Embedded NPU Software Engineer, Senior

Qualcomm•San Diego, CA

About The Position

Qualcomm is seeking a Staff Embedded NPU Software Engineer to lead the design and development of embedded platform software for CPU, DSP, and NPU processors and AI engines across our Snapdragon SoC portfolio. You will architect and optimize software frameworks that enable high-performance, low-power multimedia and machine learning workloads across mobile, automotive, compute, and XR platforms. As part of the NPU Platform Software Team, you will work across all levels of the stack — from low-level drivers to high-level frameworks — and collaborate with hardware, systems, and product teams to deliver scalable, production-grade solutions. You’ll be expected to drive technical decisions, mentor engineers, and contribute to the evolution of Qualcomm’s NPU software architecture. We’re looking for engineers with deep technical expertise, a track record of system-level ownership, and the ability to lead complex development efforts across cross-functional teams.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or related field and 2+ years of Software Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Systems Engineering, or related work experience.
OR
Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or related field and 1+ year of Software Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Systems Engineering, or related work experience.
OR
PhD in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or related field.
2+ years of experience with high-performance microprocessor design.

Nice To Haves

Master’s degree in Engineering, Computer Science, or related field.
8+ years of experience in embedded software development.
Deep expertise in NPU programming, computer architecture, and real-time operating systems.
Proven experience leading technical projects or owning system-level software components.
Strong proficiency in C/C++ and debugging tools (Trace32, JTAG, etc.).
Experience with Qualcomm Hexagon DSP and SDK frameworks.
Familiarity with multimedia frameworks (Android, Linux, Windows) and AI acceleration pipelines.
Exposure to machine learning, computer vision, or signal processing workloads.
Strong understanding of inter-processor communication and concurrency management.
Ability to mentor engineers and influence technical direction across teams.
Versatile attitude to learn new architectures and operating systems.
Excellent communication and cross-functional collaboration skills.

Responsibilities

Architect and design NPU software frameworks, runtime libraries, and system drivers for compute and AI acceleration.
Lead development of complex NPU features and ensure system-level integration across CPU/DSP/NPU subsystems.
Optimize software using advanced NPU architecture techniques (SIMD, multi-threading, memory hierarchy, etc.).
Collaborate with hardware, systems, and product teams to align software design with platform goals and roadmap.
Mentor engineers, conduct design/code reviews, and contribute to technical strategy and long-term planning.
Drive debugging and profiling efforts across the NPU stack to meet performance, power, and reliability targets.
Offsite and occasional onsite work with OEMs and Independent Software Vendors may be required.

Benefits

We also offer a competitive annual discretionary bonus program and opportunity for annual RSU grants (employees on sales-incentive plans are not eligible for our annual bonus).
In addition, our highly competitive benefits package is designed to support your success at work, at home, and at play.

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