automation, and operator workflows Own interfaces that connect distributed sensors, actuators, controllers, databases, and visualization tools Design and build reliable tools for monitoring machine health, system performance, test execution, and plant operations Create and improve graphical user interfaces for engineers, operators, and scientists working with fusion machines and testbeds Architect and implement software that supports real-time control, data acquisition, and system coordination Work with Electrical Engineering, Firmware, Mechanical Engineering, IT, Operations, and Science teams to integrate software with complex hardware systems Improve the reliability, usability, and scalability of Helion’s internal control and diagnostic platforms Investigate and introduce new tools, frameworks, and infrastructure that accelerate engineering development Apply first-principles thinking to ambiguous technical problems where the right answer is not yet obvious Required Skills Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Physics, or a related technical field, or equivalent practical experience 5+ years of professional software engineering experience Demonstrated experience of end-to-end ownership of complex software projects Strong programming ability in a systems programming language such as C++, Rust, or similar Experience with Python or another high-level orchestration language Experience building software that interfaces with hardware, sensors, instruments, control systems, or other real-world systems Comfortable working in Linux environments Experience designing maintainable software systems, including testing, version control, debugging, and deployment practices Ability to work across the full software lifecycle, from requirements gathering and prototyping through production support Strong systems-level problem-solving skills and ability to debug issues across software, hardware, networks, and data flows Ability to collaborate closely with engineers and scientists from multiple disciplines Willingness to work onsite and stay close to the hardware, operators, and users of the systems you build Desired Skills Experience with distributed control systems, industrial automation, SCADA, PLCs, or machine control Experience with the V-model of development, including requirements definition, verification, validation, and traceability Experience with precision timing, synchronization, PTP, or deterministic systems Experience with embedded Linux, real-time systems, or low-level systems programming Experience with time-series databases, data pipelines, and visualization tools such as InfluxDB, Grafana, or similar platforms Experience building operator interfaces, internal engineering tools, dashboards, or data-rich GUIs Experience with Docker, CI/CD, configuration management, or deployment automation Experience working in high-energy systems, aerospace, robotics, manufacturing, power systems, scientific instrumentation, or other complex hardware environments #LI-Onsite #LI-KL1 Benefits Our total compensation package includes benefits, including but not limited to: Medical, Dental, and Vision plans for employees and their families 31 Days of PTO (21 vacation days and 10 sick days) 10 Paid holidays, plus company-wide winter break Up to 5% employer 401(k) match Short term disability, long term disability, and life insurance Paid parental leave and support (up to 16 weeks) Annual wellness stipend Helion is an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. If you need assistance or an accommodation during the interview process, please let us know.

About Helion We are a fusion power company based in Everett, WA, with the mission to build the world's first fusion power plant, enabling a future with unlimited clean electricity. Our vision is a world with clean, reliable, and affordable energy for everyone. Since Helion's founding in 2013, we have raised $1.5 billion from long-time investors such as Sam Altman, Mithril, and Capricorn Investment Group as well as new investors including Thrive Capital, LightSpeed Venture Capital, SoftBank, and others to propel us forward. Our current prototype, Polaris, has reached record-breaking plasma temperatures of 150 million degrees Celsius (13 keV). Helion is continuing to iterate and on the path to the world's first fusion power plant, Orion. This is a pivotal time to join Helion. You will tackle real-world challenges with a team that prizes urgency, rigor, ownership, and a commitment to delivering hard truths – values essential to achieving what no one has before. Together, we will change the future of energy, because the world can't wait. What You Will Be Doing: You will be responsible for developing the data and knowledge foundation that enables engineers to understand, operate, and improve Helion’s fusion systems. In this role, you will partner closely with engineers, scientists, and operators to transform complex experimental and operational data (including machine telemetry, experimental results, and engineering workflows) into structured datasets, knowledge systems, and AI-enabled tools that support analysis and decision-making. You will combine data science, knowledge modeling, and applied AI techniques to make fragmented, rapidly evolving information accessible and actionable at scale. This is an onsite role that reports directly to our R&D Manager at our Everett, WA office. You Will: Analyze real-time and historical system data to provide control room operators with actionable insights, improve operational decision-making, and accelerate root-cause and performance analysis Develop data schemas, ontologies, and metadata frameworks to organize and standardize complex technical information Prototype decision-support tools for anomaly detection, experiment comparison, and operational reporting Define metrics and evaluation frameworks to ensure effectiveness, reliability, and business impact of statistical models and AI solutions Collaborate with the enterprise software engineering team to build and evaluate AI-powered workflows, including retrieval, summarization, and anomaly analysis systems using operational data Partner across Software Engineering and Data Science teams to evolve and maintain data pipelines that transform and integrate diverse data sources into analytics-ready datasets Required Skills: 7+ years of experience applying statistics, data science, and quantitative methods to complex hardware, physics, or engineering data Experience analyzing operational, experimental, and time-series data to identify trends, diagnose hardware behavior, uncover anomalies, and inform engineering decisions is preferred Ability to translate ambiguous problems into practical, scalable solutions and partner effectively with engineers and scientists Proficiency in Python and modern data science tooling, with experience building data pipelines, analytics infrastructure, or production data systems Experience developing structured representations of information, including data models, schemas, metadata frameworks, or ontologies Familiarity with LLM APIs and applied AI techniques such as RAG, embeddings, semantic search, and AI-powered workflow automation Benefits Our total compensation package includes benefits, including but not limited to: Medical, Dental, and Vision plans for employees and their families 31 Days of PTO (21 vacation days and 10 sick days) 10 Paid holidays, plus company-wide winter break Up to 5% employer 401(k) match Short term disability, long term disability, and life insurance Paid parental leave and support (up to 16 weeks) Annual wellness stipend Helion is an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. If you need assistance or an accommodation during the interview process, please let us know.

About Helion We are a fusion power company based in Everett, WA, with the mission to build the world's first fusion power plant, enabling a future with unlimited clean electricity. Our vision is a world with clean, reliable, and affordable energy for everyone. Since Helion's founding in 2013, we have raised $1.5 billion from long-time investors such as Sam Altman, Mithril, and Capricorn Investment Group as well as new investors including Thrive Capital, LightSpeed Venture Capital, SoftBank, and others to propel us forward. Our current prototype, Polaris, has reached record-breaking plasma temperatures of 150 million degrees Celsius (13 keV). Helion is continuing to iterate and on the path to the world's first fusion power plant, Orion. This is a pivotal time to join Helion. You will tackle real-world challenges with a team that prizes urgency, rigor, ownership, and a commitment to delivering hard truths – values essential to achieving what no one has before. Together, we will change the future of energy, because the world can't wait. What You Will Be Doing As a Sr Systems Engineer, you will own the system architecture and top-level requirements that hold Helion's fusion power plant together as a coherent whole — spanning the fusion machine, balance of plant, and the systems that connect them. You will work across electrical, mechanical, controls, plant, science, and business teams to decompose plant-level mission objectives into traceable subsystem requirements, drive the trade studies that shape major plant architecture decisions, and define the interfaces between subsystems and suppliers through rigorous ICDs. You will lead technical reviews, own verification planning against top-level plant requirements, and maintain clear traceability from plant-level objectives down through the requirements hierarchy to implemented hardware. You will drive technical consensus across functional teams and represent the plant's technical position in leadership and program-level reviews. This role is architecture- and requirements-focused, serving as the technical integration point across subsystem, science, and business teams at the plant level. You Will Own and maintain Helion's top-level plant requirements, ensuring clear, traceable decomposition from plant-level mission objectives down to subsystem and component requirements. Lead trade studies that inform major plant architecture decisions, presenting clear technical rationale to engineering leadership. Develop and own Interface Control Documents (ICDs) that define the electrical, mechanical, controls, and data interfaces between plant subsystems and with suppliers. Lead and facilitate design reviews (PDR/CDR-style and informal) at the plant level, ensuring requirements, interfaces, and risks are surfaced and dispositioned early. Identify, assess, and track plant-level integration risks, and drive mitigation strategies and resolution across functional teams. Drive configuration management and change control for plant-level requirements and baselines, evaluating the cross-system impact of proposed design changes and recommending disposition. Partner with electrical, mechanical, controls, test, science, and business teams to ensure subsystem designs remain aligned with plant-level intent as designs mature. Drive technical consensus across functional teams on plant-level decisions, and represent the plant's technical position in program and leadership reviews. Scale Helion's systems engineering processes — requirements management, ICD control, and design review cadence — to meet the needs of an organization moving from prototype to production power plants. Required Skills Bachelor's or Master's degree in Systems Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related field. 8+ years of experience in systems engineering, with demonstrated ownership of requirements, architecture, or interface definition on complex plant or hardware systems. Proven experience decomposing high-level plant or mission requirements into traceable, verifiable subsystem requirements. Proven experience authoring and owning ICDs across multiple engineering disciplines. Experience developing and executing verification and validation plans against system-level requirements. Strong technical writing and communication skills, with the ability to influence design decisions across disciplines without direct authority. Demonstrated ability to drive technical consensus and decisions across cross-functional engineering teams. Comfort working across electrical, mechanical, controls, science, business, and software domains without being deeply expert in all of them. Demonstrated ability to operate in fast-paced development environments requiring both engineering rigor and speed. Desired Skills Experience in aerospace, nuclear, energy systems, or other complex, safety-critical, first-of-kind hardware or plant programs. Experience with requirements management and PLM tooling (Jama, DOORS, Teamcenter, or similar). Experience with risk identification, tracking, and mitigation on complex engineering programs. Experience applying system safety and reliability methods, including FMEA, FMECA, or fault tree analysis. Track record of mentoring engineers toward stronger systems engineering practice. #LI-Onsite #LI-KL1 Benefits Our total compensation package includes benefits, including but not limited to: Medical, Dental, and Vision plans for employees and their families 31 Days of PTO (21 vacation days and 10 sick days) 10 Paid holidays, plus company-wide winter break Up to 5% employer 401(k) match Short term disability, long term disability, and life insurance Paid parental leave and support (up to 16 weeks) Annual wellness stipend Helion is an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. If you need assistance or an accommodation during the interview process, please let us know.

About Helion We are a fusion power company based in Everett, WA, with the mission to build the world's first fusion power plant, enabling a future with unlimited clean electricity. Our vision is a world with clean, reliable, and affordable energy for everyone. Since Helion's founding in 2013, we have raised $1.5 billion from long-time investors such as Sam Altman, Mithril, and Capricorn Investment Group as well as new investors including Thrive Capital, LightSpeed Venture Capital, SoftBank, and others to propel us forward. Our current prototype, Polaris, has reached record-breaking plasma temperatures of 150 million degrees Celsius (13 keV). Helion is continuing to iterate and on the path to the world's first fusion power plant, Orion. This is a pivotal time to join Helion. You will tackle real-world challenges with a team that prizes urgency, rigor, ownership, and a commitment to delivering hard truths – values essential to achieving what no one has before. Together, we will change the future of energy, because the world can't wait. What You Will Be Doing As a Systems Engineer, you will develop the system architecture and top-level requirements that hold Helion's fusion power plant together as a coherent whole — spanning the fusion machine, balance of plant, and the systems that connect them. You will work across electrical, mechanical, controls, plant, science, and business teams to decompose plant-level mission objectives into traceable subsystem requirements, drive the trade studies that shape major plant architecture decisions, and define the interfaces between subsystems and suppliers through rigorous ICDs. You will conduct technical reviews, develop verification planning against top-level plant requirements, and maintain clear traceability from plant-level objectives down through the requirements hierarchy to implemented hardware. You will drive technical consensus across functional teams and represent the plant's technical position in leadership and program-level reviews. This team is architecture- and requirements-focused, serving as the technical integration point across subsystem, science, and business teams at the plant level. You Will Develop and maintain Helion's top-level plant requirements, ensuring clear, traceable decomposition from plant-level mission objectives down to subsystem and component requirements. Utilize trade studies that inform major plant architecture decisions, presenting clear technical rationale to engineering leadership. Develop and maintain Interface Control Documents (ICDs) that define the electrical, mechanical, controls, and data interfaces between plant subsystems and with suppliers. Conduct and facilitate design reviews (PDR/CDR-style and informal) at the plant level, ensuring requirements, interfaces, and risks are surfaced and dispositioned early. Identify, assess, and track plant-level integration risks, and drive mitigation strategies and resolution across functional teams. Drive configuration management and change control for plant-level requirements and baselines, evaluating the cross-system impact of proposed design changes and recommending disposition. Partner with electrical, mechanical, controls, test, science, and business teams to ensure subsystem designs remain aligned with plant-level intent as designs mature. Drive technical consensus across functional teams on plant-level decisions, and represent the plant's technical position in program and leadership reviews. Scale Helion's systems engineering processes — requirements management, ICD control, and design review cadence — to meet the needs of an organization moving from prototype to production power plants. Required Skills Bachelor's or Master's degree in Systems Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related field. 3+ years of experience in systems engineering, with demonstrated ownership of requirements, architecture, or interface definition on complex plant or hardware systems. Proven experience decomposing high-level plant or mission requirements into traceable, verifiable subsystem requirements. Proven experience authoring and maintaining ICDs across multiple engineering disciplines. Experience developing and executing verification and validation plans against system-level requirements. Strong technical writing and communication skills, with the ability to influence design decisions across disciplines without direct authority. Demonstrated ability to drive technical consensus and decisions across cross-functional engineering teams. Comfort working across electrical, mechanical, controls, science, business, and software domains without being deeply expert in all of them. Demonstrated ability to operate in fast-paced development environments requiring both engineering rigor and speed. Desired Skills Experience in aerospace, nuclear, energy systems, or other complex, safety-critical, first-of-kind hardware or plant programs. Experience with requirements management and PLM tooling (Jama, DOORS, Teamcenter, or similar). Experience with risk identification, tracking, and mitigation on complex engineering programs. Experience applying system safety and reliability methods, including FMEA, FMECA, or fault tree analysis. Track record of mentoring engineers toward stronger systems engineering practice. #LI-Onsite #LI-KL1 Benefits Our total compensation package includes benefits, including but not limited to: Medical, Dental, and Vision plans for employees and their families 31 Days of PTO (21 vacation days and 10 sick days) 10 Paid holidays, plus company-wide winter break Up to 5% employer 401(k) match Short term disability, long term disability, and life insurance Paid parental leave and support (up to 16 weeks) Annual wellness stipend Helion is an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. If you need assistance or an accommodation during the interview process, please let us know.