Sr. Level Firmware Engineer

TetraMem; San Jose (CA); On-site; USD 230,000 - 300,000; Full time

Job summary

TetraMem Inc. in San Jose, CA, seeks a senior firmware leader to own and grow the production firmware organization, defining strategy, architecture, and delivery plans for embedded AI products.

You will drive cross-functional collaboration with product, silicon, hardware, AI software, and systems teams while mentoring engineers and managing roadmaps, milestones, and releases. The role requires 8+ years in embedded systems with leadership, deep C/C++, RTOS experience, and a proven track record

Qualifications

• 8+ years of embedded systems experience with leadership.
• Experience leading firmware teams end-to-end from concept to deployment.
• Cross-functional leadership across hardware, silicon, software, AI, and product teams.
• Experience defining product requirements, roadmaps, schedules, and execution plans.
• Strong understanding of embedded firmware architecture for microcontroller- and SoC-based systems.
• Experience with RTOS-based firmware architectures (Zephyr, FreeRTOS).
• Solid knowledge of low-level software, device drivers, hardware interfaces, and system bring-up.
• Proficiency in C/C++ with architectural guidance and design reviews.
• Experience delivering production firmware for commercial embedded products.
• Strong project management and stakeholder management in fast-paced startups.

Responsibilities

• Lead and grow the production firmware organization with technical direction and hiring.
• Drive firmware strategy and roadmap in partnership with product, silicon, hardware, AI software, and systems teams.
• Define product requirements, firmware architecture, milestones, and release plans for embedded AI products.

Skills

Embedded firmware

C/C++

RTOS

Roadmaps

Cross-functional leadership

Mentoring

Hiring & people mgmt

CI/CD

System bring-up

Performance optimization

Education

BS or MS in Computer Science or Electrical Engineering

Tools

Zephyr

FreeRTOS

Git

CI/CD tooling

Job description

Responsibilities

• Lead and grow the production firmware organization, including technical direction, execution planning, mentoring, hiring, and performance management.
• Drive firmware strategy and roadmap in partnership with product management, silicon, hardware, AI software, and system architecture teams.
• Define product requirements, firmware architecture, development milestones, and release plans for embedded AI products from concept through production.
• Own firmware project execution, including planning, prioritization, risk management, resource allocation, schedule tracking, and cross-functional coordination.
• Translate product and customer requirements into scalable firmware solutions that enable high-performance embedded AI platforms.
• Oversee the design, development, integration, and optimization of embedded software for real-time and AI-driven applications.
• Guide firmware development for FPGA and ASIC platforms, ensuring robust hardware/software integration and successful product bring-up.
• Lead the development of firmware, device drivers, and platform software supporting machine learning acceleration on embedded hardware.
• Drive system-level optimization for performance, latency, power efficiency, reliability, and manufacturability.
• Collaborate with engineering leadership to establish development processes, coding standards, quality metrics, CI/CD, testing, and release practices for production firmware.
• Support customer engagements, product launches, and field issue resolution as required.

Requirements

• BS or MS in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or a related field with 8+ years of embedded systems experience, including technical leadership or engineering management responsibilities.
• Proven experience leading firmware teams through complete product development cycles from definition to commercial deployment.
• Demonstrated experience driving cross-functional projects involving hardware, silicon, software, AI, and product management teams.
• Experience defining product requirements, development roadmaps, engineering schedules, and execution plans.
• Strong understanding of embedded firmware architecture for microcontroller- and SoC-based systems.
• Experience with RTOS-based firmware architectures and integration (e.g., Zephyr, FreeRTOS).
• Solid understanding of low-level software, device drivers, hardware interfaces, and system bring-up.
• Proficiency in C/C++ with sufficient technical depth to provide architectural guidance and conduct design reviews.
• Experience delivering production firmware for commercial embedded products.
• Strong project management, communication, and stakeholder management skills with the ability to balance technical excellence, product priorities, and delivery schedules.
• Experience working in a fast-paced startup environment with the ability to manage multiple concurrent projects.
• Hands-on debugging and performance optimization experience is a plus.

Salary Range: $230,000 - $300,000 / year

Senior engineers are expected to serve as technical leaders and trusted cross-functional partners who contribute not only through individual technical excellence but also by mentoring others, improving engineering processes, and driving successful product execution across the organization.

TetraMem celebrates diversity and is committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer and welcome applicants from all backgrounds. Qualified candidates will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, medical condition, disability, genetic information, military or veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.
TetraMem is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to qualified applicants with disabilities throughout the recruitment process. Applicants requiring accommodation may contact Human Resources for assistance.