Embedded Time Operating System Software Staff Engineer; QuRT OS, Zephyr

Position: Embedded Real Time Operating System Software Staff Engineer (QuRT OS, Zephyr)
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Company:

Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.

## Job Area:

Engineering Group, Engineering Group DSP Architecture and Design

General

Summary:

Qualcomm is seeking a Staff Embedded Software Engineer (6+ years of experience) to join the Core Platform Kernel software team.

The Core Platform Kernel team develops and deploys real‑time operating system (RTOS) software across multiple subsystems on Qualcomm SoCs, servicing Mobile Handset, XR, Compute, Automotive, Cloud AI, and IoT market segments. The team is responsible for the deployment and evolution of two RTOS platforms at scale:
QuRT OS and Zephyr RTOS.

This role is suited for engineers who enjoy deep technical work, take ownership of complex problems, and influence both system design and engineering execution across teams.

What You'll Do

As a Staff Engineer, you will:

* Design, implement, and maintain RTOS and low‑level system software components

* Own and drive resolution of complex, system‑level issues (performance, stability, correctness)

* Lead feature design and implementation from problem definition through deployment

* Analyze crash dumps, traces, and logs to perform deep root‑cause analysis

* Collaborate closely with hardware, systems, validation, and software teams to converge on robust solutions

* Participate actively in design and code reviews, influencing technical direction and standards

You'll be expected to take ownership of technical areas, make sound tradeoffs, and help raise the quality and effectiveness of the team through example and technical leadership.

QuRT OS

QuRT OS is Qualcomm's real‑time operating system optimized for the Hexagon DSP, enabling high‑performance, low‑power workloads including edge AI, 5G modem processing, and secure audio and sensor pipelines.

In the QuRT OS space, you will:

* Drive enhancements to expose the full capability of the Hexagon processor architecture

* Design and implement new RTOS features with attention to correctness, performance, and long‑term maintainability

* Own features end‑to‑end: requirements analysis, design, implementation, testing, documentation, integration, and support

* Contribute to improving CI, automation, and test infrastructure to scale development and validation

Zephyr RTOS

The team is also responsible for deploying Zephyr RTOS across multiple Qualcomm SoC subsystems. We specialize in maintaining a single, scalable Zephyr codebase that supports multiple architectures and subsystems with differing requirements.

In the Zephyr space, you will:

* Design and implement subsystem customizations and new features

* Drive RTOS bring‑up on new chips and subsystems

* Contribute upstream to the Zephyr open‑source community

* Influence internal practices to align with upstream‑friendly workflows and quality standards

* Help shape CI, testing, and validation approaches used across products

How You Work (Tools, Automation & Modern Engineering)

Staff Engineers at Qualcomm are expected to be force multipliers, not just individual contributors.

In practice, this means:

* Thoughtfully applying modern development tools, including AI‑assisted tools, where they meaningfully improve productivity, code quality, or comprehension

* Leveraging non‑AI tools-automation, scripting, CI, debuggers, profilers, and simulation-to reduce friction and improve signal

* Exercising strong engineering judgment about when to use automation and when deeper hands‑on investigation is required

* Identifying opportunities to improve how the team works, not just what gets built

You are not expected to be an AI expert, but you are expected to be tool‑fluent, curious, and pragmatic.

Required Qualifications

* Bachelor's or Master's degree in Computer Engineering, Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or a related field

* Strong hands‑on experience with RTOS concepts and low‑level system software

* Professional experience developing embedded software in C/C++ (assembly experience a plus)

* Solid understanding of RTOS fundamentals such as scheduling, interrupts, synchronization, and memory management

* Experience debugging complex system issues using logs, traces, crash dumps, and/or hardware debuggers

* Ability to work effectively across teams and communicate…