FIRST RF Tech Stack

Defense RF and antenna systems from R&D through production

Defense and Space Manufacturing Boulder, CO 51–200 employees Founded 2003 Privately Held

FIRST RF designs and manufactures specialized antenna and RF systems for defense and aerospace applications across radar, communications, and electronic warfare. The tech stack—anchored in electromagnetic simulation (HFSS, FEKO), hardware design (Altium, Verilog, VHDL), and embedded systems (Zynq, Yocto, RTOS)—reveals a hardware-first, physics-driven organization. Active hiring is concentrated in engineering roles across firmware, FPGA, and RF design, with deliberate focus on production transition and next-generation radar platforms, suggesting transition from prototype to manufacturing scale.

Tech Stack 27 technologies

Core StackPython MATLAB SolidWorks React JavaScript Node.js Django Docker Vector Network Analyzer Altium Designer HFSS FEKO Verilog VHDL FPGA Embedded Linux Yocto Zynq I2C AXI Aurora C/C++ Visual Studio Code Embedded C/C++ RTOS SPICE vector network analyzer

What FIRST RF Is Building

◆Challenges

Improving accuracy
Extending system life
Winning new opportunities
Production transition
Reducing design flaws
Improving test efficiency
Streamlining qualification testing

▲Active Projects

Radar product portfolio development
Production transition
Internal development efforts
Active rf system development
Embedded firmware architecture
Advanced characterization and performance optimization
Active rf systems for next-generation products
Fpga logic design and verification
Test strategy development for new products
Design test fixtures

Hiring Activity

Accelerating15 roles · 2 in 30d

Department

Engineering

Manufacturing

Ops

Product

Seniority

Mid

Senior

Lead

Junior

Manager

Notable leadership hires: HDL Technical Lead

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About FIRST RF

FIRST RF is a Boulder-based product-development company founded in 2003 that specializes in advanced antennas and RF systems for defense, aerospace, and space customers. The company operates across market segments including phased-array radar, conformal antennas, communications, electronic warfare, and millimeter-wave sensing. According to their profile, FIRST RF has delivered over 250,000 antenna systems supporting missions across land, air, sea, and space. The organization combines in-house R&D, design, and manufacturing capabilities, positioning itself as a preferred partner for both government agencies and prime contractors from early development through fielding and sustainment.

HeadquartersBoulder, CO

Company Size51–200 employees

Founded2003

Hiring MarketsUnited States

Frequently Asked Questions

What technologies does FIRST RF use for antenna design?

FIRST RF uses HFSS and FEKO for electromagnetic simulation, Altium Designer for PCB design, SolidWorks for mechanical design, and MATLAB for analysis. Hardware implementation relies on Verilog, VHDL, FPGA (Xilinx Zynq), and embedded Linux (Yocto).

What is FIRST RF currently working on?

Active projects include radar product portfolio development, production transition, embedded firmware architecture, FPGA logic design and verification, advanced characterization and performance optimization, and test strategy development for next-generation RF systems.

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How this profile is built

FIRST RF's technology stack, projects, and hiring signals are inferred from public hiring and company data — career pages, public listings, and company web presence — then clustered and de-duplicated. Figures are estimates that refresh over time. Read our full methodology →

This is not an official vendor or customer list. It is a technology-adoption signal inferred from public data, intended for B2B research.