Infra Data Plane Engineer – High-Perf Networking

Apple Inc.; Cupertino (CA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 278,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Stock options

Relocation assistance

Comprehensive benefits

Job summary

Apple Inc. in California is seeking a Software Engineer for Infrastructure Services (Data Plane) to design, build, and operate scalable, low-latency packet processing systems powering Apple’s cloud infrastructure.

You will tackle dataplane architecture, control plane integration, and performance optimization, collaborating with cross-functional teams to deliver reliable networking solutions at global scale.

Qualifications

• Strong proficiency in systems programming languages such as C++, Go, or C
• Solid foundation in Computer Science fundamentals: data structures, algorithms, memory management, and concurrency
• Deep knowledge of Networking Fundamentals & Data plane internals: L2–L4, TCP/IP, MTU/MSS, QoS/traffic shaping
• Experience with source control (Git) and modern build/configuration tools
• Experience designing and optimizing scalable network data plane components, packet forwarding paths, or kernel/userspace networking subsystems
• Understanding of microservice architectures, asynchronous communication, and API design (REST, gRPC, Protobuf)
• Proven ability to analyze and debug complex live production incidents under pressure using metrics, traces, and logs
• Strong communication and cross-functional collaboration skills with ownership mindset

Responsibilities

• Dataplane Architecture & Development: Design, implement, and optimize high-throughput, ultra-low-latency packet processing systems
• System Design & High-Performance Coding: Build modular, resilient, and performant systems
• Control Plane Integration: Collaborate to build APIs (gRPC, REST) for state distribution and policy enforcement
• Operational Excellence & Incident Triage: Maintain production health and debug incidents using telemetry and logs
• Automation & Delivery: Use CI/CD, Git workflows, and configuration management to deliver software on bold deadlines

Skills

C++

Go

C language

Networking fundamentals

Distributed systems

APIs (REST/gRPC)

Debugging live incidents

Cross-functional collaboration

Tools

DPDK

XDP

eBPF

VPP

OVS

P4

Job description

Apple Inc. in California is seeking a Software Engineer for Infrastructure Services (Data Plane) to design, build, and operate scalable, low-latency packet processing systems powering Apple’s cloud infrastructure.

You will tackle dataplane architecture, control plane integration, and performance optimization, collaborating with cross-functional teams to deliver reliable networking solutions at global scale.