Principal Software Engineer

Astera

$160K — $190K *
Information Technology
Less than 5 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Experience in writing clean, maintainable, and well-tested code in a fast-paced environment
  • Proven ability to architect complex systems from inception
  • Quick adaptability to complex domains, particularly neuroscience
  • Strong background in tackling large-scale distributed systems and kernel-level optimization

Responsibilities

  • Define and architect high-performance infrastructure for large-scale model training
  • Design and optimize custom reinforcement learning environments based on neuroscience principles
  • Set coding standards for production-ready code to enhance research efficiency
  • Transform research prototypes into scalable production systems
  • Identify and resolve critical technical bottlenecks for the research team

Benefits

  • Access to a $2.5B endowment for ambitious science and technology projects
  • Work within a dynamic, startup-like environment free from funding pressures
  • Opportunity to collaborate with leading scientists and engineers
  • Engagement in groundbreaking AI research that integrates neuroscience and bioengineering
Full Job Description
Position Summary

We are looking for an ambitious Staff Software Engineer to help us reverse-engineer the human brain.

This role spans a broad spectrum of activities:
  • Define and architect high-performance infrastructure for training large-scale models and running complex simulations.
  • Design and optimize custom RL environments informed by neuroscience.
  • Set the organizational standard for clean, fast, production-grade code that boosts our research velocity.
  • Turn research prototypes into scalable production systems.
  • Identify and resolve the most critical and ambiguous technical bottlenecks, from low-level optimization to high-level strategy, to unblock the research team.


Qualifications
  • High-Velocity Craftsmanship: You set the bar for clean, maintainable, and well-tested code at a startup pace. You know how to balance engineering rigor with the need to iterate quickly on research prototypes.
  • System Architecture Intuition: You have proven success architecting complex systems from scratch. You understand multi-year trade-offs, and you can design infrastructure that survives the chaos of research.
  • Extreme Adaptability: You might be an expert in distributed systems today, but you are ready to become a novice in neuroscience tomorrow. You have a track record of diving into complex domains, mastering them quickly, and guiding others through them.
  • Mastery of Hard Problems: You have a track record of leading the resolution of difficult engineering challenges, whether it is massive scale distributed systems or kernel-level optimization. You do not shy away from what your peers consider hardcore.


Location & Visa
  • This role is in-person in Emeryville, CA.
  • Visa sponsorship may be available for qualified candidates.

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