NVIDIA

Automotive

PrincipalSystemSoftwareEngineer-AVPlatform

$272–431k Santa Clara, California, United States FULL TIME Remote Friendly
Market Sentiment
HIGH DEMAND

Neural analysis suggests this role is
optimal for Lead candidates.

The Brief

“Principal System Software Engineer - AV Platform at NVIDIA. Skills: System Software, Linux Kernel, Performance Optimization, C/C++. Drive system software architecture. Drive technical direction”

What You'll Achieve.

Deliver high-performance, scalable, and safety-critical system software solutions; Improve performance, reliability, determinism, and efficiency; Drive a culture of technical excellence, innovation, and execution

Industry & Context.

Automotive
Problems you'll solve

Solve complex system-level challenges; problem-solving skills

What They're Looking For.

Must Have

Bachelor’s, Master’s, or PhD in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related field (or equivalent experience), 15+ years of substantial hands-on experience in systems software, embedded systems, platform software, kernel development, or performance engineering, Deep expertise in Linux system internals, kernel architecture, device drivers, and low-level system software development, programming skills in C/C++ with experience in Python or scripting languages, Proven experience debugging and optimizing complex distributed or heterogeneous computing systems, background in performance analysis and optimization across CPU, GPU, memory, storage, and interconnect subsystems, Experience with embedded Linux, RTOS, virtualization technologies, or multi-core system architectures, Demonstrated ability to lead technically while remaining deeply hands-on in development, debugging, and architecture activities, Experience collaborating across hardware and software organizations in highly matrixed environments, communication, problem-solving, and technical leadership skills

Nice to Have

Experience with automotive software platforms, ADAS, or autonomous driving systems, Familiarity with ISO 26262, AUTOSAR, ASPICE, or automotive cybersecurity frameworks, Experience with GPU-accelerated computing and AI/ML software platforms, Contributions to Linux kernel, open-source systems software, or performance tooling, Experience building scalable software architectures for centralized vehicle compute platforms

What You'll Do.

Drive system software architecture

Drive technical direction

Lead performance optimization initiatives

and optimize low-level system software

Analyze complex system bottlenecks

Develop scalable solutions

Drive software bring-up

Contribute hands-on to software development

Contribute hands-on to architecture reviews

Contribute hands-on to debugging

Contribute hands-on to system optimization

How You'll Work.

Team & Collaboration

Work closely with hardware teams; Work closely with architecture teams; Work closely with kernel teams; Work closely with AI teams; Work closely with middleware teams; Work closely with platform teams; Collaborate closely with silicon teams; Collaborate closely with firmware teams; Collaborate closely with AI teams; Collaborate closely with platform architecture teams; Collaborate across hardware and software organizations

Communication Scope

communication skills

Full Job Description

NVIDIA is seeking a highly motivated Principal System Software Engineer to drive next-generation innovations in automotive platform software, system architecture, and performance engineering. In this highly visible technical leadership role, you will contribute directly to the architecture, development, optimization, and scaling of foundational software technologies powering NVIDIA automotive compute platforms. You will work closely with hardware, architecture, kernel, AI, middleware, and platform teams to deliver high-performance, scalable, and safety-critical system software solutions. This role requires deep technical expertise, substantial proven hands-on engineering experience, and the ability to solve complex system-level challenges across the software stack. **What you 'll be doing:** * Drive system software architecture and technical direction for next-generation automotive compute platforms. * Lead performance optimization initiatives across CPU, GPU, memory, storage, networking, and platform subsystems. * Design, develop, debug, and optimize low-level system software including kernel, drivers, middleware, runtime frameworks, and platform services. * Collaborate closely with silicon, firmware, AI, and platform architecture teams to deliver optimized end-to-end solutions. * Analyze complex system bottlenecks and develop scalable solutions to improve performance, reliability, determinism, and efficiency. * Drive software bring-up, profiling, debugging, and performance tuning for new automotive platforms. * Contribute hands-on to critical software development, architecture reviews, debugging, and system optimization efforts. * Mentor engineers and help drive a culture of technical excellence, innovation, and execution. **What We Need to See:** * Bachelor’s, Master’s, or PhD in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related field (or equivalent experience). * 15+ years of substantial hands-on experience in systems software, embedded

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