Etched · 2 months ago
Firmware Manager
San Jose, CA
Full-time
Onsite
Senior Level
$175K/yr - $250K/yr
5+ years expEtched is building the world’s first AI inference system purpose-built for transformers. As Senior Firmware Manager, you will lead the firmware development team responsible for the entire firmware stack powering the Inference Accelerator ASIC, guiding technical strategy and ensuring high-quality execution from silicon bring-up through production.
Artificial Intelligence (AI)SemiconductorElectronicsHardwareAI InfrastructureComputer
Responsibilities
Team Leadership & Talent Development: Lead, manage, and inspire a high-caliber team of firmware engineers
Team Building: Build and scale a world-class firmware team. Attract, hire, and retain, top-tier engineering talent specializing in embedded systems and firmware
Technical Strategy & Roadmap: Guide and drive the technical strategy and ASIC firmware development roadmap
Coach and Mentor: Actively coach and mentor team members, fostering professional growth through challenging assignments, targeted development plans, and continuous feedback. Cultivate a team culture focused on firmware excellence, quality, and results
Execution & Delivery: Oversee the end-to-end firmware development lifecycle – including requirements definition, design, implementation, unit testing, integration, validation support, and release management. Ensure timely delivery of high-quality firmware releases aligned with hardware and software milestones
Silicon Bring-Up Leadership: Play a critical role in silicon bring-up activities, providing firmware expertise and leading debugging efforts in close collaboration with hardware and validation teams
Firmware Validation Collaboration: Partner closely with ASIC validation teams to define firmware test plans, review test results, and ensure comprehensive validation coverage
Cross-Functional Collaboration: Partner effectively with ASIC design, hardware platform engineering, system software development, validation teams, and external manufacturing partners to address system-level challenges
Firmware Release Management: Oversee maintenance, version control, and release process for validated firmware builds
Resource Management: Manage project priorities, deadlines, and resources effectively across multiple concurrent projects and deliverables
Qualification
Required
Proven experience (5+ years) managing firmware or embedded software engineering teams, with direct experience in developing firmware for complex ASICs, SoCs, FPGAs, or similar hardware
Demonstrated track record of attracting, developing, mentoring, and retaining firmware/embedded engineering talent, building high-performing, diverse, and motivated teams
Strong architectural understanding across firmware/embedded areas: C/C++ for embedded systems, RTOS/bare-metal development, bootloaders, Root of Trust, low-level hardware initialization
Experience with low-level interfaces like I2C, SPI, JTAG
Experience managing the full firmware development lifecycle (specification, design, implementation, test, release, maintenance)
Track record of successfully delivering complex firmware for new hardware platforms, including active participation in silicon bring-up and debugging
Excellent leadership, communication, and interpersonal skills with the ability to lead firmware efforts and influence cross-functional teams
Strong problem-solving and debugging skills applied to complex hardware/firmware interactions, proficiency with tools like logic analyzers, oscilloscopes, and debug probes
Experience with firmware development best practices, source control (Git), and CI/CD methodologies applied to embedded development
Preferred
Direct experience with firmware development and/or validation for AI/ML accelerators or custom data-center accelerator ASICs
Experience developing or integrating firmware diagnostics and provisioning tools into high-volume manufacturing environments (factory test, system-level test)
Deep expertise in system security concepts relevant to firmware, threat modeling, secure coding practices, and cryptography implementation
Experience with on-chip debug infrastructure and tools
Familiarity with server contract manufacturers (CMs) in APAC and collaborating on manufacturing firmware deployment
Benefits
Full medical, dental, and vision packages, with generous premium coverage
Housing subsidy of $2,000/month for those living within walking distance of the office
Daily lunch and dinner in our office
Relocation support for those moving to West San Jose
Company
Etched
Building the hardware for superintelligence
51-200 employees
H1B Sponsorship
Etched has a track record of offering H1B sponsorships. Please note that this does not
guarantee sponsorship for this specific role. Below presents additional info for your
reference. (Data Powered by US Department of Labor)
Distribution of Different Job Fields Receiving Sponsorship
Represents job field similar to this job
Trends of Total Sponsorships
2025 (9)
2024 (11)
2023 (1)
Funding
Current Stage
Growth StageTotal Funding
$625.36MKey Investors
StripesPositive Sum,Primary Venture PartnersPrimary Venture Partners
2026-01-14Series Unknown· $500M
2024-06-25Series A· $120M
2023-05-16Seed· $5.36M
Leadership Team
Chris Zhu
Co-Founder
Robert Wachen
Co-Founder and President
Recent News
alleywatch.com
2026-01-20
2026-01-20
Company data provided by crunchbase