Software Engineer, Metal Runtime (API & Abstractions)

Tenstorrent; United States; Hybrid; USD 100,000 - 500,000; Full time

Job summary

Tenstorrent is seeking a Software Engineer on the Metal Runtime team to write low‑level software powering our AI accelerators. You'll design fast runtime systems near the hardware and define host and device APIs that expose capabilities to the stack.

We welcome engineers at various experience levels; hybrid role based out of Santa Clara, CA; Austin, TX; Toronto, ON, with emphasis on performance, usability, and maintainability.

Qualifications

• Strong C/C++ development experience.
• Experience with low-level systems programming.
• Familiarity with concurrency and performance-critical software.
• Designing clean APIs and abstractions.
• Collaborative, problem-solving mindset.

Responsibilities

• Design and evolve high-performance host and device APIs for Tenstorrent's Metal Runtime.
• Develop intuitive abstractions exposing hardware capabilities while preserving performance.
• Partner with runtime, kernel, compiler, and software teams to build scalable interfaces.
• Contribute to runtime implementation, debugging, and performance optimization.
• Drive API quality with thoughtful design and maintainability.

Skills

C/C++ development

Low-level systems programming

Concurrency and performance

API design and abstractions

Hardware-software collaboration

Job description

Tenstorrent is leading the industry on cutting-edge AI technology, revolutionizing performance expectations, ease of use, and cost efficiency. With AI redefining the computing paradigm, solutions must evolve to unify innovations in software models, compilers, platforms, networking, and semiconductors. Our diverse team of technologists have developed a high performance RISC-V CPU from scratch, and share a passion for AI and a deep desire to build the best AI platform possible. We value collaboration, curiosity, and a commitment to solving hard problems. We are growing our team and looking for contributors of all seniorities.

As a Software Engineer on the Metal Runtime team at Tenstorrent, you’ll work on the low-level software that powers our AI accelerators. You’ll design fast, efficient runtime systems that run close to the hardware, and define the host and device APIs that expose these capabilities to the rest of the software stack. We believe APIs are a core part of systems design: they encode hardware semantics, performance tradeoffs, and concurrency models, and they live longer than any single implementation.

If you enjoy pushing performance, working close to the metal, and designing abstractions that make complex systems usable without sacrificing control, this is your kind of role.

This role is hybrid, based out of Santa Clara, CA; Austin, TX; Toronto, ON.

We welcome candidates at various experience levels for this role. During the interview process, candidates will be assessed for the appropriate level, and offers will align with that level, which may differ from the one in this posting.

Who You Are

• Strong C/C++ developer with a passion for low-level systems programming and software that runs close to hardware.


• Comfortable working with concurrency, processors, memory movement, and performance-critical systems.


• Experienced in designing clean, maintainable APIs and abstractions with a focus on developer experience.


• Thoughtful about balancing performance, usability, and long-term maintainability in systems design.


• Collaborative, curious, and excited to solve challenging problems at the intersection of hardware and software.

What We Need

• Design and evolve high-performance host and device APIs for Tenstorrent's Metal Runtime.


• Develop intuitive abstractions that expose low-level hardware capabilities while maintaining performance and control.


• Partner closely with runtime, kernel, compiler, and software teams to build scalable, production-ready interfaces.


• Contribute to runtime implementation, debugging, performance optimization, and API integration across the software stack.


• Drive API quality through thoughtful design, usability improvements, and long-term maintainability.

What You Will Learn

• How modern AI runtimes are designed to maximize hardware performance and scalability.


• How to build APIs and abstractions that balance performance, flexibility, and ease of use.


• How software interfaces evolve alongside next-generation AI hardware architectures.


• Best practices for designing maintainable, high-performance systems software.


• How to collaborate across hardware, compiler, runtime, and software teams to deliver world-class AI infrastructure.

Compensation for all engineers at Tenstorrent ranges from $100k - $500k including base and variable compensation targets. Experience, skills, education, background and location all impact the actual offer made.

Tenstorrent offers a highly competitive compensation package and benefits, and we are an equal opportunity employer.

This offer of employment is contingent upon the applicant being eligible to access U.S. export-controlled technology. Due to U.S. export laws, including those codified in the U.S. Export Administration Regulations (EAR), the Company is required to ensure compliance with these laws when transferring technology to nationals of certain countries (such as EAR Country Groups D:1, E1, and E2). These requirements apply to persons located in the U.S. and all countries outside the U.S. As the position offered will have direct and/or indirect access to information, systems, or technologies subject to these laws, the offer may be contingent upon your citizenship/permanent residency status or ability to obtain prior license approval from the U.S. Commerce Department or applicable federal agency. If employment is not possible due to U.S. export laws, any offer of employment will be rescinded.