CPU Architect Verification Engineer

Nuvacore is building a ground-up high performance, low-power CPU for next-generation compute workloads. We are seeking Verification Engineers at  multiple levels  — from Senior Engineer to Principal level — to help prove that the Nuvacore CPU is architecturally correct. As part of the  design verification (DV) team , you will help drive architectural verification — checking the CPU’s behavior and architectural state against the architecture specification and a golden reference model — building the stimulus, checkers, and flows that find architectural bugs long before silicon, working shoulder-to-shoulder with architecture and RTL design.

THE ROLE

Plan & Strategy:  Drive the verification scope, strategy, and test plans for architectural correctness — the CPU’s behavior and architectural state versus the specification and a golden reference model.

Environment Setup:  Build, maintain, and scale robust verification environments — including co-simulation against the golden reference model — that compare architectural state end to end.

Test & Debug:  Generate stimulus in assembly and random instruction sequences (RIS) to exercise the full instruction set and architectural corner cases such as exceptions, interrupts, and privilege transitions.

Coverage Closure:  Define the coverage space, write functional coverage monitors, and analyze metrics to prove the architectural test plan is complete.

Cross-functional Collaboration:

Partner with architects and RTL teams to root-cause mismatches across RTL, model, and specification, drive design fixes, and support emulation, FPGA, and silicon bring-up.

REQUIREMENTS — MUST TO HAVE

Degree in Electrical/Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or equivalent practical experience.

15+ years (Principal) or 4+ years (Senior Engineer) of design-verification experience, ideally on a CPU or complex digital design.

Strong knowledge of CPU architecture and micro-architecture — the instruction set, architectural state, exceptions, and privilege model — with a good understanding of at least one modern ISA (x86, ARM, or RISC-V).

Hands-on functional verification: test plans, test benches, checkers, and coverage.

Proficiency in C/C++/Rust and/or System Verilog, plus a scripting language (Python; Perl a plus).

Experience writing and debugging tests in assembly for CPU verification.

REQUIREMENTS — NICE TO HAVE

Architectural / instruction-set verification against a golden reference model.

Random instruction sequence (RIS) stimulus generation.

Exceptions, interrupts, privilege levels, and virtualization.

Constrained-random verification and coverage-driven closure.

Assertions and formal verification.

Emulation/FPGA and silicon bring-up and debug (waveforms, trace).

$140,000 - $250,000 a year