Company:

Job Area:

Engineering Group, Engineering Group > Software Engineering

General Summary:

Company Overview

Qualcomm is a company of inventors that unlocked 5G ushering in an age of rapid acceleration in connectivity and new possibilities that will transform industries, create jobs, and enrich lives. But this is just the beginning. It takes inventive minds with diverse skills, backgrounds, and cultures to transform 5G's potential into world-changing technologies and products. This is the Invention Age - and this is where you come in.

Job Overview

We are looking for a Principal Engineer to serve as a technical authority and lead architect for the Linux Kernel subsystem within our IoT business unit. In this high-impact role, you will define the long-term software architecture for diverse IoT product lines, ranging from industrial robotics to smart wearables.

You will act as a primary interface between software, hardware, and systems teams, driving technical decisions that influence silicon definition and software scalability. You will be responsible for ensuring that Qualcomm’s IoT platforms remain at the forefront of the industry in terms of stability, security, and upstream Linux compliance.

Key Responsibilities

• Strategic Architecture: Define and drive the high-level architecture and technical roadmap for Linux Kernel development across multiple IoT chipset generations.
• Technical Leadership: Lead the design of complex, cross-functional kernel features; solve system-wide challenges involving memory management, scheduling, power, and thermal constraints in highly resource-constrained environments.
• Cross-Functional Influence: Collaborate with HW architects and Systems Engineering at the pre-silicon stage to influence hardware specifications for optimal software performance and feature support.
• Open Source Strategy: Formulate and lead the team's upstreaming strategy; represent Qualcomm in the Linux community and drive the acceptance of critical architectural changes in the mainline kernel.
• Mentorship & Growth: Serve as a technical mentor for Staff and Senior engineers; foster a culture of technical excellence, code quality, and innovation within the organization.
• Crisis Management: Act as the final escalation point for the most critical and complex kernel issues impacting product launches.

Minimum Qualifications

• Education: Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or related field.
• Experience: 15+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience.
• Technical Expertise:
  • Mastery of C programming and OS fundamentals.
  • Deep expertise in Linux Kernel architecture, with a focus on core subsystems (Scheduler, MM, Power, VFS) and ARM64 architecture.
  • Proven history of architecting complex software solutions for embedded SoCs in IOT product that have shipped in high volume.
  • Experience debugging difficult system-level issues (crashes, leaks, race conditions) using advanced tools (Trace32/JTAG, ftrace, eBPF).

Preferred Qualifications

• Industry Recognition:
  • Significant contribution to the Linux Mainline Kernel (maintainership of a subsystem or driver is a strong plus).
  • Active participation in technical conferences (e.g., Linux Plumbers, LPC, ELCE).
• Domain Knowledge:
  • Deep understanding of SoC power management strategies (cpuidle, cpufreq, EAS, thermal frameworks).
  • Experience with Hypervisors (KVM, Gunyah, Xen) and mixed-criticality systems.
• Leadership:
  • Ability to influence stakeholders across different geographies and time zones.
  • Experience driving technical direction for large teams (10+ engineers) without direct management authority.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field and 8+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience.
OR
Master's degree in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field and 7+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience.
OR
PhD in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field and 6+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience.

• 4+ years of work experience with Programming Language such as C, C++, Java, Python, etc.

Qualcomm expects its employees to abide by all applicable policies and procedures, including but not limited to security and other requirements regarding protection of Company confidential information and other confidential and/or proprietary information, to the extent those requirements are permissible under applicable law.

To all Staffing and Recruiting Agencies: Our Careers Site is only for individuals seeking a job at Qualcomm. Staffing and recruiting agencies and individuals being represented by an agency are not authorized to use this site or to submit profiles, applications or resumes, and any such submissions will be considered unsolicited. Qualcomm does not accept unsolicited resumes or applications from agencies. Please do not forward resumes to our jobs alias, Qualcomm employees or any other company location. Qualcomm is not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes/applications.

If you would like more information about this role, please contact Qualcomm Careers.