CPU Performance & Workload Analysis Architect, Platform Architecture - Santa Clara, United States
Originally posted 7 October 2026 by the employer.
About the role
This role involves understanding software developer concerns to design hardware and helping software developers optimize applications for modern client and server hardware, focusing on the intersection of hardware and software development.
What you'll do
- Drive advanced exploration for CPU architectures.
- Interface between the CPU team, system teams, and software teams.
- Analyze real user workloads (existing and emerging) to guide optimizations and future CPU direction.
- Collaborate with software developers to optimize code for CPU designs and roadmap.
What you'll need
- Bachelor’s degree.
- Experience with CPU architecture and micro-architecture.
- Object-oriented programming experience with C and C++.
- Experience in scripting languages such as Perl, Python, or Javascript.
- Experience with CPU performance analysis and associated tools.
- Experience with common performance benchmarks.
Nice to have
- MS or PhD in Electrical or Computer Engineering, or related field.
- 20+ years of relevant experience.
- Knowledge of visual/UI, data analysis frameworks and modern AI tools.
- Knowledge of OS internals and compiler technology.
Skills: CPU architecture, micro-architecture, CPU performance analysis, user workloads, SoC designs
This role has been open 1 day — well below the 76-day median for SoC/Chip Architecture roles.
SoC/Chip Architecture · SOC Architecture
|
Open roles in category
461
|
Median days open
76 d
|
Median salary
$236k
|
See the full market breakdown ▾Category comparison, skills in demand, and who else is hiring
| Metric | Apple | All employers we track in this specialty (461 roles · 63 employers) |
|---|---|---|
| Open roles in this specialty | 34 | 461 |
| Open roles in the wider Digital Design & Verification family | 70 | 3175 · 113 employers |
| Median days open | 3 d | 76 d (−73 d vs this employer) |
| Median salary (USD postings) | — | $236k |
Skills observed across this category: CPU architecture, micro-architecture, CPU performance analysis, user workloads, SoC designs
Who's hiring in this category
- Qualcomm · 77 open roles · median 79 d
- NVIDIA · 60 open roles · median 63 d
- AMD · 36 open roles · median 58 d
- Apple (this employer) · 32 open roles · median 3 d
- Arm Holdings · 27 open roles · median 106 d
- NXP Semiconductors · 21 open roles · median 108 d
How we counted: 461 open SoC/Chip Architecture (SOC Architecture) roles from 63 employers tracked in the SemiconductorJobs index, counted 9 Oct 2026. Specialty figures count only roles carrying this exact specialty label, so an employer's related work in neighbouring specialties is not included there — it is counted in the wider Digital Design & Verification family row. Figures refresh nightly.