Guardian RF
Drone detection for US defense and national security
What Guardian RF does
The rise of low-cost commercial drones has introduced a new class of asymmetric threats to U.S. national security. Off-the-shelf platforms now deliver ISR, contraband, or payloads with precision, while operating below radar coverage and beyond line-of-sight. These systems—often costing under $1,000—are capable of neutralizing multi-million-dollar defense assets. For drone detection to be viable at scale, sensors must achieve cost parity with the threat. In response, the Department of Defense established multiple initiatives to counter the rapid proliferation of uncrewed aerial systems. The Joint Counter-small UAS Office (JCO) coordinates policy and acquisition across services. The Base Defense Cross-Functional Team enables persistent perimeter security for CONUS and OCONUS installations. Falcon Peak, Red Sands, and related exercises are accelerating deployment of counter-UAS technologies in complex environments. This threat is no longer exclusive to military operations overseas. It now directly targets the U.S. homeland. In 2025, an executive order designated the protection of American airspace sovereignty a national priority, recognizing that uncrewed systems present both surveillance and kinetic risks within the United States. That same year, a domestic extremist plotted to destroy a Tennessee power substation using a drone rigged with C-4 explosives—a plan disrupted by undercover federal agents. In July 2025, an unauthorized drone collided with a rescue helicopter during disaster response operations in Kerr County, Texas, forcing an emergency landing and halting flood relief efforts. These are not isolated incidents—they reflect a broader shift in drone-enabled threats against homeland infrastructure and public safety. Guardian RF builds passive, radiofrequency-based drone detection systems for force protection and critical infrastructure defense inside the United States. Our systems are fielded under an AFWERX Direct-to-Phase-II SBIR with the 30th Security Forces Squadron at Vandenberg Space Force Base, deployed by local and state law enforcement, and integrated into commercial security operations. We were selected as a finalist for Falcon Peak 25.2, the Department of Defense’s premier counter-UAS exercise. Scout is a passive RF sensor for fixed, mobile, or temporary deployments. It detects and classifies drone control signals—including modified variants of DJI, Crossfire, and ExpressLRS—at standoff ranges. Scout supports direct integration into TAK and other operational APIs and is managed through GRF-SECURE, our secure interface for live monitoring, threat alerting, and forensic review. Mosaic extends coverage in austere environments, enabling persistent low-altitude monitoring and classification of non–Remote ID drones across complex terrain—without active emissions or mesh dependency. Built in the United States, Guardian RF delivers scalable, automated, and cost-aligned drone detection—passive by design and hardened for real-world deployment across the homeland.
3 open roles
What the role involves
Guardian RF is building next-generation drone detection systems to protect critical infrastructure, national security, and public safety. Our passive RF-based platform delivers situational awareness by detecting both compliant and non-compliant drones and presenting actionable intelligence to security and law enforcement operators. This is a remote, part-time internship for students, approximately 20 hours per week. The role is designed to run alongside academic commitments and provides hands-on experience with production systems deployed in real operational environments. As a front end and UI engineering intern, you will design and implement user interfaces for mission-critical applications. Your work will focus on transforming complex RF and airspace data into clear, usable visualizations and workflows. You will collaborate closely with backend engineers, RF engineers, and product leadership to ensure accuracy, responsiveness, and reliability across the platform. You will also contribute to UI patterns, layout decisions, and interaction logic as the product evolves.
What the role involves
Guardian RF is seeking an electrical engineering summer intern to support the design, testing, and deployment of low-SWaP passive RF sensing systems for drone detection and airspace awareness. The intern will work directly with full-time engineers on hardware bring-up, RF front-end validation, power and battery systems, antenna integration, and system-level troubleshooting. Responsibilities include bench testing, field testing support, documentation of electrical designs and test results, and iterative improvements to deployed sensor hardware. The role requires a strong foundation in electrical engineering fundamentals, comfort with lab equipment such as oscilloscopes and spectrum analyzers, and interest in RF systems, embedded hardware, or applied sensing. This is a hands-on engineering role embedded in active commercial and government deployments, with exposure to real-world constraints around size, power, reliability, and manufacturability.
What the role involves
Guardian RF is building next-generation drone detection systems to protect critical infrastructure, national security, and public safety. Our passive RF-based platform provides real-time situational awareness by detecting both compliant and non-compliant drones and integrating directly with security and law enforcement systems. This role is primarily a full-time, in-person position based in Washington, DC, where close collaboration with our RF engineers and hardware team is essential. That said, we will consider strong candidates for remote work depending on experience and fit. As a backend engineer, you’ll design and build scalable services to process large volumes of RF data, develop APIs for integrations, and help shape the foundation of our distributed system. You’ll work closely with RF engineers, data scientists, and front-end developers to deliver mission-critical technology that has real-world impact.
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Company facts compiled from public sources and last refreshed 9 September 2026. Details change; treat the company’s own site as the authority.