AI Hardware Performance Architect

Velaura AI; Durham (NC); On-site; USD 200,000 - 500,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity participation

Flexible work arrangements

Comprehensive benefits

Job summary

Velaura AI is seeking a Performance Modeling Architect to develop modeling and simulation frameworks for guiding architectural decisions across our platform. You will model interactions between AI workloads, software stacks, and hardware architectures to quantify performance, latency, scalability, and energy efficiency.

This role collaborates with hardware architects and ML teams to capture realistic workloads and evaluate system-level tradeoffs.

Qualifications

• Strong background in computer architecture or system architecture and performance modeling.
• Experience building simulation or analytical models of complex hardware systems.
• Strong programming skills (Python, C++, or similar) for modeling and simulation frameworks.
• Understanding of modern compute architectures such as CPUs, GPUs, or AI accelerators.
• Ability to analyze complex systems and identify performance bottlenecks.
• Strong quantitative reasoning and ability to translate models into architectural insights.

Responsibilities

• Develop system-level performance models for AI workloads and compute architectures.
• Build simulation frameworks that capture interactions between AI models, software runtimes, and hardware systems.
• Model key components of SoC architecture including compute units, memory hierarchies, and interconnects.
• Incorporate relevant software and runtime behavior into modeling frameworks to reflect realistic system execution.
• Analyze system bottlenecks and evaluate architectural tradeoffs across the platform.
• Work closely with hardware architects to guide microarchitectural and system-level design decisions.
• Collaborate with software and ML teams to incorporate realistic workloads into modeling frameworks.
• Use modeling and simulation to evaluate performance, latency, throughput, and energy efficiency across target applications.

Skills

Performance modeling

System architecture

Python

C++

Analytical reasoning

Hardware–software co-design

Tools

Architectural simulators

Job description

We are looking for a Performance Modeling Architect who will develop the modeling and simulation frameworks used to guide architectural decisions across our platform. In this role, you will build models that capture the interaction between AI workloads, software stacks, and hardware architectures, enabling rigorous evaluation of system-level tradeoffs. Your models will represent not only the SoC architecture and its components, but also key elements of the software stack and system behavior that ultimately determine real-world performance. These frameworks will enable hardware–software co-design, allowing us to explore design alternatives and quantify their impact on

performance, latency, scalability, and energy efficiency. Your work will directly influence the architecture of next-generation AI compute platforms.

Role Overview

We are looking for a Performance Modeling Architect who will develop the modeling and simulation frameworks used to guide architectural decisions across our platform. In this role, you will build models that capture the interaction between AI workloads, software stacks, and hardware architectures, enabling rigorous evaluation of system-level tradeoffs. Your models will represent not only the SoC architecture and its components, but also key elements of the software stack and system behavior that ultimately determine real-world performance. These frameworks will enable hardware–software co-design, allowing us to explore design alternatives and quantify their impact on

performance, latency, scalability, and energy efficiency. Your work will directly influence the architecture of next-generation AI compute platforms.

Responsibilities

• Develop system-level performance models for AI workloads and compute architectures.
• Build simulation frameworks that capture interactions between AI models, software runtimes, and hardware systems.
• Model key components of SoC architecture including compute units, memory hierarchies, and interconnects.
• Incorporate relevant software and runtime behavior into modeling frameworks to reflect realistic system execution.
• Analyze system bottlenecks and evaluate architectural tradeoffs across the platform.
• Work closely with hardware architects to guide microarchitectural andsystem-level design decisions.
• Collaborate with software and ML teams to incorporate realistic workloads into modeling frameworks.
• Use modeling and simulation to evaluate performance, latency, throughput, andenergy efficiency across target applications.

Required Qualifications

• Strong background in computer architecture, system architecture, or performance modeling.
• Experience building simulation or analytical models of complex hardware systems.
• Strong programming skills (Python, C++, or similar) for modeling and simulation frameworks.
• Understanding of modern compute architectures such as CPUs, GPUs, or AI accelerators.
• Ability to analyze complex systems and identify performance bottlenecks.
• Strong quantitative reasoning and ability to translate models into architectural insights.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience modeling AI workloads or machine learning systems.
• Familiarity with architectural simulators or performance modeling tools.
• Experience with memory systems, interconnect architectures, or accelerator design.
• Exposure to hardware–software co-design methodologies.
• Experience modeling performance across multiple layers of the stack, including software runtimes and hardware platforms.

$200,000 - $500,000 a year

Compensation & Benefits

At Velaura, we believe exceptional talent deserves exceptional rewards. Compensationfor this role includes a competitive base salary, performance-based incentives, andequity participation, allowing team members to share in the company’s long-termsuccess.

Your base pay will depend on your skills, qualifications, experience, and location.

In addition to compensation, Velaura offers a comprehensive benefits package that may include medical, dental, and vision coverage; paid time off; flexible work arrangements; professional development opportunities; and other benefits designed to support the well-being and growth of our team.

Velaura is committed to pay equity and transparency and regularly benchmarks compensation to ensure we remain competitive in the market.

Why Velaura?

Velaura is building next-generation compute technology for cloud, edge, and PhysicalAI. Our solutions will enable robots, autonomous systems, drones, and other intelligentmachines to operate efficiently in the physical world.

This is an opportunity to help build foundational technology at a time when the industry is undergoing fundamental change. You will work alongside experienced leaders, architects, engineers, and operators who have delivered industry-defining products across mobile, cloud, semiconductor, and AI platforms. If you enjoy solving difficult problems, working across disciplines, and helping shape thefuture of Physical AI, we would love to hear from you.

Equal Employment Opportunity and Accommodations

Velaura is an Equal Opportunity Employer that is committed to inclusion and diversity.Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race,color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability orprotected veteran status. We also take affirmative action to offer employment opportunities to minorities, women, individuals with disabilities, and protected veterans.

Velaura is committed to working with qualified individuals with physical or mentaldisabilities. Applicants who would like to contact us regarding the accessibility of ourwebsite or who need special assistance or a reasonable accommodation for any part ofthe application or hiring process may contact us at: [e-mail]. This contact information is for accommodation requests only. Evaluation of requests for reasonableaccommodation will be determined on a case-by-case basis