get hired at
Foundational
Commercial satellite laser ranging as a service
- —
- IALBACADJ+2
- London
- Tech
Open roles at Foundational
8 positions we're tracking, re-checked daily
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Orbit Determination Engineer / Astrodynamicist
londonMid-levelfirst seen today - apply ↗
Laser Engineer / Senior Optical Engineer
londonSeniorfirst seen today - apply ↗
Field Station Engineer
londonMid-levelfirst seen today - apply ↗
Backend / Data Platform Engineer
londonMid-levelfirst seen today - apply ↗
Full Stack Software Engineer
londonMid-levelfirst seen today - apply ↗
Head of Engineering
londonSeniorfirst seen today - apply ↗
Technical Sales Engineer
londonMid-levelfirst seen today - apply ↗
Founders Associate
londonEntry-levelfirst seen today
Know when Foundational is hiring before anyone else
A role stays uncontested for about four days. Here's the window, and where we put you in it.
From $5.99/week, cancel any time.
- live
- +2h+2hrole spotted & verified1
- +4h+4hyou get the alert1
- day 3day 3you've applied~8
- day 7+day 7+hits the job boards250+
What Foundational is building
Foundational is turning satellite laser ranging (SLR) from a scientific instrument into a commercial utility. SLR is simple in principle: fire a laser pulse from the ground at a reflector on a satellite, time the return, and you have the distance to millimetre precision. It has been the gold standard for orbit determination for decades, but it has lived inside government and academic networks that were never built to sell data to operators. The company owns the whole stack. In space: three passive laser retroreflectors that need no power, electronics or pointing, so they keep working through commissioning, safe mode and after end of life. Two of them (Retro-1 and Retro-2) are flight-proven; a uniquely identifiable reflector is in development. Per Payload, 16 are already in orbit and 60 more are awaiting launch. On the ground: automated, weatherproof stations roughly the size of two pickup trucks, which the company says are about 30x cheaper than legacy systems. In software: Origin, where ranging data lands as normal points and full-rate data in TDM, CRD or JSON, with orbit determination and high-accuracy ephemeris products still in development. The build plan is concrete: 10 to 20 ground stations over the coming years, with the first handful under construction across four continents, built in the UK and deployed globally. Virdee's own framing of the business is unusually honest: derived data is the bigger long-term business, but space surveillance is the bread and butter.
Why this matters
Low Earth orbit is filling faster than the tracking infrastructure around it. Radar and optical tracking give you positions good to tens or hundreds of metres; SLR gives millimetres, which is the difference between a conjunction warning you ignore and one you act on. LEO navigation constellations (the would-be GPS backups) need precise orbits to deliver precise timing, and in-orbit servicing missions need to know exactly where a passive target is before they approach it. Payload reports demand from exactly those three segments: LEO navigation operators, in-orbit servicing companies and comms operators. The existing SLR network was built for science, not for selling an SLA to a constellation operator, which is the gap a vertically integrated commercial network is aimed at.
Investors: Inflection (Alexander Lange), BACKED, Adjacent, Final Frontier, Type One Ventures
Hiring outlook
Explicit and public. The Ashby board lists 28 open roles as of 2 October 2026, almost all full-time in London: optics, lasers, opto-mechanics, electronics, field station engineering, network ops, geodesy, orbit determination, backend/data platform, DevOps, plus sales, BD (EMEA and US), Chief of Staff and Head of Engineering.
Working at Foundational
Foundational is a Tech company based in London. Working at a Tech company at this stage means opportunity to shape your role based on the company stage.
London is where most Foundational positions are located.
How to actually get hired at Foundational
Why applying the normal way doesn't work
Foundational runs an applicant tracking system, but hiring managers still work referrals first. A cold application to Foundational isn't dead, it's just fourth in line behind internal referrals, sourced candidates and recruiter pipelines.
Who to contact at Foundational
- Who decides
- the hiring manager
- Best channel
- LinkedIn or direct email
What to show them
Take public ILRS normal-point data (CRD format) for a LEO satellite and run a small orbit determination: fit an orbit, propagate it, and show residuals against a precise reference ephemeris. Then show how the residuals degrade if you only have one or two stations versus a global spread. That is Foundational's station-placement problem in miniature.
A cold email that works at Foundational
What Foundational screens for
A £8.2M pre-seed is a hardware-sized cheque, and the investor mix explains it: Inflection and BACKED are generalist deep-tech backers betting on the team, while Final Frontier and Type One are space and frontier-tech specialists who understand ground-station capex. Inflection's Alexander Lange put the thesis plainly: almost everything in orbit depends on knowing exactly where things are. The hiring window is now. Service goes live in early 2027 and the first stations are being built across four continents, so the people hired this quarter will design the network everyone after them operates. 28 open roles at a company that just left stealth means the first engineering team is being assembled right now.
A tailored CV beats a generic one. Use Foundational's job description language to clear filters.
Don't make these mistakes
Generic 'space is the next frontier' enthusiasm. Hira has a PhD in astrodynamics from UCL and has been building laser-ranging hardware since founding Lumi Space in 2018; Dave has built instruments for the world's largest telescope and infrared detectors for ESA. Neither needs to be told space matters. Also avoid treating this as a software startup with some hardware attached: the job board is two-thirds optics, lasers, field stations and geodesy. Lead with the physical or numerical problem you've actually solved.
Mistakes that kill Foundational applications
A recycled CV gets rejected fast at Foundational ( people). They notice.
Don't open with what you want. Open with what Foundational is dealing with right now — Low Earth orbit is filling faster than the tracking infrastructure around it, and what you'd do about it.
Most Tech applications get ghosted. A day-five follow-up can double your response rate.
Applying to Foundational? Get the contact, not the form.
The Foundational interview process
We don't yet have verified candidate reports for Foundational. What follows is the typical process for a -person Tech company, so treat it as a model, not confirmed detail.
Interview stages
- 1
Recruiter Screen
Phone or video · 30 min
What it testsBasic qualification and logisticsUsually run byRecruiter or HR - 2
Hiring Manager Interview
Video call · 45 min
What it testsRole fit and experience deep-diveUsually run byHiring manager - 3
Technical/Functional Round
Video call · 60 min
What it testsSkills assessment and problem-solvingUsually run byTeam members - 4
Final Round
In-person or video · 60 min
What it testsCulture fit and cross-functional alignmentUsually run bySenior leadership
Foundational interview timeline
Expect 14 days total. Compared to similar Tech companies (14 days median), Foundational is about average.
Interviewed at Foundational?
Tell us how it went: stages, questions, timeline. Takes 90 seconds and it's how this page stays accurate for the next person.
Foundational jobs, frequently asked questions
How many jobs does Foundational have open?
As of October 2, 2026, Foundational has 8 open positions.
Does Foundational hire remotely?
Currently, Foundational only has in-office roles in London.
What roles is Foundational hiring for?
Foundational is hiring across Engineering, Other. The most recent opening is Orbit Determination Engineer / Astrodynamicist.
How do I apply for a job at Foundational?
Apply via the links above. For tips, read our guide on how to get hired at Foundational.
Does Foundational respond to cold emails?
Response rate data for Foundational not yet confirmed.
Who is the hiring manager at Foundational?
At this size, hiring is usually run by the hiring manager.
How competitive is it to get hired at Foundational?
Expect 100-250 applicants in the first two weeks for Tech roles at this size. Apply within 72 hours for best odds.
How many rounds is the Foundational interview?
4 stages: Recruiter Screen, Hiring Manager Interview, Technical/Functional Round, Final Round.
Is the Foundational interview hard?
Expect relevant experience and culture fit, not algorithm trivia. Candidates report Final Round as the toughest stage.
Does Foundational give a take-home task?
No, Foundational does not include a take-home stage.
How long does Foundational take to get back to you?
Around 14 days across the full process.
What should I prepare for the Foundational interview?
relevant experience and culture fit is the priority. Show you can work autonomously — that matters more than algorithms at people.
Where is Foundational based?
Foundational is headquartered in London, US.
Get Foundational roles before they're posted
A role stays uncontested for about four days. Here's the window, and where we put you in it.
From $5.99/week, cancel any time.
- live
- +2h+2hrole spotted & verified1
- +4h+4hyou get the alert1
- day 3day 3you've applied~8
- day 7+day 7+hits the job boards250+
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