Senior Chip Firmware Engineer, Lightmatter

CA$148-162k

Plus new hire equity grant and annual performance-based equity

Python

Linux

C++

Snowflake

CMake

Git

Senior and Expert level

Toronto

Light-powered AI computing

Open for applications

Light-powered AI computing

201-500 employees

B2BArtificial IntelligenceManufacturingDeep TechMachine LearningScience

Open for applications

CA$148-162k

Plus new hire equity grant and annual performance-based equity

Python

Linux

C++

Snowflake

CMake

Git

Senior and Expert level

Toronto

201-500 employees

B2BArtificial IntelligenceManufacturingDeep TechMachine LearningScience

Company mission

Lightmatter's mission is to build an engine that will power discoveries, drive progress, and redefine what computers and human beings are capable of.

Job

Company

Role

Who you are

BS and 8+ years of experience, or MS and 6+ years of experience
Degree in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Robotics, or a related technical field
5+ years of industry experience with reliability testing for a firmware system
Strong understanding of hardware-software integration
Practical knowledge of communication and control in embedded systems, peripherals, and buses
Experience with developing commercial/enterprise-level software and firmware on Linux
Experience with Git and CMake for building and managing software projects
Hands-on experience with data gathering, analysis & reporting

Desirable

Proficiency with Python, C, C++ & Mongo DB
Experience Snowflake reporting software
Experience with environments such as CMIS, OpenBMC and reliability/FIT testing
Familiarity with optical test and measurement and methodologies for characterizing optical components and systems
Familiarity with debugging tools such as GDB, JTAG, and logic analyzers
Experience developing firmware for photonic transceivers or similar systems

What the job involves

We are hiring a talented Chip Firmware Engineer to help us build the next generation of photonic AI processors and interconnects
In this role, you will be responsible for developing and extending the device software and firmware stack for Photonic Compute and Photonic interconnect products
You will collaborate with other software teams and hardware systems teams to develop firmware, and conduct reliability testing, data analysis & reporting
Collaborate across a multidisciplinary team including Photonic, Analog, Digital, Systems and Network experts to define control plane architecture for Lightmatter's photonic interconnect products
Lead the reliability testing for our photonic products
Experience with ASIC firmware reliability engineering
Knowledge of DataCenter administration capabilities using environments such as CMIS, OpenBMC and DMTF
Debug and troubleshoot embedded systems using tools such as GDB, JTAG, and logic analyzers
Participate in customer engagements to gather requirements and usability criteria

Our take

Neural networks and CPUs are vital to AI solutions, but manufacturers have largely failed to maintain innovation in recent years. Lightmatter solves this problem by offering a next-generation computing platform powered by photonics (light waves).

Lightmatter offers a forward-facing platform for AI-building that acts as an alternative to traditional solutions. It works by replacing wired CPUs with a combination of photonics and new algorithms. Lightmatter's solution is not only faster, but it is considerably more sustainable, and it has the potential to drive the next generation of AI development.

As of 2025, Lightmatter has raised $850 million across six funding rounds and grown to a staggering valuation of $4.4 billion, a testament to growing industry demand for faster, more effective AI-building solutions. Lightmatter currently has three products on the market - Envise, Passage, and Idiom - and is poised to take on the incumbent chiplet industry with a photonics-based alternative.

Steph

Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle

Insights

Top investors

Glassdoor (4.2)

Company

Funding (last 2 of 6 rounds)

Oct 2024

$400m

SERIES D

Dec 2023

$155m

SERIES C

Total funding: $822m

Company benefits

Commuter benefit
Happy hour -Spend time together and build friendships
Generous vacation policy and holidays
401(K)
Opportunity to learn from your peers and teach them what you know across electronics, photonics, machine learning, and more

Company HQ

Old Mountain View, Mountain View, CA

Leadership

Nicholas Harris

(CEO & Co-Founder)

Previously worked as an R&D Product Engineer at Micron Technology, and as a Postdoctoral Fellow at MIT.

Thomas Graham

(Co-Founder)

Was an M&A Analyst at Morgan Stanley, and worked as an Agency Business Development Manager at Google.

Darius Bunandar

(Chief Scientist & Co-Founder)

Worked as a Research Collaborator at Caltech, and was a PhD Candidate at MIT.

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