Staff Engineer – Core Platform (Linux Drivers & System Software)

Location: Chennai, Tamil Nādu, India

Department: Software Engineering

Work Location: onsite

Company:

Qualcomm India Private Limited

Job Area:

Engineering Group, Engineering Group > Software Engineering

General Summary:

We are seeking a highly skilled Staff Engineer – Core Platform to develop and enable Linux-based system software for next-generation SoCs. The role focuses on Linux kernel driver development, bootloader integration (U‑Boot), and system bring-up, including debugging and performance optimization across key hardware subsystems.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead SoC bring-up (pre-silicon & post-silicon) and platform enablement
• Develop and maintain Linux kernel device drivers
• Linux Stability / Crash analysis & debugging
• Enable and debug boot flow (ROM → U‑Boot → Linux)
• Design and support Board Support Package (BSP) components
• Debug system-level issues (HW/SW interaction, kernel crashes, boot failures)
• Optimize system performance, latency, and power efficiency
• Perform code reviews, design reviews, and mentoring
• Collaborate with hardware, firmware, and external ecosystem teams

Required Technical Skills

Programming & Core Systems

• Strong proficiency in C programming
• In-depth knowledge of Linux kernel internals
• Strong understanding of embedded systems and RTOS concepts

Linux Driver Development

Hands-on experience with:

• Peripheral DMA / Interrupt handling
• PCIe/USB subsystem
• Storage drivers: NAND, NOR, eMMC
• Clock, power management, reset frameworks
• I2C, SPI, UART, GPIO drivers
• Audio drivers (PCM/ALSA)

Bootloader & Low-Level Systems

• Experience with U‑Boot development and debugging
• Strong understanding of boot architecture and memory initialization
• Familiarity with flash subsystems (QSPI / SPI NAND / eMMC)

Debugging & Tools

• Experience with JTAG / Lauterbach / TRACE32
• Linux debugging tools: dmesg, printk, ftrace, crash analysis
• Strong skills in system-level debugging and issue root cause analysis

Experience

• 10+ years of experience in embedded systems / Linux kernel development
• Proven experience in SoC bring-up and BSP development

Minimum Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field and 4+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience.
OR
Master's degree in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field and 3+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience.
OR
PhD in Engineering, Information Systems, Computer Science, or related field and 2+ years of Software Engineering or related work experience.

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

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