Apple

ASIC Design Engineer - Neural Engine DMA

Apple$130K — $180K *
Consumer Technology
8 - 10 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Bachelor's Degree plus 10 years of industry experience
  • 10 years of experience designing SoC front-end RTL in Verilog or SystemVerilog
  • Experience with DMA microarchitecture including address sequencing and flow control
  • Proven collaboration across design verification, architecture, and physical implementation teams
  • Familiarity with high-bandwidth domains like networking SoCs or AI/ML accelerators
  • Ability to write detailed micro-architectural specifications
  • Experience with scripting languages for design automation.

Responsibilities

  • Own the design of DMA subsystems from microarchitecture to tapeout
  • Implement RTL with a focus on low power and clean timing
  • Collaborate with cross-functional teams for architectural decisions
  • Work with verification teams to ensure functional correctness
  • Drive design verification closure and confirm intended behavior
  • Decompose tensor surfaces into efficient fetch sequences
  • Maximize throughput while maintaining data consistency.

Benefits

  • Opportunities for career growth and mentorship
  • Ability to influence products used by billions
  • Work in a high-impact, high-performance environment
  • Collaborate with industry-leading experts
  • Engagement in cutting-edge technology development.
Full Job Description
Computational photography, live language translation, and countless other on-device AI

capabilities depend on moving enormous amounts of data between memory and compute at

exactly the right time. As part of our Silicon Engineering Group, you will design the

high-performance DMA engines responsible for moving model weights and activation tensors

between the memory subsystem and the Apple Neural Engine.

In this role, you will take end-to-end ownership of complex DMA subsystem blocks, shape

technical direction across the team, and mentor engineers earlier in their careers. The

work you drive ships in Apple products used by billions of people every day.

Description

As an ASIC Design Engineer on the ANE DMA Design team, you will drive the design

of DMA subsystem blocks from microarchitecture specification through tapeout. ANE DMA's

scale and complexity means grappling with:

decomposing tensor surfaces into efficient fetch sequences; maximizing throughput under

real-world memory system conditions; maintaining data consistency across concurrent

streams; multi-level arbitration and ordering correctness; sizing latency-tolerant

buffering structures; and security and state isolation.

In this front-end design role, your work will include:

- Taking end-to-end ownership of DMA subsystems through the full cycle: microarchitecture

specification, RTL implementation, front-end signoff (synthesis, timing closure, area

and power analysis, linting, LEC), and design verification closure.

- Writing well-parameterized RTL structured for clean timing and low power, including

assertions and cover points that encode design intent and ensure verification

completeness.

- Collaborating across design, architecture, and physical implementation teams to make

sound architectural trade-offs and drive solutions that meet performance, power, and

area targets.

- Working closely with design verification and formal verification teams to ensure

functional correctness: reviewing test plans, debugging failures, and confirming the

design's intended behavior is fully exercised.

Minimum Qualifications

Bachelors Degree plus 10 years of industry experience

Preferred Qualifications

Experience designing SoC front-end RTL in Verilog or SystemVerilog through multiple

tapeouts, including synthesis, timing closure, area and power analysis, linting, and

logic equivalence checks.

Experience collaborating across design verification, formal verification, architecture,

and physical implementation teams to specify, implement, and debug complex RTL blocks.

Experience designing DMA microarchitecture: address sequencing, flow control,

arbitration, or transaction ordering.

Experience with on-chip bus protocols (AMBA AXI, AHB, APB) and on-chip interconnect

fabrics.

Background in adjacent high-bandwidth domains: networking SoCs, image and video

processing pipelines, multimedia IP, or AI/ML accelerators.

A track record of writing precise, thorough micro-architectural specifications that

serve as the authoritative reference for design, verification, and integration teams.

Familiarity with scripting languages (Python, Perl, Tcl) for design automation.

About Apple

Apple is a corporation that designs, manufactures, and markets mobile communication and media devices, personal computers, portable digital music players, and sells a variety of related software, services, peripherals, networking solutions, and third-party digital content and applications. Apple provides many products and services, including iPhone; iPad; iPod; Mac; Apple TV; a portfolio of consumer and professional software applications; the iOS and OS X operating systems; iCloud; and accessories, service, and support offerings. It sells its products worldwide through its retail stores, online stores, direct sales force and third-party cellular network carriers, wholesalers, retailers, and value-added resellers to the consumer and also sells third-party iPhone, iPad, Mac and iPod compatible products, including application software and accessories through its online and retail stores. Introduced in 1984, the Macintosh was the first widely sold personal computer with a graphical user interface (GUI). That feature and others such as an improved floppy drive design and a low-cost hard drive that made data retrieval faster helped Apple cultivate a reputation for innovation. Apple was named as the most admired company in the United States in 2008 and in the world from 2008 to 2012 by the Fortune magazine. The company was founded by Steven Paul Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Gerald Wayne on April 1, 1976, and is headquartered in Cupertino, California.

Apple Careers

Join Apple, a place where extraordinary people gather to do their best work. Our ever-expanding global team is at the forefront of innovation and leadership in the tech industry. At Apple, we're not just building products—we're crafting the kind of wonder that revolutionizes entire industries. It's the diversity of our people and their ideas that inspires the innovation that runs through everything we do, from amazing technology to industry-leading environmental efforts. Work You’ll Do Embark on a journey with Apple’s market-leading team to help some of the world’s most influential companies navigate their path to digital mastery with cutting-edge technology and services. Transform industries and touch lives with your unique ideas at Apple. Here, you’ll lead through a unique position at the intersection of technology, creativity, and robust industry expertise. Collaborate with a global team of professionals who are at the top of their game in technology and design. Apple isn’t just a company, it’s a community of innovators and passionate thinkers. Introducing the Apple Innovation and Leadership Initiative We are building a market-leading team to drive our efforts in delivering groundbreaking solutions and services. At Apple, job opportunities are abundant, offering you the chance to explore diverse roles from engineering to marketing, all designed to empower your career growth. Do Innovative Work Join the largest group of creative and technical experts in the world—professionals dedicated to redefining what’s possible through technology and innovation. Deliver targeted solutions through a depth and breadth of expertise that’s unmatched, driving forward our commitment to excellence and leadership in every project we undertake. Be Part of a Great Team Engage in a wide range of projects utilizing Apple’s technology and resources. Harness the unparalleled capabilities, global scale, and joint solution development that only Apple can offer. Future-Proof Your Career Advance your career with limitless opportunities at Apple. Go as far as your ambition takes you with unmatched training, development, and certification support. Explore Discover how Apple is leading the way in tech innovation: [With iOS] Businesses can streamline operations and enhance customer interactions... READ MORE Smart home technology integration that sets the standard for convenience and security... READ MORE The Apple Experience Our combined service capabilities, global scale, and joint solution development help clients overcome challenges and lead transformation in their industries. Clients worldwide look to Apple for new strategies and solutions that drive growth and innovation in the digital era. Stay Connected Join Our Team Search open positions that match your skills and interests. We look for passionate, curious, creative, and solution-driven team players. Whether you’re seeking a professional role, an internship, or a leadership position, Apple offers a variety of employment opportunities. SEARCH APPLE JOBS Keep Up to Date Stay ahead with career tips, insider perspectives, and industry-leading insights you can put to use today—all from the people who work here. READ CAREERS BLOG Job Alert Emails Personalize your subscription to receive job alerts, latest news, and insider tips tailored to your preferences. See what exciting and rewarding opportunities await at Apple, a company committed to diversity, innovation, and leadership. Explore job opportunities, employment benefits, and the culture of growth and innovation at Apple. Prepare your resume, hone your interview skills, and ready yourself for a career at one of the most prestigious companies in the world. Join us in pushing the boundaries of what is possible.
Learn more about Apple
Size
154,000 employees
Market Cap
$2,074.3 billion
Industry
Net Income
$63.9 billion
Founded
1976
5 Year Trend
+11.5%
Revenue
$294.1 billion
NASDAQ

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