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GPU Shader Visualization, Senior Software Engineer

San Francisco (Brisbane)

Vivodyne creates human data before clinical trials.

We accelerate the successful discovery, design, and development of human therapeutics by testing on large, lab-grown human organ tissues at massive scale, driving technological advancement at the convergence of novel biology, robotics, and AI. We identify and validate new therapeutic targets and de-risk new therapeutic assets by producing clinically translatable multi-omic data from our proprietary, physiologically-realistic human organ tissues at unprecedented scale, speed, and quality. This enables us to produce more human data than all clinical trials in the U.S. combined. We’re financially backed by some of the most selective and successful venture funds, and we have already partnered with a majority of the top 10 multinational pharmaceutical companies to discover and develop better, safer drugs and dramatically reduce the burden of animal testing.

www.vivodyne.com

Role

We are seeking a GPU Shader Visualization, Senior Software Engineer who is passionate about achieving the highest possible 3D visualization performance on high-end NVIDIA discrete GPUs for cutting-edge scientific applications. In this role, you will design and implement high-performance shader pipelines, rendering algorithms, and GPU acceleration strategies to display millions of gigabyte-scale 3D tissue images with multiple overlay annotations in real-time. You will work closely with a cross-functional team of AI researchers, biologists, tissue engineers, and robotics experts to build advanced interactive visualization tools that power Vivodyne’s next-generation platform for drug discovery and tissue engineering.

Responsibilities

  • Develop and optimize GPU shader code to achieve maximum rendering performance and visual fidelity on modern NVIDIA GPUs.
  • Design and implement rendering pipelines leveraging Vulkan (required) and possibly Metal (a plus), while welcoming outstanding developers experienced in OpenGL looking to transition.
  • Build robust, beautiful, and functional 3D visualization UIs, ensuring that complex biological data is presented in clear and intuitive ways.
  • Collaborate on hierarchical caching strategies and compression-based progressive loaders to enable real-time access to extremely large imaging datasets.
  • Integrate C++ application logic and GPU pipelines on Linux as the primary end-user platform.
  • Work alongside software, AI, and biology teams to create fast, interactive overlays for annotations, measurements, and image processing tasks.
  • Adhere to engineering best practices, including code reviews, version control, continuous integration, testing, and documentation for GPU-related modules.
  • Provide technical leadership in GPU programming and shader optimization, sharing expertise with colleagues and mentoring junior engineers on 3D rendering techniques.
  • Collaborate closely with internal and external stakeholders to understand scientific visualization objectives and deliver solutions that exceed user expectations.
  • Stay current with the latest graphics technologies, GPU hardware trends, and scientific visualization best practices.
  • Assist in troubleshooting performance bottlenecks, diagnosing rendering issues, and ensuring robust error handling and logging.

Requirements and Expectations

Technical Excellence

  • Deep expertise in GPU architectures, shading languages, and real-time rendering pipelines.
  • Strong C++ skills and experience with Vulkan (or OpenGL with a willingness to transition).
  • Proficient in performance profiling, Linux development, and high-performance rendering for large datasets.

Scientific Visualization

  • Passion for rendering complex 3D scientific data, with experience in hierarchical caching and progressive loading.
  • Ability to create intuitive 3D UIs for both expert and non-expert users.

Problem Solving

  • Skilled in profiling, optimizing, and debugging GPU-bound applications.
  • Comfortable tackling novel rendering challenges with a first-principles approach.

Collaboration & Execution

  • Work cross-functionally with AI scientists, biologists, and engineers to align technical decisions with business goals.
  • Familiarity with containerization, CI/CD frameworks, and agile development.
  • Strong track record of delivering mission-critical software on time.

Architecture & Performance

  • Expertise in low-level graphics engine design, GPU memory management, and concurrency optimization.
  • Ability to break down complex rendering problems into modular, maintainable solutions.

Code Quality & Documentation

  • Write high-quality, secure, and testable shader and C++ code.
  • Follow best practices in version control, continuous integration, and peer reviews.

Leadership & Growth

  • Mentor peers in GPU rendering best practices and contribute to continuous improvement.
  • Stay updated on new technologies, with an interest in merging game engine workflows (Unity, Unreal) with scientific visualization.

Qualifications

  • Bachelor’s, Master’s, or PhD in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or a closely related field (or equivalent experience).
  • 5 + years of industry experience in real-time rendering, GPU shader development, or a similar role.
  • Proficiency in C++ (modern standards preferred) and Vulkan (or proven experience in OpenGL with a desire to learn Vulkan).
  • Familiarity with graphics debugging and profiling tools.
  • Experience with GPU-accelerated computing beyond graphics (e.g., CUDA, compute shaders) is a plus.
  • Proven track record of building functional, high-performance user interfaces for complex 3D visualization applications, leveraging frameworks such as ImGui.
  • Experience with hierarchical caching, progressive loading, or compression pipelines is highly desirable.
  • Strong communication and collaboration skills, with the ability to translate user needs into technical requirements.
  • Demonstrated ability to balance trade-offs between image quality, performance, and resource constraints.
  • Passion for advancing scientific discovery through cutting-edge visualization technology.

Preferred Qualifications

If you are an experienced GPU shader developer who thrives on optimizing large-scale 3D rendering pipelines for high-impact scientific applications—and you’re excited to collaborate with world-class biologists, engineers, and AI scientists—we encourage you to apply.

Join us at Vivodyne and help bring instant, detailed views of human tissue to the hands of the researchers who will use them to transform drug discovery and improve patient outcomes worldwide.

San Francisco pay range

$220,000 - $270,000 USD

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