Principal Post-Silicon Validation Engineer

About the team

We're the team behind post-silicon bring-up, debug, and validation for the high-speed IO and memory subsystems in SambaNova's DataScale platform. We own the path from first silicon power-on through field deployment: characterization, stress testing, performance validation, and root-causing issues across silicon, board, and software. We work directly with design, firmware, verification, and system engineering to keep bring-up on schedule, and partner with customer engineering on deployment and RMA debug. We build our own debug tooling and automation, and apply what we learn to pre-silicon verification to improve coverage on future programs.

About the role

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SambaNova is seeking a Principal Engineer to own post-silicon bring-up, debug, and validation of high-speed IO and memory subsystems within the DataScale® platform. This role is central to delivering reliable, high-performance AI systems at scale. You'll lead system-level debug across silicon, board, and software layers, driving issues to root cause from first silicon through field deployment. This is a hands-on role for an engineer with deep expertise in high-speed interfaces and hardware debug, who can operate in ambiguity and execute with high ownership.

Responsibilities

Some of your responsibilities will include:

Own post-silicon bring-up and validation of high-speed IO and memory subsystems, spanning characterization, functional validation, stress testing, and performance analysis

Establish power-on readiness ahead of first silicon, including debug infrastructure, tooling, and contingency planning

Lead system-level debug to root cause complex issues spanning silicon, board, and software layers

Drive resolution with design, firmware, verification, and system teams to close issues and keep bring-up on schedule

Partner with system and customer engineering teams on product validation, deployment, and RMA debug

Own validation sign-off for product release against stability, performance, and field reliability targets

Review SoC and board design and SI/PI analysis through a post-silicon debug and deployment lens

Contribute to pre-silicon verification and emulation to improve bring-up efficiency and coverage

Build scripts and tooling that automate validation, debug, and data analysis, and scale test coverage across systems

Advance post-silicon validation methodology and debug infrastructure across programs

Required qualifications

M.S. in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field

7+ years of experience in post-silicon validation or system bring-up

Experience with two or more high-speed IO or memory protocols such as PCIe, Ethernet, HBM, CXL, or UCIe

Proven ability to lead cross-functional debug efforts to root cause and closure

Strong analytical skills for test development and data analysis

Proficiency in scripting such as Python and bash

Clear and effective communicator with a proactive, collaborative approach to problem-solving

Preferred qualifications

Deep understanding of high-speed SerDes training and adaptation

Experience with mixed-signal IO design and validation

Hands-on lab experience with oscilloscopes, protocol analyzers, and BERTs

Experience with optical interconnect

Ability to read and debug C/C++

Base Salary Range:

Base Pay Range

$180,000—$255,000 USD