Senior Linux Kernel Engineer - Bring-Up & Performance

Espace; Saratoga (CA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 200,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health and wellness care options

Paid holidays

Paid time off

Continuous learning

Job summary

E‑Space in Saratoga, CA is seeking a Linux Kernel Developer to own kernel-level quality as platforms scale. You will design, develop, and debug kernel code and low-level Linux components powering our hardware, working with embedded software, systems, and hardware teams to ensure stability and production-readiness.

The role involves driving kernel drivers, subsystems, memory management, and boot processes, with hands-on debugging, performance profiling, and upstream contributions.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience developing in C with deep familiarity with Linux kernel internals.
• Proven experience writing and debugging Linux device drivers and kernel modules.
• Solid understanding of kernel subsystems such as memory management, scheduling, filesystems, and networking.
• Deep knowledge of the Linux boot process and bootloaders.
• Experience with concurrency, locking, and interrupt handling in kernel space.
• Experience with embedded Linux build systems such as Yocto or Buildroot.
• Comfort working directly with hardware during bring-up, debugging with tools like JTAG, oscilloscopes, or logic analyzers.
• Strong debugging skills using tools such as gdb, ftrace, perf, kgdb, or crash dump analysis.
• Upstream Linux kernel contribution experience.
• Experience with real-time Linux (PREEMPT_RT) or other real-time operating systems.
• Familiarity with security-hardening practices for embedded Linux such as secure boot and kernel hardening.
• Experience with version control systems (Git) and kernel patch workflows (mailing lists, git send-email).
• Exposure to multiple CPU architectures including ARM, RISC-V, and x86.
• Experience with CI/CD pipelines for embedded or system-level software.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, and maintain Linux kernel code, including drivers, subsystems, and kernel modules.
• Port, configure, and optimize the Linux kernel for custom hardware platforms.
• Write and maintain device drivers for interfaces such as I2C, SPI, UART, USB, PCIe, and Ethernet.
• Debug and resolve kernel panics, race conditions, memory issues, and other low-level system failures.
• Profile and optimize kernel and driver performance, including boot time, latency, and power consumption.
• Work with bootloaders such as U-Boot and handle board bring-up for new hardware revisions.
• Collaborate with hardware engineers during board bring-up and hardware/software integration.
• Upstream patches where appropriate, and track relevant upstream kernel changes and CVEs.
• Contribute to kernel configuration, build systems such as Yocto and Buildroot, and CI integration.
• Document kernel architecture decisions, driver interfaces, and debugging procedures in a way that is practical and reusable.

Skills

Kernel internals

Linux device drivers

Kernel modules

C programming

Real-time Linux

Security hardening

Upstream Linux

Boot process

CI/CD

Tools

GDB

Ftrace

Perf

Kgdb

Job description

E‑Space in Saratoga, CA is seeking a Linux Kernel Developer to own kernel-level quality as platforms scale. You will design, develop, and debug kernel code and low-level Linux components powering our hardware, working with embedded software, systems, and hardware teams to ensure stability and production-readiness.

The role involves driving kernel drivers, subsystems, memory management, and boot processes, with hands-on debugging, performance profiling, and upstream contributions.