Staff BIOS/Platform System Engineer - San Jose, CA, United States
$140,000 - $220,000 USD yearly
Originally posted 29 June 2026 by the employer.
About the role
Monolithic Power Systems is seeking a Staff BIOS/Platform System Engineer to troubleshoot, validate, and optimize firmware and low-level software across platforms built on AMD, Intel, and ARM-based CPUs. The role focuses on DDR memory subsystems, platform bring-up, and resolving hardware-software interface issues.
What you'll do
- Lead BIOS-level bring-up and validation for new hardware platforms, including debug of CPU, chipset, and memory (DDR5/6) subsystems. - Analyze, troubleshoot, and customize BIOS/UEFI firmware for platforms using AMD EPYC/Ryzen, Intel Core/Xeon, and ARM-based processors. - Configure and validate DDR5 memory subsystems, including SPD/XMP programming, memory training tuning, RAS features, and JEDEC compliance. - Analyze and resolve hardware-firmware interface issues including POST failures, memory training errors, PCIe enumeration problems, and thermal/power sequencing anomalies. - Develop and execute validation test plans for BIOS features, power management (ACPI/S-states), security features (Secure Boot, TPM, AMD PSP, Intel TXT/SGX), and boot flows. - Debug using tools such as JTAG/ITP debuggers, logic analyzers, oscilloscopes, and serial console output.
What you'll need
- Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a closely related field. - 3+ years of hands-on experience in BIOS/UEFI firmware development or validation. - Demonstrated experience with at least two of the following CPU architectures: AMD (AGESA, EPYC/Ryzen), Intel (FSP, Core/Xeon), or ARM (TF-A, EDK2). - Strong understanding of DDR5 memory architecture, training algorithms, SPD/MR registers, and RAS features. - Proficiency in C/C++ and scripting languages (Python, Bash) for firmware development and automation. - Experience with UEFI/EDK2 framework, SMM, DXE, PEI driver development, and ACPI/ASL. - Familiarity with hardware debug tools: JTAG debuggers (Intel ITP, Lauterbach), protocol analyzers, oscilloscopes, and serial console interfaces. - Solid understanding of platform busses and interfaces: PCIe, USB, I2C/SMBus, SPI, LPC, UART, and GPIO.
Nice to have
- Experience with AMD PSP, Intel ME/CSME, or ARM TrustZone security subsystems. - Familiarity with BMC firmware (OpenBMC) and IPMI/Redfish management interfaces. - Knowledge of server platform RAS features: DRAM ECC, memory mirroring, patrol scrub, and machine check architecture (MCA). - Exposure to PCIe Gen 5 or CXL 2.0/3.0 interconnect validation. - Hands-on experience with JEDEC DDR5 compliance testing and memory timing optimization. - Understanding of power management frameworks: ACPI, AMD STAPM, Intel DPTF, and platform telemetry. - Prior collaboration with silicon vendors (AMD, Intel, Arm Ltd.) on pre-silicon or early-silicon bring-up. - Experience with version control systems (Git), CI/CD pipelines, and agile engineering workflows.
Skills: BIOS/UEFI firmware, DDR5 memory subsystems, hardware-software interface, platform bring-up, debug tools
This role has been open 122 days — well above the 55-day median for Embedded Firmware Engineering roles.
Embedded Firmware Engineering · Systems Software
|
Open roles in category
760
|
Median days open
55 d
|
Median salary
$169k
|
See the full market breakdown ▾Category comparison, skills in demand, and who else is hiring
| Metric | Monolithic Power Systems | All employers we track in this specialty (760 roles · 84 employers) |
|---|---|---|
| Open roles in this specialty | 1 | 760 |
| Open roles in the wider Software, Firmware & Systems family | 14 | 6298 · 145 employers |
| Median days open | 122 d | 55 d (+67 d vs this employer) |
| Median salary (USD postings) | — | $169k |
Skills observed across this category: BIOS/UEFI firmware, DDR5 memory subsystems, hardware-software interface, platform bring-up, debug tools
Who's hiring in this category
- Qualcomm · 126 open roles · median 52 d
- Micron Technology · 63 open roles · median 91 d
- AMD · 62 open roles · median 40 d
- NVIDIA · 60 open roles · median 56 d
- Lattice Semiconductor · 47 open roles · median 43 d
- NXP Semiconductors · 36 open roles · median 30 d
How we counted: 760 open Embedded Firmware Engineering (Systems Software) roles from 84 employers tracked in the SemiconductorJobs index, counted 23 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 Software, Firmware & Systems family row. Figures refresh nightly.