Etched · 23 hours ago
Kernel Driver Software Engineer
San Jose, CA
Full-time
Onsite
Mid, Senior LevelEtched is building the world’s first AI inference system purpose-built for transformers, delivering over 10x higher performance than traditional methods. They are seeking a Kernel Driver Software Engineer to design and maintain kernel-mode drivers, optimize performance for AI workloads, and collaborate with hardware engineers during the ASIC design process.
AI InfrastructureArtificial Intelligence (AI)ComputerHardwareSemiconductor
Responsibilities
Kernel-Mode Driver Development: Design, develop, and maintain kernel-mode drivers ensuring high reliability, informative debug, and optimal performance
Performance Optimization: Analyze and optimize driver performance for demanding AI workloads, focusing on minimizing latency and maximizing throughput
Hardware Integration and Co-Design: Collaborate closely with hardware engineers throughout the ASIC design process
Virtualization Support: Implement driver support for device virtualization technologies, including SR-IOV, VFIO, and para-virtualization
Memory Management: Implement efficient memory management strategies considering kernel memory mapping, page tables configuration, NUMA awareness for device data caching, and IOMMU configuration
Security: Build kernel drivers fundamentally designed to support and maintain security across host processes, physical memory spaces, and device attestation
Debugging and Troubleshooting: Diagnose and resolve complex driver-related issues, using common kernel debugging tools and techniques (ftrace, dmesg, etc.) to identify and fix bugs
Synchronization and Concurrency: Design and implement synchronization mechanisms to handle concurrent access to multiple accelerators
System Validation and Testing: Develop and execute comprehensive test plans to validate driver functionality, stability, and performance in manufacturing and in general production environments
Collaboration and Troubleshooting: Collaborate with software and hardware teams to diagnose and resolve complex system-level issues
Qualification
Required
Proficiency in C/C++
Strong understanding of kernel-mode driver development and debugging
Deep understanding of operating system internals (Linux preferred)
Experience with hardware/software interfacing and device drivers
Experience with memory management and synchronization in kernel environments
Strong understanding of PCIe and other hardware interfaces
Experience with device virtualization technologies, including SR-IOV and VFIO
Strong understanding of kernel memory mapping, page table configuration, and IOMMU
Familiarity with hardware-software co-design principles
Proven ability to analyze complex technical problems and provide effective solutions
Excellent communication and collaboration skills
Experience with version control systems (e.g., Git)
Experience with debugging tools (e.g., gdb, kgdb)
Preferred
Candidates with experience in developing and debugging kernel-mode drivers for GPU or other accelerator devices
Candidates with a strong understanding of hardware/software interactions
Candidates with experience in optimizing driver performance for demanding workloads
Candidates with experience in ML workloads
Candidates who have debugged complex hardware and software interactions, especially in virtualized environments
Candidates with experience in implementing and optimizing SR-IOV and VFIO
Candidates with in-depth knowledge of kernel memory mapping, page tables, and IOMMU
Candidates with experience in hardware-software co-design projects
Experience with GPU driver development
Experience with CUDA, OpenCL, or other GPU programming models
Experience with performance profiling and benchmarking tools (perf, VTune)
Knowledge of hardware virtualization techniques, including para-virtualization
Experience with CI/CD pipelines
Experience with Rust
Experience with ML frameworks like Tensorflow or Pytorch
Experience with data center orchestration technologies (Kubernetes, Docker)
Benefits
Medical, dental, and vision packages with generous premium coverage + $500 per month credit for waiving medical benefits
Housing subsidy of $2k per month for those living within walking distance of the office
Relocation support for those moving to San Jose (Santana Row)
Various wellness benefits covering fitness, mental health, and more
Daily lunch + dinner in our office
Company
Etched
Building the hardware for superintelligence
Founded in 2022
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
2026-01-16
Company data provided by crunchbase