Staff Software Engineer (ML Quality Assurance)

Graphcore; Cambridge; Hybrid; GBP 65,000 - 95,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Work-Life Balance

Private Medical Insurance (PMI)

Pension

Income Protection

Progression

Wellbeing

Job summary

Graphcore is seeking an ML QA engineer to build production-grade test infrastructure and scalable frameworks that validate the ML stack across frameworks, simulators, emulators and hardware. You will create realistic ML workloads, analyze execution, and drive improvements in testing and tooling.

You will shape software architecture, mentor junior engineers, and collaborate across software teams to raise quality and maintainability of Graphcore’s AI compute stack.

Qualifications

• Self-directed approach to solving complex problems, identifying gaps and driving improvements.
• Experience building CI/CD pipelines and automated testing systems in Linux environments.
• Familiarity with C or C++, read/debug/reason about low-level code.
• Strong Python skills, designing, developing and maintaining production-quality software.
• Ability to mentor junior engineers and influence engineering practices.
• Software design and architecture skills for large, complex codebases, with emphasis on testability and maintainability.

Responsibilities

• Build software that validates Graphcore’s ML stack, from frameworks to AI accelerator hardware.
• Design production-quality test infrastructure engineers can extend, maintain and rely on as ML software grows.
• Architect scalable test frameworks and CI/CD pipelines that run across simulators, emulators and physical hardware.
• Create representative ML workloads, analyse their execution and turn the results into practical improvements to testing and tooling.
• Shape software architecture and developer experience, not just add tests to existing systems.
• Deepen understanding of the AI compute stack while solving engineering problems that connect software design with hardware behaviour.
• Graphcore’s ML QA engineers build automation, work with industry-standard frameworks and models, and contribute to upstream open-source projects.
• Work across software teams with code/design reviews to strengthen quality, security and maintainability.
• Use workload results to challenge assumptions and guide technical decisions about how Graphcore tests its ML stack.
• Own improvements, act quickly on testing gaps and mentor junior engineers to raise the team’s technical standards.

Skills

C/C++

Python

Mentoring juniors

Software architecture

Tools

CI/CD pipelines

Linux

Automated testing frameworks

Low-level debugging

Job description

• Build the software that validates Graphcore’s machine learning stack, from frameworks to AI accelerator hardware
• You’ll design production-quality test infrastructure that engineers can extend, maintain and rely on as Graphcore’s ML software grows
• Your work will help teams deliver reliable products, with clear evidence of numerical accuracy and performance across the stack
• You’ll architect scalable test frameworks and build CI/CD pipelines that run across simulators, emulators and physical hardware
• You’ll create representative ML workloads, analyse their execution and turn the results into practical improvements to testing and tooling
• This role gives you scope to shape software architecture and developer experience, not just add tests to existing systems
• You’ll deepen your understanding of the AI compute stack while solving engineering problems that connect software design with hardware behaviour
• Graphcore’s ML QA engineers build automation, work with industry-standard frameworks and models, and contribute to upstream open-source projects
• You’ll work across software teams, using code and design reviews to strengthen quality, security and maintainability
• You’ll use workload results to challenge assumptions and guide technical decisions about how Graphcore tests its ML stack
• You’ll own improvements, act quickly on testing gaps and mentor junior engineers to raise the team’s technical standards

Benefits

• Work-Life Balance: We believe you should have a good work-life balance. Everyone’s situation is different, so we offer flexible working arrangements and start and finish times, allowing you to choose when to work from home or come into the office
• Healthcare: We offer Private Medical Insurance (PMI) to our employees to help them take care of their health and that of their loved ones
• Pension: We believe that our employees deserve the best when it comes to planning for their future
• Income Protection: Graphcore understands that unforeseen circumstances can happen, and we want to ensure our employees have the necessary financial security in place
• Progression: We prioritise learning and development as an integral part of our culture at Graphcore. Our Talent Development team is dedicated to equipping all our employees with the necessary tools, resources, and support to enhance their skills and reach their full potential in their careers
• Wellbeing: We want to ensure that our employees have the resources and support they need to prioritise their health and wellbeing

While we have outlined a set of requirements, we value transferable skills and diverse experiences. We also welcome engineers returning to the profession after a career break, including through returnship routesA self-directed approach to solving complex problems, identifying gaps and driving improvementsExperience building CI/CD pipelines and automated testing systems in Linux environmentsFamiliarity with C or C++, including the ability to read, debug and reason about low-level codeStrong Python skills, demonstrated through designing, developing and maintaining production-quality softwareThe ability to mentor junior engineers and influence engineering practices through constructive feedbackSoftware design and architecture skills for large, complex codebases, with a focus on testability and long-term maintainability