Staff Engineer - GPU & Video Rendering

Adobe Inc.; Seattle (WA); On-site; USD 173,500 - 331,050; Full time

Job summary

Adobe Inc. is seeking a senior, hands‑on engineer to own and evolve the cross‑platform GPU rendering platform at the heart of the DVA mission, leading major initiatives end to end with technical leadership.

You will partner with GPU hardware vendors and internal graphics, product, and QE teams to resolve deep technical issues, drive architecture discussions, and prototype next‑generation rendering technology, including shader toolchains.

Qualifications

• 10+ years in software engineering with GPU/graphics experience.
• Proficient in modern C++ on Mac/Windows.
• Experience with DirectX 12, Metal, Vulkan, CUDA, or OpenCL.
• Strong knowledge of GPU architecture and shading languages.
• Experience debugging and optimizing CPU/GPU performance.
• Ability to drive cross‑team initiatives to completion.
• Excellent communication in a global environment.

Responsibilities

• Own and optimize the core GPU rendering platform for real-time video.
• Drive end-to-end platform initiatives across multiple releases.
• Build shared shader and rendering frameworks for cross‑platform use.
• Own rendering performance, stability, and device compatibility.
• Collaborate with GPU hardware vendors and internal teams.
• Lead architecture reviews and mentor engineers.
• Prototype next‑gen rendering tech with leaders, incl. shader toolchains.

Skills

GPU rendering

C++

Graphics APIs

Shader languages

GPU architecture

Performance debugging

Cross-team leadership

Communication skills

Problem solving

Education

Bachelor's/Master's CS

Tools

Nsight

PIX

Shader toolchains

Job description

The Opportunity

The Digital Video & Audio (DVA) team in Adobe develops industry-leading software products including Premiere and After Effects, and we are on a mission to build the modern, AI‑powered video rendering pipeline behind the next generation of these products. We are looking for a senior, hands‑on engineer to own and evolve the cross‑platform GPU rendering platform at the heart of that mission - leading major initiatives through to completion in close partnership with our technical leadership.

What You'll Do

• Own, evolve, and optimize the core GPU rendering platform that underpins real‑time video processing across Adobe's professional video products

• Drive complex platform initiatives end to end - taking technical ownership and overseeing their progress until completion across multiple releases

• Build and deepen a shared technology stack - common shaders, rendering frameworks, and multi‑API GPU abstractions (CUDA, OpenCL, DirectX, Metal) - so teams build once and run everywhere, on Windows and Mac

• Own rendering performance, stability, and device compatibility across platforms and hardware vendors, including the hardest GPU and driver issues

• Partner with GPU hardware vendors and with internal graphics, product, and QE teams to resolve deep technical issues and shape the underlying technologies

• Lead by example - drive architecture and code reviews, set engineering standards, and mentor others

• Build and prototype the next generation of our rendering technology, in partnership with technical leadership, including modern shading languages and shader toolchains

What You Need to Succeed

• Bachelor's degree or a Master's degree in Computer Science or equivalent experience

• 10+ years' experience in software engineering, with significant depth in GPU, graphics, or rendering systems

• Strong proficiency in modern C++ in a large, complex, cross‑platform codebase on Mac or Windows

• Deep experience with at least one modern graphics/compute API (DirectX 12, Metal, Vulkan, CUDA, or OpenCL) and the ability to design abstractions across several

• Strong knowledge of GPU architecture, shading languages (e.g., HLSL, Slang, SPIR‑V), and rendering or real‑time video processing

• Solid understanding of the GPU rendering pipeline and core rendering, compositing, and color algorithms

• Proven low‑level debugging and performance optimization across the CPU/GPU boundary, using GPU profiling and debugging tools (e.g., Nsight, PIX)

• Track record of leading and driving complex, cross‑team technical initiatives to completion with limited guidance

• Excellent communication and collaboration skills, working in a global environment

• Ability to think creatively to solve complex problems

Preferred Qualifications

• Real‑time video processing in Non‑Linear Editing (NLE) software

• Modern shading languages and shader compilers/toolchains (Slang, DXC, SPIR‑V / DXIL) and next‑generation rendering abstractions

• Direct experience working with GPU driver / hardware vendors

• ML inference integration (e.g., TensorRT, ONNX Runtime) within a render pipeline

• Experience building GPU benchmarking / performance frameworks

• Web & mobile graphics experience (a plus - not required)

Adobe is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based on gender, race or color, ethnicity or national origin, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic.

Expected Pay Range: The U.S. pay range for this position is $173,500 - $331,050 annually. Pay within this range varies by work location and may also depend on job‑related knowledge, skills, and experience. In California, the pay range for this position is $228,600 - $331,050. In Washington, the pay range for this position is $218,200 - $316,000.