Sr. Post-Silicon Systems Software Validation Engineer, Annapurna Labs (AWS)

Amazon; Austin (TX); On-site; USD 168,100 - 227,400; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

RSUs

401(k) matching

Paid time off

Job summary

Amazon Annapurna Labs in Austin seeks a Sr. Post‑Silicon Systems Software Validation Engineer to validate next‑generation ML accelerators powering AWS infrastructure.

You will validate silicon, PCB, high‑speed interconnects, and system interfaces across the full product lifecycle, collaborating with architecture, RTL, firmware, and software teams.

Qualifications

• 5+ years of programming experience in at least one language.
• Bachelor's degree in computer science, computer engineering, or related field.
• 5+ years of non‑internship system test development, code reviews, build processes, and operations.
• Experience with Linux environments and Git.
• Experience with server hardware and debug tools.

Responsibilities

• Lead and own validation across the product lifecycle from design validation to production support.
• Collaborate with architecture, RTL design, design verification, firmware, and software teams.
• Bridge hardware interfaces to ML workloads to ensure high quality and performance.
• Develop validation strategies and lead new methodologies to improve coverage.
• Model detailed test plans covering functional, performance, power, and stress testing.
• Mentor junior validation engineers and execute complex test plans in RTL and emulation.
• Handle debug including silicon bring‑up using lab tools and equipment.
• Validate ML accelerator performance, accuracy, and reliability on real networks.
• Build test infrastructure, CI/CD, and automated regression for scale.
• Review results and drive root cause analysis and design feedback.

Skills

Python

C/C++

Rust

Go

Linux

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS/CE

Tools

SystemVerilog/UVM

VCS

Questa

Xcelium

Palladium

Job description

Sr. Post-Silicon Systems Software Validation Engineer, Annapurna Labs

Annapurna Labs, an AWS organization with development centers in the U.S. and Israel, builds custom silicon and software for AWS customers. Our team combines cloud‑scale innovation with world‑class expertise across silicon engineering, hardware design, verification, software, and operations to tackle technical challenges that have never been seen before.

Join our Silicon Validation team to validate next‑generation machine learning accelerators that power AWS's cloud computing infrastructure. You'll work in a fast‑paced, startup‑like environment alongside some of the brightest minds in the industry on cutting‑edge, internet‑scale technology that directly impacts how customers use Machine Learning acceleration. We are changing the landscape of cloud infrastructure by accelerating the development of custom silicon by moving beyond traditional partnerships to dominate in AI training and inference.

Your work will span validation of the complete vertical stack—silicon, PCB, high‑speed components (HBM, PCIe, chip‑to‑chip), inter‑system connections, and system‑to‑system interfaces. You'll dive deep into new technology hardware components and scaling technologies that power our Machine Learning boards and servers at scale, ensuring every component of our hardware and software comes together into products our customers rely on.

Key Job Responsibilities

• Lead and own critical validation aspects across the entire product development lifecycle—from early design validation through emulation, silicon bring‑up, post‑silicon validation, and ongoing support of production systems deployed in AWS data centers.
• Collaborate deeply with architecture, RTL design, design verification, firmware, and software teams to ensure our next‑generation AI/ML accelerators meet the highest standards of quality and performance.
• Bridge multiple domains and broad scope of impact—from low‑level hardware interfaces to high‑level ML workloads—to deliver exceptional results.

A Day in the Life

• Develop comprehensive validation strategies and lead new methodologies to improve validation coverage and time to root cause.
• Model detailed test plans covering functional, performance, power, and stress testing from silicon bring‑up to product release.
• Mentor and provide direction to junior validation engineers.
• Execute complex test plans from RTL simulation and emulation environments through physical silicon validation.
• Handle complex debug including hands‑on silicon bring‑up and debug in the lab using oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, and protocol analyzers.
• Validate ML accelerator performance, accuracy, and reliability using real‑world neural network workloads.
• Build test infrastructure, CI/CD, and automated regression frameworks to enable efficient validation at scale.
• Collaborate across architecture, design, firmware, and software teams to triage failures and drive root cause analysis to closure.
• Review test results, identify patterns, and provide feedback to improve design quality and validation coverage.
• Deliver new tests to production systems in AWS data centers and manufacturing to improve fleet health.

We Are Looking for Candidates With

• Strong programming skills (Python, Lua, C/C++, Rust, Go, etc).
• A solid understanding of computer architecture and chip/system validation methodologies.
• Experience with cloud infrastructure and CI/CD.
• Firmware testing and/or development (BIOS, BMC, drivers).
• Domain expertise in any of the following: PCIe, HBM, GPUs, neural networks, ML HW architecture.
• Knowledge of the full validation lifecycle from RTL simulation (SystemVerilog/UVM, VCS, Questa, Xcelium) and emulation (Palladium, Zebu, Veloce) through silicon failure analysis and debug.

Basic Qualifications

• 5+ years of programming with at least one software programming language experience.
• Bachelor's degree or above in computer science, computer engineering, or related field, or Bachelor's degree.
• 5+ years of non‑internship system test development, code reviews, source control management, build processes, automated deployments, and operations experience.
• Experience with Linux environments and Git.
• Experience with server hardware and debug tools.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with Machine Learning Hardware/Software Architecture.
• Experience with CI/CD.
• Experience with EDA Simulations or Emulation.

Equal Opportunity Employer

Amazon is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected veteran status, disability, or other legally protected status.

Los Angeles County applicants: Job duties for this position include working safely and cooperatively with other employees, supervisors, and staff; adhering to standards of excellence despite stressful conditions; communicating effectively and respectfully with colleagues to ensure exceptional customer service; and following all federal, state, and local laws and Company policies. Criminal history may have a direct, adverse, and negative relationship with some of the material job duties of this position. Pursuant to the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Our inclusive culture empowers Amazonians to deliver the best results for our customers. If you have a disability and need a workplace accommodation or adjustment during the application and hiring process, including support for the interview or onboarding process, please visit https://amazon.jobs/content/en/how-we-hire/accommodations for more information. If the country/region you’re applying in isn’t listed, please contact your Recruiting Partner.

Compensation and Benefits

The base salary range for this position is listed below. Your Amazon package will include sign‑on payments and restricted stock units (RSUs). Final compensation will be determined based on factors including experience, qualifications, and location.

Amazon also offers comprehensive benefits including health insurance (medical, dental, vision, prescription, Basic Life & AD&D insurance and option for Supplemental life plans, EAP, Mental Health Support, Medical Advice Line, Flexible Spending Accounts, Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage), 401(k) matching, paid time off, and parental leave. Learn more about our benefits at https://amazon.jobs/en/benefits.

USA, CA, Cupertino: $193,300.00 – $261,500.00 USD annually.

USA, TX, Austin: $168,100.00 – $227,400.00 USD annually.