ON Semiconductor

Principal Firmware Engineer, AI Compute Kernels

ON Semiconductor • $120K — $150K *
Waterloo, ON N2J 1A1In-Person
Consumer Technology
11 - 15 years of experience
2 weeks ago
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 15+ years of firmware development experience, focusing on hardware/software co-design and custom accelerators/NPUs.
  • Expert-level understanding of DMA, memory-mapped I/O, interrupts, and synchronization between CPU/DSP and specialized hardware.
  • Strong grasp of PyTorch/TensorFlow and deployment of high-level graphs for embedded systems.
  • Expert-level C proficiency and a hardware-centric mindset for identifying firmware bottlenecks.
  • Proven record of optimizing performance in resource-constrained environments with limited memory and power budgets.
  • Strong communication skills for articulating complex technical trade-offs to senior leadership.

Responsibilities

  • Define and implement firmware control logic, drivers, and scheduling for neural network accelerators.
  • Develop toolchain strategy to translate AI models into optimized hardware instructions and memory layouts.
  • Design DMA and memory tiling strategies to reduce power and latency when moving data to AI hardware.
  • Act as lead firmware stakeholder in hardware/software co-design, influencing future hardware specifications.
  • Provide architectural guidance to customers for deploying complex AI models on the firmware stack.
  • Identify and resolve performance bottlenecks in DSP-accelerator interaction for optimal performance.
  • Mentor the firmware team on modern AI deployment techniques and set production-quality standards.

Benefits

  • Comprehensive health and wellness plans.
  • Retirement savings options with company matching.
  • Flexible work arrangements to support work-life balance.
  • Opportunities for professional development and career growth.
  • Employee recognition programs and rewards.
Full Job Description
Job Description

We are looking for a Principal Firmware Engineer to lead the integration and control of our next-generation AI accelerators. As our products evolve to include dedicated neural network hardware, the challenge shifts from pure algorithm implementation to complex hardware orchestration.

This role is about more than just writing kernels; it's about defining the firmware layer that sits between high-level AI frameworks and our custom silicon. You will be responsible for how our DSPs manage, schedule, and feed data to these accelerators. We need a veteran who can look at a PyTorch model and determine the best way to tile memory, manage DMA transfers, and synchronize processing to ensure we hit our ultra-low-power targets while maximizing throughput. You will also be the primary technical voice influencing our future hardware specs to ensure our accelerators are actually "firmware-friendly."

Responsibilities

  • Architect Accelerator Orchestration: Define and implement the firmware control logic, drivers, and scheduling required to manage dedicated neural network accelerators from the DSP/MCU.
  • Bridge the AI Flow: Develop the toolchain strategy that translates PyTorch/TensorFlow models into optimized hardware-specific instructions and memory layouts.
  • Optimize Data Movement: Design efficient DMA and memory tiling strategies to minimize power consumption and latency when moving data between memory and AI hardware blocks.
  • Influence Silicon Design: Serve as the lead firmware stakeholder in hardware/software co-design, ensuring that future hardware accelerators have the right registers, interrupts, and memory interfaces for efficient control.
  • Customer Technical Interface: Act as the "deep-tech" lead for customers, providing the architectural guidance they need to deploy sophisticated models on our specific hardware/firmware stack.
  • Performance Bottleneck Analysis: Identify and resolve performance gaps in the interaction between the DSP and the accelerator, moving beyond "it works" to "it's optimal."
  • Technical Mentorship: Lead the broader firmware team in modern AI deployment techniques, setting the standard for production-quality, hardware-abstracted code.


Qualifications

Must-Haves:
  • 15+ years of firmware development experience, with a heavy focus on hardware/software co-design and controlling custom accelerators or NPUs.
  • Deep Hardware Interfacing Knowledge: Expert-level understanding of DMA, memory-mapped I/O, interrupts, and synchronization between CPU/DSP and specialized hardware blocks.
  • AI Framework Literacy: Strong grasp of the PyTorch/TensorFlow ecosystem and how high-level graphs are lowered and quantized for embedded deployment.
  • Bare-Metal Mastery: Expert-level C and a "thinking in hardware" mindset; you should be comfortable reading a hardware spec and identifying the firmware bottlenecks before the silicon is even made.
  • Resource-Constrained Optimization: Proven experience squeezing performance out of systems with very limited memory (KB) and strict power budgets.
  • Communication: Ability to explain complex hardware-to-firmware trade-offs to senior leadership and provide technical leadership across cross-functional teams.

Nice-to-Haves:
  • Experience building or using AI compilers or toolchains (e.g., TVM, MLIR, or custom IRs).
  • Background in ultra-low-power DSPs (audiology, wearables, or medical devices).
  • Experience with ARM Cortex-M or proprietary DSP architectures and their specific bus protocols.
  • Knowledge of fixed-point arithmetic and its impact on neural network performance and power.


More details about our company benefits can be found here:

https://www.onsemi.com/careers/career-benefits

About the Team

We are committed to sourcing, attracting, and hiring high-performance innovators, while providing all candidates a positive recruitment experience that builds our brand as a great place to work.

About ON Semiconductor

The Farichild Semiconductor founders was called "Traitorous eight". - Robert Noyce (Intel Founder) - Gordon Moore (Intel Founder) - Eugene Kleiner (KPCB Founder) - Jay Last - Victor Grinich - Sheldon Roberts - Julius Blank - Jean Hoerni

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Join the dynamic team at ON Semiconductor, a premier global provider of high-performance silicon solutions for energy-efficient electronics. This is an unparalleled opportunity to advance your career with a company at the forefront of technological innovation, environmental sustainability, and progressive employment practices.

Work You’ll Do

At ON Semiconductor, you will be part of a culture that thrives on diversity, innovation, and leadership. Our company is committed to nurturing talent and encouraging growth through comprehensive professional development and diversity training. As a member of our team, you will contribute to projects that shape the future of technology, working alongside over 30,000 dedicated professionals worldwide.

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Professional Growth and Benefits

ON Semiconductor is deeply invested in the professional growth of its employees. We offer robust training programs, leadership development opportunities, and a supportive network to help you reach your career goals. Our benefits package is designed to support the diverse needs of our workforce, including health, wellness, and continuous learning.

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Learn more about ON Semiconductor
Size
30,000 employees
Market Cap
$26.4 billion
Industry
Manufacturing & Automotive
Net Income
$234.2 million
Founded
1999
5 Year Trend
+11.5%
Revenue
$5.2 billion
NASDAQ
ON
* Ladders Estimates

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