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Draper Tech Stack

Independent nonprofit engineering firm for defense, space, and government systems

Defense and Space Manufacturing Cambridge, MA 1,001–5,000 employees Nonprofit

Draper is an independent nonprofit engineering services firm working across defense, space, biomedical, and autonomous systems. The tech stack—C++, CUDA, FPGA, ARM, RISC-V, real-time operating systems (VxWorks, FreeRTOS, RTEMS), SysML, and MATLAB—reflects deep embedded systems and hardware design work. The organization is actively adopting Rust, signaling a shift toward memory-safe systems engineering. With 178 engineers across 1,000+ employees and 90 roles posted in the last 30 days, hiring is steady and focused on embedded and systems-level talent.

Tech Stack 95 technologies

Core StackC++ Rust Linux MATLAB SolidWorks Microsoft Office SysML CUDA OpenCL UML JTAG FPGA UVM FPGAs ASICs C/C++ Windows RTOS UEFI Hypervisor VxWorks FreeRTOS RTEMS C ARM RISC-V PowerPC GPS Simulink CREO+65 more

AdoptingRust

What Draper Is Building

◆Challenges

Reducing single sourced material risk
Mitigating supply chain risks
Reducing supplier risk
High dollar subcontracts
Complex i&t problems
I&t risk mitigation
Maximizing facility efficiency
Preventative maintenance planning
Performance improvements and cost reduction
I&t risks and issues

▲Active Projects

Product development cycle from concept to mass production
Integrated master schedule development
Prototype development of gyroscope and accelerometer sensors
Program level time-phased plan
Program financial planning and reporting
Digital twins and digital threads
Estimate at complete (eac) process
Implementing scrm nist 800-53 control family
Single-slot flight computer design
Embedded vulnerability research and exploit development

Hiring Activity

Steady240 roles · 90 in 30d

Department

Engineering

178

Security

21

Finance

12

Ops

10

Logistics

6

Manufacturing

5

Executive

4

Research

2

Seniority

Senior

101

Mid

52

Principal

40

Intern

25

Manager

9

Lead

7

Junior

4

VP

2

Notable leadership hires: Mission Analysis Lead, Chief Strategy Officer, Chief Information Security Officer, Chief Engineer, Special Test Lead

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About Draper

Draper provides engineering services to government, industry, and academia as a nonprofit innovation company. The firm operates as a prime contractor, subcontractor, or consortium collaborator on programs spanning space systems, defense systems, autonomous systems, biomedical engineering, and positioning/navigation/timing (PNT). Active projects include prototype sensor development, digital twin engineering, flight computer design, and supply chain risk mitigation—reflecting both R&D and production-readiness work. Pain points center on supply chain complexity, single-source material dependencies, integration and test challenges, and cost optimization.

HeadquartersCambridge, MA

Company Size1,001–5,000 employees

Hiring MarketsUnited States

Frequently Asked Questions

What programming languages does Draper use?

Draper's stack emphasizes C++, C, Rust, and assembly-level work (JTAG), alongside hardware description languages (VHDL, SystemVerilog via UVM). Rust adoption is underway, reflecting a move toward memory-safe systems engineering.

What hardware platforms does Draper work with?

Draper's stack includes ARM, RISC-V, PowerPC architectures; FPGA and ASIC design; real-time operating systems (VxWorks, FreeRTOS, RTEMS); and real-time kernels. Recent projects include gyroscope/accelerometer sensor prototypes and single-slot flight computer design.