Principal Software Engineer- Simulator Developer

A VC-backed, stealth-mode startup is building next-generation AI inference systems at the rack level, combining custom silicon with system-level innovation to dramatically improve efficiency for large-scale model serving.

The team is focused on tightly integrated hardware–software co-design, enabling breakthroughs in performance and efficiency for modern AI workloads. This is an early-stage environment with strong technical leadership and significant ownership opportunities.

Role Overview

The team is seeking a Senior/Principal Software Engineer to develop and scale processor simulators and performance models that guide architectural decisions and accelerate hardware–software co-design.

Depending on experience, this role can involve leading a small team or operating as a highly autonomous individual contributor, owning critical simulation infrastructure from concept through production.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and maintain processor simulators (performance and/or functional models)
• Model key microarchitectural components, including: pipelines, memory hierarchy, interconnects, accelerators
• Generate and curate workload traces for accurate performance analysis
• Analyze simulation results to inform architecture tradeoffs and optimizations
• Collaborate closely with architecture, hardware, and compiler teams
• Own and evolve simulation infrastructure in a fast-paced startup environment

Required Qualifications

• 5+ years of experience in software engineering, ideally in systems, architecture, or EDA domains
• Strong programming skills in C/C++ and Python, with experience in large codebases
• Experience with processor simulators, architectural modeling, or performance analysis
• Solid understanding of computer architecture and microarchitecture
• Ability to work independently and make technical decisions in an early-stage environment

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with AI/ML accelerators, GPUs, or heterogeneous systems
• Familiarity with simulators such as gem5 or similar tools
• Background in hardware–software co-design or compilers