Software Engineer - C++ GPU Performance

Zoox; Foster City (CA); On-site; USD 168,000 - 239,000; Full time

Job summary

Zoox, located in Foster City, California, is searching for a skilled Software Performance Engineer. The ideal candidate will utilize their 3+ years of experience to build real-time performance monitoring tools and analyze GPU performance metrics. Requirements include a BS in computer science, strong skills in CUDA, and a familiarity with large code bases in Linux. The annual salary ranges from $168,000 to $239,000, with potential bonuses and stock options offered as part of the compensation package.

Qualifications

• 3+ years of experience in performance monitoring and benchmarking.
• Strong knowledge of recent GPU microarchitectures.
• Experience in debugging and profiling complex multiprocess systems.

Responsibilities

• Build real-time instrumentation for performance monitoring.
• Analyze performance metrics and propose actionable solutions.
• Design a middleware framework for efficient code development.

Skills

CUDA

C++

Performance analysis

Linux development

Education

BS in computer science or related field

Tools

Nsight

DataBricks

Looker

Job description

Zoox is building the world’s most advanced self-driving hardware and software solution. The efficiency demands of such a system require an expert fine‑tuning of both the compute hardware architecture as well as the algorithms and middleware that runs on it to achieve maximum throughput at the most optimal power levels.

The Software Performance team’s mission is to analyze, optimize and provide guidance to the software and hardware teams in order to meet the required specifications.

In This Role

• Build real‑time instrumentation for performance monitoring (CPU, GPU, latency, memory) and develop offline benchmarking frameworks, tools, and scripts to evaluate and analyze performance at scale in CI/vehicle, and establish budgets for next‑gen architectures.
• Analyze performance metrics to identify GPU hotspots and root causes, and propose and co‑implement actionable solutions with component teams.
• Support teams on bringing serial algorithms to the GPU to maximize compute utilization and improve overall latency.
• Work as part of the Core team to design a middleware framework that promotes by default efficient and performant code development by maximizing CPU and GPU usage.

Qualifications

• BS in computer science or related field and 3+ years of experience.
• Strong knowledge of CUDA as applied to recent GPU microarchitectures (e.g., Ampere, Blackwell) and experience debugging/optimizing GPU kernels using tools like Nsight.
• Strong knowledge of C++ and experience in large code bases, comfortable in Linux development environments.
• Experience in development, debugging, and profiling of complex multiprocess systems (e.g., robotic systems, game engines).

Bonus Qualifications

• Experience with GPU kernel development in a real‑time environment, including PTX‑level programming, CPU SIMD instructions (e.g., AVX intrinsics), and custom CUDA layers with frameworks like TensorRT & XLA.
• Hands‑on work with ML model optimization (post‑training quantization, layer pruning, etc.) or hand‑tuning GPU kernels (in OpenGL, CUDA, RocM or similar).
• Proficiency with SQL, DataBricks, Looker, or other business intelligence tools.

$168,000 - $239,000 a year

Base Salary Range

There are three major components to compensation for this position: salary, Amazon Restricted Stock Units (RSUs), and Zoox Stock Appreciation Rights. A sign‑on bonus may be offered as part of the compensation package. The listed range applies only to the base salary. Compensation will vary based on geographic location and level.