Senior Linux Kernel Engineer (Device Drivers / Embedded Linux) – Fully Remote

X4 Technology; Poland; On-site; PLN 558,000 - 745,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Fully remote long-term contract

High day rate

Exposure to AI-assisted engineering

Open-source and upstream contributions

Job summary

X4 Technology is seeking a Senior Linux Kernel Engineer to design and implement device drivers for embedded Linux platforms and GPUs in a fully remote role. You will work on bringing up new hardware, optimizing kernel performance, and contributing to open-source Linux kernel projects with a highly technical team.

This long-term contract offers a high day rate, the opportunity to shape low-level software across embedded and industrial hardware, and collaboration with hardware, FPGA, firmware and

Qualifications

• Extensive experience in embedded Linux kernel development.
• Proven track record in bringing up hardware platforms and drivers.
• Experience with Linux kernel development lifecycle and debugging.

Responsibilities

• Design Linux kernel device drivers from the ground up.
• Bring up new hardware platforms and peripherals.
• Maintain kernel-space software for embedded Linux systems.
• Backport drivers and kernel functionality across versions.
• Debug hardware and software interactions within the Linux kernel.
• Collaborate with hardware, FPGA, firmware and systems teams.
• Optimize performance, stability and reliability for production deployments.
• Contribute fixes and new functionality to Linux kernel and open-source projects.
• Support Linux kernel upstream submissions where appropriate.

Skills

Strong debugging and troubleshooting

Linux kernel architecture

Embedded Linux

Hardware-software interactions

Tools

Git

Yocto

Buildroot

BSP (Board Support Packages)

Job description

Senior Linux Kernel Engineer (Device Drivers / Embedded Linux) – Fully Remote

Fully Remote | Long-Term Contract | High Day Rate

We're looking for an experienced Senior Linux Kernel Engineer to join a highly technical team developing next-generation GPU and embedded Linux platforms on a fully home working basis.

This is an opportunity to work on challenging low-level software problems across embedded, industrial, networking and high-performance hardware. You'll be involved throughout the full driver lifecycle—from bringing up brand-new hardware with drivers written from scratch to developing, optimising and backporting Linux kernel functionality for production systems deployed at scale.

You'll also have the opportunity to work with modern AI-assisted engineering workflows, using AI tools to support specification-driven development, debugging, documentation and code exploration within real embedded Linux development cycles.

If you enjoy working close to the hardware and solving problems inside the Linux kernel, this is a role where your work will have a genuine impact.

Why You'll Want This Role

• Fully remote, long-term contract
• High day rate
• New hardware bring-up on cutting-edge platforms
• Opportunity to contribute to Linux mainline and other open-source projects
• Work alongside experienced Linux kernel and embedded engineers
• Access to industry-leading hardware and development platforms
• Collaborative engineering culture focused on technical excellence

What You'll Be Doing

• Designing and developing Linux kernel device drivers from the ground up
• Bringing up new hardware platforms and peripherals
• Developing and maintaining kernel-space software for embedded Linux systems
• Backporting drivers and kernel functionality across multiple Linux kernel versions where required
• Debugging complex hardware and software interactions within the Linux kernel
• Working closely with hardware, FPGA, firmware and systems engineering teams
• Optimising performance, stability and reliability for production deployments
• Contributing fixes, enhancements and new functionality to Linux kernel and open-source projects
• Supporting Linux kernel upstream submissions where appropriate

Technologies You'll Work With

You'll have exposure to a broad range of technologies including:

• Embedded Linux
• C
• ARM and RISC-V platforms
• SPI
• I2C
• UART
• USB
• Ethernet
• Yocto
• Buildroot
• Board Support Packages (BSP)
• SoCs and FPGA-based platforms
• Git and modern embedded development workflows

We're looking for engineers with experience in most of the following:

• Embedded Linux systems
• Strong debugging and troubleshooting skills
• Good understanding of Linux kernel architecture and subsystems
• Experience debugging hardware and software interactions

Any of the following would be beneficial but isn't essential:

• Backporting Linux drivers or kernel functionality between kernel versions
• ARM or RISC-V platforms
• Yocto, Buildroot or custom Linux distributions
• Networking, storage or industrial communication protocols

Modern Engineering Environment

We encourage engineers to make use of modern AI-assisted development tools where they add value. You'll have the opportunity to use AI to support planning, debugging, documentation, code exploration and specification-driven development alongside traditional engineering practices. Previous experience with AI-assisted development isn't required.

Why This Role Is Different

This role focuses on Linux kernel and low-level systems software rather than application development.

You'll be working on new hardware before it reaches production, solving complex engineering challenges that require a deep understanding of operating systems, hardware architectures and kernel internals.

You'll have the opportunity to influence technical decisions, own significant pieces of work from concept through deployment and collaborate with highly experienced kernel, firmware and hardware engineers.

We actively encourage engineers to contribute to open-source software.

If you're interested, you'll have the opportunity to submit patches and contribute new functionality to the Linux kernel and other open-source projects. Previous upstream contribution experience is welcomed but isn't essential.

What You’ll Get

• Challenging low-level engineering work on cutting-edge hardware
• Fully remote long-term contract
• High day rate
• Opportunity to work on products used around the world
• Exposure to modern AI-assisted engineering workflows
• Time and support for open-source and upstream Linux kernel contributions
• A highly technical environment where engineering excellence is genuinely valued

Apply

If you're passionate about Linux kernel development and enjoy solving problems close to the hardware, we'd love to hear from you.

Whether your background is in embedded systems, semiconductors, networking, industrial automation, automotive or platform software, you'll be joining a collaborative engineering team solving challenging problems that most software engineers never get the opportunity to work on.

This is a one-stage telephone interview process, with CVs being reviewed immediately for an ASAP start.