Hardware Engineer

Job Description: Senior Hardware %28HW%29 Board Design Engineer – Data Center & Cloud AI Systems

Company Overview

We are an ambitious, fast-growing, early-stage startup pioneering the next generation of AI acceleration computing. We are building revolutionary silicon architectures %28ASIC/CPU/GPU%29 specifically optimized to run massive deep learning workloads in modern data centers. If you want to design and architect high-power, high-density hardware infrastructure from scratch and directly shape the future of cloud AI compute, this is your playground.

Role Summary

We are seeking a highly skilled, hands-on Senior Hardware %28HW%29 Board Design Engineer to own the development of our high-performance AI acceleration boards and system architectures for data center and cloud environments. In this role, you will be the core technical owner responsible for translating our cutting-edge silicon into enterprise-ready hardware systems, managing everything from schematic capture and board stack-up to final laboratory bring-up and qualification.

Your mandate will tackle two of the most aggressive frontiers in modern hardware engineering: implementing ultra-low voltage, high-efficiency, multi-hundred-amp power delivery systems to feed power-hungry AI processors, and maintaining absolute signal integrity across bleeding-edge, high-speed SerDes links running at the limits of copper transmission. Crucially, you will serve as our primary technical interface to Tier-1 server OEMs, ODMs, and rack manufacturers, managing the electrical, physical, and thermal-mechanical integration of our modules into next-generation, high-density liquid-cooled server architectures using advanced cold plate configurations.

Key Responsibilities

• High-Speed Board Design & Architecture: Drive the schematic capture, component selection, stack-up strategy, and layout placement rules for complex, multi-layer PCBs %28e.g., PCIe accelerator cards, baseboards, or module form-factors%29 destined for high-density cloud data centers.
• Liquid Cooling & Thermal-Mechanical Integration: Collaborate closely with mechanical and thermal engineers to design board layouts optimized for liquid cooling architectures. Direct component placement to accommodate high-performance direct-to-chip cold plates, ensuring uniform mechanical pressure, optimal thermal interface material %28TIM%29 contact, and clearance for fluid manifolds and quick-disconnect fittings.
• Tier-1 Partner Collaboration: Act as the primary technical point of contact for Tier-1 server and rack manufacturers %28e.g., Foxconn, Quanta, Supermicro, Wiwynn%29. Align on mechanical, electrical, and thermal boundaries to ensure seamless integration into liquid-cooled server chassis and rack-level manifolds.
• Ultra-Low Voltage & High-Power Supply Design: Architect, simulate, and implement extremely high-current, high-efficiency power delivery networks %28PDN%29. Design multiphase voltage regulator modules %28VRMs%29 capable of delivering hundreds of amps at ultra-low core voltages %28<0.8V%29 with stringent transient response, ripple, and dynamic load requirements.
• Bleeding-Edge Signal & Power Integrity %28SI/PI%29: Collaborate with simulation specialists to guide layouts for very high-speed SerDes channels, enforcing strict routing topologies for ultra-high-speed interfaces:
• Host & Fabric IO: PCIe Gen6 / Gen7 and CXL architectures.
• High-Density Networking: 400G / 800G / 1.6T Ethernet configurations.
• Memory Infrastructures: Ultra-fast LPDDR6 / LPDDR6x parallel routing and HBM board-level interface requirements.
• Hardware Bring-Up & Validation: Lead laboratory bring-up, debugging, and thermal/electrical validation efforts for prototype hardware utilizing high-bandwidth oscilloscopes, BERTs, and thermal chambers to close compliance testing.

Key Requirements & Qualifications

• Education & Experience: Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering or a highly related field, with 5+ years of hands-on experience in high-speed hardware board design specifically for server, cloud, or enterprise data center infrastructure.
• Liquid Cooling Familiarity: Practical engineering experience designing hardware integrated with advanced thermal architectures, specifically direct-to-chip liquid cooling systems and cold plates. Understanding the mechanical constraints, keep-out zones, and board-level stress impacts of heavy cold plate mounting.
• Tier-1 Vendor Interaction: Direct experience working closely with Tier-1 server hardware manufacturers and ODMs on high-density system integration, board-to-board interconnects, power delivery boundaries, and system-level qualification.
• Advanced Power Subsystem Experience: Proven track record designing high-power density boards. Expert-level knowledge of multi-phase VRMs, digital power controllers, PMBus/I2C communication, and optimization of power integrity networks to handle ultra-low voltages %28<0.8V%29 alongside high dynamic di/dt load steps.
• Expertise in High-Speed Interfaces: Direct engineering experience successfully routing and validating circuits containing multi-gigabit interfaces, specifically PCIe Gen6/7, LPDDR6/6x, or 400G+ Ethernet paths utilizing advanced modulation schemes %28PAM4%29.
• Tool Proficiency: Advanced expertise in industry-standard ECAD suites for schematic capture and constraint management %28such as Cadence Allegro / OrCAD or Altium Designer%29.
• Startup Agility & Execution: Exceptional capability to thrive in a fast-paced, high-ambiguity startup environment. A pragmatic engineer who knows how to quickly isolate hardware bugs, implement fixes on prototypes, and iterate designs safely.