ASIC Design Engineer, Cloud-Scale Machine Learning Acceleration team - Annapurna Labs

Amazon is hiring an ASIC Design Engineer, Cloud-Scale Machine Learning Acceleration team - Annapurna Labs in Cupertino, United States. It pays $177k-$247k a year and Level rates it ; you can apply on Amazon.

Level's read on this job

On Level's scale, this role is Builds AI ●●●●: the job is building AI systems.
Tools and skills the posting cites include SystemVerilog, asic design and rtl.
Level classifies it as a senior role.
Level lists 20,000+ other open roles at Amazon.

AI in this role

Designs custom ASIC hardware and RTL for cloud-scale machine learning acceleration and inference servers like AWS Inferentia.

SystemVerilog

asic-designrtlhardware-accelerationmachine-learning-infrastructuremicroarchitecture

Amazon Web Services provides a highly reliable, scalable, low-cost infrastructure platform in the cloud that powers hundreds of thousands of businesses in 190 countries around the world. We have data center locations in the U.S., Europe, Singapore, and Japan, and customers across all industries.

Custom SoCs (System on Chip) live at the heart of AWS Machine Learning servers. As a member of the Cloud-Scale Machine Learning Acceleration team you’ll be responsible for the design and optimization of hardware in our data centers including AWS Inferentia, our custom designed machine learning inference datacenter server. Our success depends on our world-class server infrastructure; we’re handling massive scale and rapid integration of emergent technologies. We’re looking for an ASIC Design Eengineer to help us trail-blaze new technologies and architectures, while ensuring high design quality and making the right trade-offs.

Key job responsibilities
As an ASIC Design Engineer, you will:

• Develop and implement high-performance, area and power-efficient RTL designs to meet project specifications and targets

• Conduct in-depth analysis of designs, microarchitectures, and architectures to optimize trade-offs between features, power consumption, performance, and area requirements

• Create microarchitectures, implement SystemVerilog RTL, and deliver synthesis and timing-clean designs with appropriate constraints

• Execute lint and clock domain crossing quality checks to ensure design integrity

• Collaborate closely with cross-functional teams, including architects, fellow designers, verification specialists, pre- and post-silicon validation teams, and synthesis, timing, and back-end experts

The ideal candidate will have a strong background in ASIC design, proficiency in SystemVerilog, and excellent analytical and problem-solving skills. Experience with high-performance and power-efficient designs is highly desirable.

You will thrive in this role if you:
- Have a "Learn and Be Curious" mindset
- Have familiarity with key components such as interconnects, DMAs, Memory sub-systems, accelerator engines, debug and system level architectures
- Have a strong drive to innovate, explore new solutions, and contribute to the company's intellectual property through patents

About the team
Inclusive Team Culture
Here at AWS, we embrace our differences. We are committed to furthering our culture of inclusion. We have ten employee-led affinity groups, reaching 40,000 employees in over 190 chapters globally. We have innovative benefit offerings, and host annual and ongoing learning experiences, including our Conversations on Race and Ethnicity (CORE) and AmazeCon conferences. Amazon’s culture of inclusion is reinforced within our 16 Leadership Principles, which remind team members to seek diverse perspectives, learn and be curious, and earn trust.

Work/Life Balance
Our team puts a high value on work-life balance. It isn’t about how many hours you spend at home or at work; it’s about the flow you establish that brings energy to both parts of your life. We believe striking the right balance between your personal and professional life is critical to life-long happiness and fulfillment. We offer flexibility in working hours and encourage you to find your own balance between your work and personal lives.

Mentorship & Career Growth
Our team is dedicated to supporting new members. We have a broad mix of experience levels and tenures, and we’re building an environment that celebrates knowledge sharing and mentorship. We care about your career growth and strive to assign projects based on what will help each team member develop into a better-rounded professional and enable them to take on more complex tasks in the future.

We are open to hiring candidates to work out of one of the following locations:

Cupertino, CA, USA | Austin, TX, USA

Basic qualifications

- Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering or a related field
- Experience identifying bugs in architecture, algorithms, functionality, and performance with strong overall debugging skills
- Experience verifying at multiple levels of logic from IP blocks to SoCs to full system testing

Preferred qualifications

- Master's degree in Electrical or Communications Engineering or a related field
- Experience with formal verification techniques including abstraction and end-to-end checking
- Experience with ARM and various DSP ISAs
- Experience with current and upcoming RF standards in cellular (4G/5G NR), WiMAX, 802.11ad, microwave backhaul, or related broadband wireless standards
- Experience with industry standard tools and scripting languages (Python or Perl) for automation

Amazon is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected veteran status, disability, or other legally protected status.

Los Angeles County applicants: Job duties for this position include: work safely and cooperatively with other employees, supervisors, and staff; adhere to standards of excellence despite stressful conditions; communicate effectively and respectfully with employees, supervisors, and staff to ensure exceptional customer service; and follow all federal, state, and local laws and Company policies. Criminal history may have a direct, adverse, and negative relationship with some of the material job duties of this position. These include the duties and responsibilities listed above, as well as the abilities to adhere to company policies, exercise sound judgment, effectively manage stress and work safely and respectfully with others, exhibit trustworthiness and professionalism, and safeguard business operations and the Company’s reputation. Pursuant to the Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Our inclusive culture empowers Amazonians to deliver the best results for our customers. If you have a disability and need a workplace accommodation or adjustment during the application and hiring process, including support for the interview or onboarding process, please visit https://amazon.jobs/content/en/how-we-hire/accommodations for more information. If the country/region you’re applying in isn’t listed, please contact your Recruiting Partner.

The base salary range for this position is listed below. Your Amazon package will include sign-on payments and restricted stock units (RSUs). Final compensation will be determined based on factors including experience, qualifications, and location. Amazon also offers comprehensive benefits including health insurance (medical, dental, vision, prescription, Basic Life & AD&D insurance and option for Supplemental life plans, EAP, Mental Health Support, Medical Advice Line, Flexible Spending Accounts, Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage), 401(k) matching, paid time off, and parental leave. Learn more about our benefits at https://amazon.jobs/en/benefits.

USA, CA, Cupertino - 176,600.00 - 247,300.00 USD annually
USA, TX, Austin - 153,600.00 - 215,000.00 USD annually

How we rate this

ASIC Design Engineer, Cloud-Scale Machine Learning Acceleration team - Annapurna Labs at Amazon rates 90 out of 100 for how much of the daily work is AI. That makes it Builds AI (AI Level 4 of 4). The level is about AI in the job, not seniority.

Classification

Builds AI. The job is building AI systems.

●●●● Builds AI80 to 100
●●●○ Works on AI60 to 79
●●○○ Uses AI40 to 59
●○○○ Little AI0 to 39

Levels come from how often the tools, models and workflows of the role are named in the posting itself. Read the description and count the AI tools, models and workflows it names.

Key facts

ASIC Design Engineer, Cloud-Scale Machine Learning Acceleration team - Annapurna Labs is an open job at Amazon.
Level rates this role AI Level 4 of 4: Builds AI.
The listed salary is $177k-$247k a year.
The role is based in US, CA, Cupertino.
The job was posted on August 13, 2026.
Seniority: senior.
Applications are handled by Amazon. Apply on Amazon

Prepare for this job

Built from this posting and from similar jobs on Level.

Skills and AI tools this role asks for

Asic DesignRtlHardware AccelerationMachine Learning InfrastructureMicroarchitectureSystemVerilog

Questions you could be asked

Tell me about a project where asic design was part of your work. What did you do?
Tell me about a project where rtl was part of your work. What did you do?
Tell me about a project where hardware acceleration was part of your work. What did you do?
Tell me about a project where machine learning infrastructure was part of your work. What did you do?
Tell me about a project where microarchitecture was part of your work. What did you do?

Adapt your resume

List these exact terms on your resume: Asic Design, Rtl, Hardware Acceleration, Machine Learning Infrastructure, and Microarchitecture. An applicant tracking system matches the wording, not the idea.
Attach one line of real, concrete experience to at least one of them. A tool named with nothing behind it rarely survives a human read.
Lead with what you built, trained or shipped. This role is judged on the AI system itself, not the tools around it.

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