Senior Firmware Engineer

Overview

Astera Labs is seeking a Senior Firmware Engineer to develop and deliver core firmware for our next-generation connectivity, chiplet, and system products.

Key Responsibilities

• Architect, develop, and maintain bare-metal and low-level firmware running on embedded microcontrollers within Astera Labs SoCs and systems.

• Design and implement device drivers, core firmware services, and hardware abstraction layers for high-speed connectivity products.

• Define and implement HW-SW interfaces in close collaboration with RTL, PD, and Architecture teams.

• Lead bring-up, debug, and validation of firmware on silicon and system platforms.

• Develop and maintain C/C++ firmware codebases, SDKs, and supporting infrastructure.

• Build automation, tooling, and diagnostics using Python and scripting frameworks.

• Support customer enablement, integration, and escalations as needed.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or related field (Master’s preferred).

• Strong fundamentals in embedded systems, computer architecture, and low-level software.

• Proven experience developing firmware for complex SoC or silicon-based products in Server, Storage, Networking, or Accelerator environments.

• Proficiency in C (required); C++ experience is a plus.

• Ability to work cross-functionally in a fast-paced, highly technical environment.

Required Experience

• Bare-metal or RTOS-based firmware development (e.g., ThreadX, MQX, or equivalent).

• Firmware development for on-chip microcontrollers and supporting SDKs.

• Strong debugging skills across hardware, firmware, and system layers.

• Familiarity with firmware build systems and tooling (gcc, Make, Git, Doxygen).

• Python scripting for automation, validation, or tooling.

• Hands-on experience with server, storage, or networking systems.

Preferred Experience / Nice To Have

• Firmware development for PCIe or Ethernet switch products.

• Exposure to BMCs, OpenBMC, or system management firmware.

• Experience with high-speed interfaces such as: PCIe (Gen3+), Ethernet (100G / 400G+), NVMe, Infiniband.

• Participation in industry forums or ecosystems (e.g., OCP, OpenBMC).

• Customer-facing or field-enablement experience.

Salary Range

$160,000 to $195,000 depending on experience, level, and business need.

Benefits

This role is eligible for discretionary bonus, incentives, and benefits.