Debug Validation Engineer — Multiple Levels

Graphcore

ABOUT GRAPHCORE Graphcore is one of the world’s leading innovators in Artificial Intelligence compute.   It is developing hardware, software and systems infrastructure that will unlock the next generation of AI breakthroughs and power the widespread adoption of AI solutions across every industry.   As part of the SoftBank Group, Graphcore is a member of an elite family of companies responsible for some of the world’s most transformative technologies. Together, they share a bold vision: to enable Artificial Super Intelligence and ensure its benefits are accessible to everyone.    Graphcore’s teams are drawn from diverse backgrounds and bring a broad range of skills and perspectives. A melting pot of AI research specialists, silicon designers, software engineers and systems architects, Graphcore enjoys a culture of continuous learning and constant innovation.   The Role: We are looking to hire Post-Silicon Validation Engineers to join our collaborative, cross-functional development team validating cutting edge, high performance AI chips and platforms. You will play a critical role in supporting new product introductions and post-silicon validation. Working within the Post-Silicon Validation team, you will be involved with bringing first silicon to life, functionally validating it and working closely with many other teams to help it become a fully characterised and working product, reporting project status/progress to program management on a regular basis. You will have the opportunity to, and be responsible for, leading, mentoring, and providing technical guidance to other engineering team members. In this role, you can leverage your experience and industry knowledge to architect and drive implementation of continuous improvements to test infrastructure and processes.  The Post-Silicon Validation team sits within the Architecture and Validation team, we are responsible for validation of new silicon when it returns from manufacture, enabling and supporting the production SW and FW teams to bring up their software and also supporting the Silicon Characterisation team.   Responsibilities and Duties  * Plan, design, develop and debug silicon validation tests in bare metal C/C++ on FPGA/Emulator prior to first silicon  * Deploy silicon validation tests on first silicon and debugging them  * Develop automated test framework and regression test suites in Python to optimize validation efficiency  * Collaborate closely with engineers from many other disciplines on a variety of topics  * Work with Validation and Production Test engineering peers to implement best practices and continuous improvements to test methodologies  * Analyse test results, identify and debug failures/defects  * Contribute to shared test and validation infrastructure  * Provide feedback to architects  Essential skills:  * Strong experience in Bare metal / embedded C/C++  * Good knowledge of digital ASICs * Be highly motivated, a self starter, and a team player   * Ability to work across teams and programming languages to find root causes of deep and complex issues  * Experience of the post-silicon validation process applied in digital ASIC environments  * Python, Linux  * Excellent communication skills and the ability to collaborate with others to solve problems * Excellent problem-solving, analytical & diagnostic skills    Desirable skills:  * Driver level experience with one or more of the following is highly desirable:  * PCIe  * Ethernet  * Memory technologies (LPDDR, DDR, HBM, …)  * Other peripherals such as I2C, I3C, SPI, …  * Good knowledge of mixed-signal building blocks such as PLLs, high speed PHYs and IC control/communication protocols is highly desirable * Experience of Arm CPUs, System IP and debug tools * Experience of AMBA protocols * Understanding of ML applications and their workloads * Experience in Characterization, Failure Analysis, Test Development, Statistical analysis, and Customer Support  Benefits: In addition to a competitive salary, Graphcore offers flexible working, a generous annual leave policy, private medical insurance and health cash plan, a dental plan, pension (matched up to 5%), life assurance and income protection. We have a generous parental leave policy and an employee assistance programme (which includes health, mental wellbeing, and bereavement support). We offer a range of healthy food and snacks at our central Bristol office and have our own barista bar! We welcome people of different backgrounds and experiences; we’re committed to building an inclusive work environment that makes Graphcore a great home for everyone. We offer an equal opportunity process and understand that there are visible and invisible differences in all of us. We can provide a flexible approach to interview and encourage you to chat to us if you require any reasonable adjustments.

Graphcore

About Graphcore Graphcore is one of the world’s leading innovators in Artificial Intelligence compute.   It is developing hardware, software and systems infrastructure that will unlock the next generation of AI breakthroughs and power the widespread adoption of AI solutions across every industry.   As part of the SoftBank Group, Graphcore is a member of an elite family of companies responsible for some of the world’s most transformative technologies. Together, they share a bold vision: to enable Artificial Super Intelligence and ensure its benefits are accessible to everyone.    Graphcore’s teams are drawn from diverse backgrounds and bring a broad range of skills and perspectives. A melting pot of AI research specialists, silicon designers, software engineers and systems architects, Graphcore enjoys a culture of continuous learning and constant innovation.   The Role: We are developing the next generation of AI compute, a large-scale system-on-chip (SoC) designed to power future high-performance AI systems. As the SoC Validation Lead, you will be responsible for enabling pre-production software to run reliably on new silicon quickly and efficiently, before showing that the silicon meets the highest standards of quality, reliability and functionality, ready for production deployment. You will lead a team delivering post-silicon validation across the full AI SoC, working across silicon, firmware, and platform levels. The role requires a deep technical understanding, strong hands-on debug experience, and the ability to collaborate effectively with hardware, software, and systems engineering teams. Responsibilities: * Define and lead post-silicon validation strategy Develop and refine the overall post-silicon validation approach for our AI SoCs, ensuring reliable and timely delivery of validated silicon, architectural correctness, feature robustness, and at-scale system reliability. * Drive cross-domain debug and issue resolution Lead investigation and resolution of complex issues spanning silicon, firmware, operating systems, and platform interactions. Ensure that fixes are effective and sustainable. * Promote collaboration and shared understanding Work closely with design, software, and validation teams to align on quality objectives and debug priorities. Use data-driven insights and clear communication to maintain focus and alignment across teams. * Advance automation and scalable validation Encourage the use of emulation, prototyping, and large-scale validation infrastructure to improve coverage and reduce time to debug. * Support continuous improvement Foster a culture that values learning, transparency, and improvement in validation methods, automation, and analysis. * Engage with leadership and customers Provide clear and concise updates on validation progress, risks, and quality indicators to executive teams and key partners. Contribute to product readiness assessments and roadmap decisions. About you: * A systems thinker comfortable working across hardware, software, and integration boundaries. * A collaborative leader who builds trust and alignment across diverse teams. * Skilled in technical problem solving and debugging complex post-silicon issues. * A clear communicator who can simplify complexity and support sound decision-making in fast-paced environments. * Committed to developing people and promoting an inclusive, high-performing team culture.   Qualifications: * Bachelor’s degree in Electronic Engineering or equivalent; Master’s preferred. * 20+ years in silicon, system, or platform validation, including 10+ years in technical leadership. * Proven experience leading post-silicon validation and bring-up for complex SoCs (AI, GPU, or CPU). * Strong understanding of SoC architecture, coherency protocols, power management, and interconnects. * Expertise in debug tools, DFT infrastructure, and validation automation frameworks. * Proficient in C/C++, Python, and Linux-based environments; experience with large-scale validation clusters is an advantage. * Excellent communication, collaboration, and stakeholder management skills.   BENEFITS In addition to a competitive salary, Graphcore offers flexible working, a generous annual leave policy, private medical insurance and health cash plan, a dental plan, pension (matched up to 5%), life assurance and income protection. We have a generous parental leave policy and an employee assistance programme (which includes health, mental wellbeing, and bereavement support). We offer a range of healthy food and snacks at our central Bristol office and have our own barista bar! We welcome people of different backgrounds and experiences; we’re committed to building an inclusive work environment that makes Graphcore a great home for everyone. We offer an equal opportunity process and understand that there are visible and invisible differences in all of us. We can provide a flexible approach to interview and encourage you to chat to us if you require any reasonable adjustments. Applicants for this position must hold the right to work in the UK. Unfortunately at this time, we are unable to provide visa sponsorship or support for visa applications

Graphcore

Graphcore is a globally recognized leader in Artificial Intelligence computing systems. The company designs advanced semiconductors and datacentre hardware that provide the specialized processing power needed to drive AI innovation, while delivering the efficiency required to support its broader adoption. As part of the SoftBank Group, Graphcore is a member of an elite family of companies responsible for some of the world’s most transformative technologies. Together, we are working to enable Artificial Super Intelligence and ensure that its benefits are accessible to everyone. We are developing the next generation of AI compute, a large-scale system-on-chip (SoC) designed to power future high-performance AI systems. As the SoC Validation Lead, you will be responsible for enabling pre-production software to run reliably on new silicon quickly and efficiently, before showing that the silicon meets the highest standards of quality, reliability and functionality, ready for production deployment. You will lead a team delivering post-silicon validation across the full AI SoC, working across silicon, firmware, and platform levels. The role requires a deep technical understanding, strong hands-on debug experience, and the ability to collaborate effectively with hardware, software, and systems engineering teams. Responsibilities * Define and lead post-silicon validation strategy: Develop and refine the overall post-silicon validation approach for our AI SoCs, ensuring reliable and timely delivery of validated silicon, architectural correctness, feature robustness, and at-scale system reliability * Drive cross-domain debug and issue resolution: Lead investigation and resolution of complex issues spanning silicon, firmware, operating systems, and platform interactions. Ensure that fixes are effective and sustainable * Promote collaboration and shared understanding: Work closely with design, software, and validation teams to align on quality objectives and debug priorities. Use data-driven insights and clear communication to maintain focus and alignment across teams * Advance automation and scalable validation: Encourage the use of emulation, prototyping, and large-scale validation infrastructure to improve coverage and reduce time to debug * Support continuous improvement: Foster a culture that values learning, transparency, and improvement in validation methods, automation, and analysis * Engage with leadership and customers: Provide clear and concise updates on validation progress, risks, and quality indicators to executive teams and key partners. Contribute to product readiness assessments and roadmap decisions Essential skills * A systems thinker, comfortable working across hardware, software, and integration boundaries * A collaborative leader who builds trust and alignment across diverse teams * Skilled in technical problem solving and debugging complex post-silicon issues * A clear communicator who can simplify complexity and support sound decision-making in fast-paced environments * Committed to developing people and promoting an inclusive, high-performing team culture * Bachelor’s degree in Electronic Engineering or equivalent; Master’s preferred * 20+ years in silicon, system, or platform validation, including 10+ years in technical leadership * Proven experience leading post-silicon validation and bring-up for complex SoCs (AI, GPU, or CPU) * Strong understanding of SoC architecture, coherency protocols, power management, and interconnects * Expertise in debug tools, DFT infrastructure, and validation automation frameworks * Proficient in C/C++, Python, and Linux-based environments; experience with large-scale validation clusters is an advantage Benefits In addition to a competitive salary, Graphcore offers flexible working, a generous annual leave policy, private medical insurance and health cash plan, a dental plan, pension, life assurance and income protection. We have a generous parental leave policy and an employee assistance programme (which includes health, mental wellbeing, and bereavement support). We welcome people of different backgrounds and experiences; we’re committed to building an inclusive work environment that makes Graphcore a great home for everyone. We offer an equal opportunity process and understand that there are visible and invisible differences in all of us. We can provide a flexible approach to interview and encourage you to chat to us if you require any reasonable adjustments.