Neros sponsors SAE collegiate competitions

We’re proud to announce our sponsorship of both the SAE Baja and SAE Formula collegiate competitions in 2026 – plus, a hiring bounty that directly supports teams whenever their members get hired at Neros.

Finding the next generation of defense engineers

At Neros, we build FPV drone systems that operate in some of the most unforgiving environments on the planet. That work requires engineers who don't just understand theory, but also what it means to rapidly prototype and test under real-world constraints.

That's why we're investing in SAE Baja and Formula. We want to support the university students who aren’t waiting for graduation to build hard things, and who want to work on the most pressing challenges in national security.

How we’ll partner

We’ll have Neros team members at the following events this year:

  • SAE Baja New York: June 11–14
  • SAE Formula EV Michigan: June 16–20
  • SAE Baja Ohio: September 24–27

Defense technology demands deep engineering talent, and SAE competitions demand students who can operate under pressure, iterate fast when designs fail, and ship against strict performance requirements.

Through our sponsorship, participating teams gain access to Neros resources, technical mentorship from our engineering team, and exposure to the how the defense industry is evoving right here in America.

The engineers who will define the next era of defense technology are building things in garages and university shops right now. We want to be a meaningful part of both their technical and career growth.

— Olaf Hichwa, Co-Founder and CTO, Neros

Introducing the hiring bounty

Every time Neros makes a successful hire – full-time or intern – from an SAE collegiate team, we’ll contribute $10,000 to that team. The better your team builds engineers, the more your team benefits.

  • Applies to all Neros hires from SAE Baja and SAE Formula programs
  • $10,000 paid directly to the collegiate SAE team after new hire's start date
  • No quantity limit – each qualifying hire from your team triggers a new award

We’re building a flywheel: Neros gets engineers who've already proven themselves, SAE teams get more funding to build successive generations of engineering talent, and our country benefits from a stronger pipeline into defense technology.

SAE team member or advisor? Reach out at info@neros.tech to learn more about the hiring bounty program and how to get your team involved.