CPU Architect (Senior Principal) - Sponsorship available.

European Tech Recruit; Cambridge; On-site; GBP 110,000 - 170,000; Full time

Job summary

European Tech Recruit seeks a seasoned CPU Architect to shape the next generation of high-performance processors in Cambridge. This senior IC role blends strategic influence with hands-on design, exploring ISA and microarchitecture for HW/SW co-design.

You will lead architectural exploration, build cycle-accurate models in C++, C and Python, and collaborate with compiler/OS teams to translate workloads into architectural requirements for future CPUs.

Qualifications

• 10+ years in high-performance CPU architecture.
• Expert knowledge of out-of-order and speculative execution and cache hierarchies.
• Strong ISA design understanding and memory-consistency models.
• Experience with cycle-accurate architectural simulators in C/C++/Python.

Responsibilities

• Lead architectural exploration and pathfinding for future CPU designs.
• Develop microarchitectural concepts across fetch/decode, pipelines and memory systems.
• Define ISA enhancements including vector/matrix extensions.
• Analyze workloads to translate findings into architectural requirements.
• Collaborate with compiler, OS and application specialists on HW/SW co-design.
• Guide creation of cycle-accurate CPU simulation models in C++, C and Python.
• Evaluate proposals against performance, power and area targets.
• Provide senior technical leadership and long-term roadmaps.

Skills

OOO execution

Speculative execution

Branch prediction

Cache hierarchies

Coherency protocols

ISA design

Memory-consistency models

Virtualisation

Performance profiling

Cycle-accurate simulators

Education

Master's degree in Computer Engineering/CS/EE

PhD in Computer Engineering/CS/EE

Tools

Perf

VTune

SimPoints

Job description

We are seeking an accomplished CPU Architect to help define the next generation of high-performance processors.

This is a senior individual-contributor role with substantial technical influence and long-term strategic impact. You will investigate architectural concepts several years ahead of production, shaping innovations across instruction-set architecture, microarchitecture, workload analysis and hardware/software co-design.

Your work will focus on emerging computational demands, including generative AI, large language models, graph analytics and confidential computing.

What You'll Do

• Lead architectural exploration and pathfinding for future CPU designs and enabling technologies.
• Develop microarchitectural concepts spanning instruction fetch and decode, execution pipelines, out-of-order scheduling and multi-level memory systems.
• Investigate and define ISA enhancements, including vector and matrix extensions and specialised compute instructions.
• Analyse emerging workloads, identify software bottlenecks and translate findings into architectural requirements.
• Collaborate with compiler, operating-system and application specialists on hardware/software co-design.
• Guide the creation of cycle-accurate CPU simulation models in C++, C and Python.
• Assess architectural proposals against performance, power and area targets.
• Provide senior technical leadership and contribute to long-range technology roadmaps.
• Lead architectural research, exploration and pathfinding for future CPU designs.
• Define and evaluate microarchitectural concepts across:
• Instruction fetch and decode.
• Execution pipelines.
• Multi-level memory systems.
• Investigate and define ISA enhancements, including vector, matrix and specialised compute instructions.
• Analyse emerging workloads to identify performance bottlenecks and translate findings into architectural requirements.
• Work closely with compiler, operating-system and application specialists on hardware/software co-design.
• Guide the development of cycle-accurate CPU simulation models using C++, C and Python.
• Evaluate architectural proposals against performance, power and area targets.
• Provide senior technical leadership and contribute to long-term CPU technology roadmaps.

What You'll Bring

• At least 10 years of relevant industry experience, including substantial work in high-performance CPU architecture.
• Expert knowledge of out-of-order execution, speculative execution, branch prediction, register renaming, cache hierarchies and coherency protocols.
• A strong understanding of ISA design, exception models, memory-consistency models and virtualisation.
• Practical experience in workload profiling using performance counters, simulation traces and related techniques.
• Familiarity with performance-analysis environments such as Perf, VTune or SimPoints.
• Strong experience developing cycle-accurate architectural simulators using C, C++ and Python.
• A master's degree or PhD in Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering or a related discipline.
• At least 10 years of relevant industry experience, including substantial experience in high-performance CPU architecture.
• Expert knowledge of:
• Out-of-order and speculative execution
• Memory systems
• Coherency protocols
• Strong understanding of ISA design, exception models, memory-consistency models and virtualisation.
• Practical experience profiling workloads using performance counters, simulation traces and related analysis techniques.
• Familiarity with performance-analysis tools and environments such as Perf, VTune and SimPoints.
• Strong experience developing cycle-accurate architectural simulators in C, C++ and Python.
• A master's degree or PhD in Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering or a related discipline.

Additional Experience That Would Be Valuable

• Involvement in multiple high-performance CPU programmes through silicon tape-out.
• Architecture experience across x86, Arm and/or RISC-V.
• Contributions to LLVM, GCC, architectural frameworks or open ISA communities.
• Knowledge of chiplets, 3D integration and advanced semiconductor packaging.
• Experience contributing to multiple high-performance CPU programmes through silicon tape-out.
• CPU architecture experience across one or more of x86, Arm and RISC-V.
• Contributions to LLVM, GCC, architectural frameworks or open ISA communities.
• Knowledge of chiplets, 3D integration and advanced semiconductor packaging.

Why Consider This Role?

This is an opportunity to influence processor technology years before commercial deployment and to work on some of computing’s most demanding and rapidly evolving workloads.

You will have the scope to shape future CPU architectures, collaborate across hardware and software disciplines, and contribute to long-term technology decisions with significant industry impact.