Senior Software Engineer — RISC-V Instruction Set Simulator

MaC VC; Cupertino (CA); Hybrid; USD 176,000 - 263,000; Full time

Job summary

Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. is building a high-performance RISC-V ISA simulator used as the golden reference for a family of 64-bit processors. The role intersects architecture, systems software and verification, requiring precise, fast C++ implementation.

You translate the ISA, ensure correctness of fetch/decode/execute and memory models, and enable co-simulation with RTL. Strong C++ skills and low-level systems experience are essential.

Qualifications

• Solid C++ skills and comfort reading unfamiliar codebases.
• Comfortable with processor architecture, pipelines, memory and interrupts.
• Strong attention to detail; accuracy is critical.
• Willingness to read specifications and translate into tested code.
• Exposure to low-level or systems programming.

Responsibilities

• Translate the RISC-V ISA into working C++ across extensions.
• Maintain fetch/decode/execute, memory protection and privilege logic.
• Support co-simulation with RTL and flag discrepancies at instruction level.
• Create targeted unit tests and compare against specs.
• Develop and maintain simulator extensions and utilities.

Skills

C++ skills

Processor architecture knowledge

Attention to detail

Spec-driven development

Low-level systems programming

Education

Bachelor's degree in EE/CE/CS

Master's degree in EE/CE/CS

PhD in EE/CE/CS

Tools

GDB

ELF binaries

Linux internals

Bare-metal bring-up

Job description

Company

Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.

Job Area

Engineering Group, Engineering Group > CPU Engineering

General Summary

About the Role

We are building a high-performance, production-grade RISC-V Instruction Set Simulator (ISS) that serves as the golden reference model for a family of next-generation 64-bit RISC-V processors. The ISS is a key component of our verification flow: it drives co-simulation against RTL, powers random test generation, and gives software teams a fast, accurate platform to develop and debug pre-silicon firmware.

The work is at the intersection of computer architecture, systems software, and verification engineering - writing the kind of C++ that has to be both correct to the bit and fast enough to run long-running benchmarks and boot Linux.

What You'll Work On

• Implement the ISA: Translate RISC-V specification chapters into working C++ code. We cover a wide range of extensions: integer, floating-point, vector, bit manipulation, security features, interrupt handling, and more.
• Simulation correctness: Help maintain the fetch/decode/execute engine, memory protection, virtual memory, and privilege-level logic that make the simulator a trustworthy reference.
• Co-simulation: Work on the harness that runs the ISS alongside RTL and flags any differences, one instruction at a time.
• Testing: Write targeted unit tests that exercise individual features and compare against expected results derived from the RISC-V spec.
• Developer tooling: Contribute to and maintain a large collection of simulator extensions and utilities that help the user community be more productive.

What We're Looking For

• Solid C++ skills and comfort reading unfamiliar codebases.
• Comfortable with basic processor architecture, including pipelines, memory, privilege levels, and interrupts.
• Strong attention to detail; this work is spec-driven and correctness matters.
• Willingness to read a specification document and turn it into tested code.
• Some exposure to low-level or systems programming, such as embedded systems, operating systems, compilers, or hardware description.

Nice to Have

• Experience with RISC-V, x86, or ARM architecture.
• Familiarity with simulators or emulators such as QEMU, Spike, gem5, or similar tools.
• Experience with GDB, ELF binaries, or bare-metal bring-up.
• Background in hardware verification or RTL co-simulation.
• Knowledge of Linux internals.
• Python 3+ experience.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or related field and 4+ years of Hardware Engineering, Software Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Systems Engineering, or related work experience.

OR

Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or related field and 3+ years of Hardware Engineering, Software Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Systems Engineering, or related work experience.

OR

PhD in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or related field and 2+ years of Hardware Engineering, Software Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Systems Engineering, or related work experience.

Qualcomm is an equal opportunity employer. If you are an individual with a disability and need an accommodation during the application/hiring process, rest assured that Qualcomm is committed to providing an accessible process. You may e-mail [e-mail] or call Qualcomm's toll-free number found here. Upon request, Qualcomm will provide reasonable accommodations to support individuals with disabilities to be able participate in the hiring process. Qualcomm is also committed to making our workplace accessible for individuals with disabilities. (Keep in mind that this email address is used to provide reasonable accommodations for individuals with disabilities. We will not respond here to requests for updates on applications or resume inquiries).

EEO Employer

Qualcomm is an equal opportunity employer; all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, Veteran status, or any other protected classification.

Qualcomm expects its employees to abide by all applicable policies and procedures, including but not limited to security and other requirements regarding protection of Company confidential information and other confidential and/or proprietary information, to the extent those requirements are permissible under applicable law.

Pay Range And Other Compensation & Benefits

$175,600.00 - $263,400.00

The above pay scale reflects the broad, minimum to maximum, pay scale for this job code for the location for which it has been posted. Even more importantly, please note that salary is only one component of total compensation at Qualcomm. We also offer a competitive annual discretionary bonus program and opportunity for annual RSU grants (employees on sales-incentive plans are not eligible for our annual bonus). In addition, our highly competitive benefits package is designed to support your success at work, at home, and at play. Your recruiter will be happy to discuss all that Qualcomm has to offer - and you can review more details about our US benefits at this link.