Firmware Engineer Tech Lead - Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
Originally posted 1 September 2026 by the employer — open 8 days.
Focus on firmware and microcontroller subsystems for Astera Labs’ SoC and systems products, including CXL®, Ethernet, NVLink, PCIe®, and UALink™ technologies.
About the role
This role involves architecting and developing firmware and microcontroller subsystems for Astera Labs’ SoC and systems products. You will implement major differentiating features for products integrating CXL®, Ethernet, NVLink, PCIe®, and UALink™ semiconductor-based technologies.
What you'll do
- Architect and develop firmware and microcontroller subsystems.
- Implement major differentiating features for Astera Labs’ products.
- Develop firmware to execute in on-chip microcontrollers.
- Develop C-language software development kits (SDKs) for system management controllers (e.g. BMC).
- Collaborate with logic designers to architect and verify HW-SW interfaces on complex SoCs.
- Prioritize dynamic tasks, plan customer meetings, and work with minimal guidance.
What you'll need
- Bachelor’s in EE or Computer Science.
- Minimum 5 years’ experience supporting or developing complex SoC/silicon products for Server, Storage, and/or Networking applications.
- Experience developing firmware for on-chip microcontrollers and C-language SDKs for system management controllers.
- Experience working with logic designers to architect and verify HW-SW interfaces on complex SoCs.
- Experience working on PCIe-Express (Gen-3 and above) protocol, including with analyzers and exercisers.
- High level of proficiency in C or C++ for C-based SDKs.
- High level of proficiency in Python for automating pre-processors/post-processors and FW QC.
- Working knowledge of software/firmware build environments, gcc/Make, Doxygen, and GitHub.
- Familiarity with SoC interfaces to IP blocks such as PCIe Controllers, DDR Controllers, NVME Controllers, AMBA/AHB interfaces, and on-chip memory interfaces.
Nice to have
- Master’s in EE or Computer Science.
- Experience with PAM4 SerDes with working knowledge of Tx/Rx equalization, adaptation, CDR and SerDes link budgets.
- Hands-on experience with PCIe devices in Server, Storage, and/or Networking equipment.
- Experience developing embedded firmware for PCIe or Ethernet Switch products.
This role has been open 8 days — well below the 55-day median for Embedded Firmware Engineering roles.
Embedded Firmware Engineering · Systems Software
|
Open roles in category
690
|
Median days open
55 d
|
Median salary
$176k
|
See the full market breakdown ▾Category comparison, and who else is hiring
| Metric | Astera Labs | All employers we track in this specialty (690 roles · 79 employers) |
|---|---|---|
| Open roles in this specialty | 4 | 690 |
| Open roles in the wider Software, Firmware & Systems family | 18 | 5650 · 142 employers |
| Median days open | 37 d | 55 d (−18 d vs this employer) |
| Median salary (USD postings) | — | $176k |
Who's hiring in this category
- Qualcomm · 113 open roles · median 57 d
- NVIDIA · 59 open roles · median 51 d
- Micron Technology · 57 open roles · median 76 d
- AMD · 44 open roles · median 37 d
- Lattice Semiconductor · 43 open roles · median 3 d
- NXP Semiconductors · 28 open roles · median 77 d
How we counted: 690 open Embedded Firmware Engineering (Systems Software) roles from 79 employers tracked in the SemiconductorJobs index, counted 10 Sept 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 Software, Firmware & Systems family row. Figures refresh nightly.