Staff Engineer - Validation

Company Overview 

Ambiq's mission is to enable intelligence everywhere by delivering the lowest power semiconductor solutions. Ambiq is a pioneer and a leading provider of ultra-low-power semiconductor solutions based on our proprietary and patented sub- and near-threshold technologies. With the increasing power requirements of artificial intelligence (AI) computing, our customers are relying on our solutions to deliver AI to edge environments. Our hardware and software innovations fundamentally deliver a multi-fold improvement in power consumption over traditional semiconductor designs without expensive process geometry scaling. We began in 2010 by addressing the power consumption challenges of battery-powered devices at the edge, where they were most pronounced. As of the beginning of 2025, we've shipped more than 280+ million units worldwide. 

Our innovative and fast-moving teams of design, research, development, production, marketing, sales, and operations are spread across several continents, including the US (Austin), Taiwan (Hsinchu), China (Shanghai and Shenzhen), and Singapore. We value relentless technology innovation, a deep commitment to customer success, collaborative problem-solving, and an enthusiastic pursuit of energy efficiency. We embrace candidates who also share these same values. The successful candidate must be self-motivated, creative, and comfortable learning and driving exciting new technologies. We encourage and nurture an environment that fosters growth and opportunities to work on complex, meaningful, and challenging projects, creating a lasting impact and shaping the future of technology. Join us on our quest for enabling billions of intelligent devices. The intelligence everywhere revolution starts here. 

Scope  

The Staff Validation Engineer designs and develops system software and hardware used to validate and characterize Ambiq Micro MCU products and associated system components. This includes development and/or integration of software tools for custom validation hardware, power profiling, device specific characterization, MCU control and monitoring, and data collection and analysis.

Product validation and device characterization ensures the product meets design targets and will operate as intended in the end customer system under all specified operating conditions. The validation team collaborates with the software, systems, applications, and design teams to develop validation plans, provide inputs for product testability and characterization, and drives post silicon validation testing. It also works closely with the product test team on product level characterization requiring comprehensive data collection necessary to verify and correlate correct device functionality and to set product specification limits. 

Responsibilities 

• Develop microcontroller (MCU) silicon validation algorithms and functional tests using TCL (Tool Command Language), Shell and/or Python scripts and embedded C/C++.
• Work with the software, design, and verification teams to develop validation and MCU characterization plans and define implementation details of automated test scripts.
• Work with internal engineering teams to analyze and debug complex system level issues and develop hardware and software solutions.
• Create digital, analog, and power validation software regression test suites.
• Define and develop mixed signal analog and power analysis tools for validation test data logging, analysis, and presentation. 
• Develop custom automated software functions and applications to assist with debug of MCU hardware issues.
• Software development of current monitoring, capturing, and profiling tools and applications
• Lead validation sub-projects and mentor other validation team members.
• Improving and optimizing validation test systems, procedures, and test methods.
• Define algorithms and implementation details for characterizing MCU analog and digital electrical characteristics, performance, and power consumption.

Qualifications 

• BS/MS in EE with 5+ years of experience developing software to automate MCU silicon validation and/or related embedded processor systems.
• 5+ years of experience developing software algorithms and writing TCL, Shell, and/or Python test scripts, and embedded MCU code in C/C++.
• Experience architecting and developing software for automation systems that include a host PC, lab electrical equipment, and custom MCU silicon validation board hardware.
• Experience working with common embedded MCU software IDEs (Keil, IAR, Eclipse, ARM) and build environments for C/C++ and TCL software development and debug.
• Experience working in a lab environment with digital and analog electrical test equipment such as oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, audio analyzers, spectrum analyzers, and pico-ammeter measurement equipment.
• Experience developing and using data logging, analysis, and report generation tools.
• Excellent critical thinking skills and ability to solve complex system level issues related to board level hardware and software integration, analog and digital hardware interactions, and low power management.
• Experience with test and debug of MCU digital, analog, and power related issues.
• Experience working with ARM based microcontrollers that have both complex analog and digital integration. This includes power management, ADCs, timers, I2C, SPI, I2S, PDM, UART, and high-speed peripheral interfaces.
• Experience validating and characterizing SOC analog blocks such as ADCs, DACs, voltage and current references, RC and crystal oscillators, charge pumps, buck/boost converters, PLLs, and audio amplifiers.
• Knowledge of ultra-low current measurement techniques is desirable.

What You Need 

We're seeking passionate technologists who thrive on pushing boundaries, solving complex challenges, and driving transformative solutions. 

At Ambiq, you'll collaborate with a dynamic team that values relentless innovation, customer-centric thinking, and continuous learning. If you're a self-motivated, creative problem-solver eager to push technological limits and make a meaningful impact in energy efficiency, this is your opportunity to grow, excel, and turn groundbreaking ideas into reality. 

Most importantly, the successful candidate will be able to live the Ambiq Shared Values: 

• Innovate: We tenaciously find ways to break down the barriers to possible solutions 
• Collaborate: We proactively communicate and encourage each other to be better. 
• Focus: We keep the voice of the customer at the center of everything we do. 
• Learn: We strive for continuous improvement and are always curious. 
• Achieve: We execute on quality and follow through on our commitments.