VP Hardware Engineering

• Define the architectural vision for a data-center-class AI inference accelerator and translate it into a scalable ASIC implementation.
• Chart the course from proof-of-concept FPGAs toward a commercially manufactured AI accelerator ASIC within aggressive time-to-market goals.
• Own the full silicon lifecycle: RTL design, verification, physical design, tape-out, and post-silicon validation.
• Build, mentor, and inspire a high-performance hardware engineering organization, spanning digital design, verification, physical implementation, packaging, and systems.
• Partner closely with applied-AI and software teams on hardware-software co-design that maximizes tokens-per-second and minimizes latency for LLM workloads.
• Establish relationships with foundries, EDA vendors, and manufacturing partners; drive technical diligence and risk reduction.
• Represent hardware engineering in executive planning, customer briefings, and investor discussions.

What Success Looks Like

• First-silicon win - Tape-out of the company’s inaugural inference ASIC on schedule and on budget, meeting PPA targets.
• Team built - A cohesive, mission-driven silicon organization with clear ownership, processes, and recruiting pipeline.
• Customer impact - Demonstrated order-of-magnitude throughput improvements for early design-partner deployments.
• Strategic voice - Tangible influence on company strategy, product roadmap, and go-to-market positioning.

• 10+ years designing high-performance custom silicon for compute-intensive workloads; at least one successful tape-out in a leadership role.
• Mastery of SoC/ASIC architecture, RTL (SystemVerilog/VHDL), verification methodology, physical design, and DFT.
• Deep familiarity with memory hierarchies, high-bandwidth interconnects (PCIe, CXL, or similar), and accelerator-class power-performance trade-offs.
• Prior experience converting FPGA prototypes into production silicon is highly valued.
• Proven ability to recruit, develop, and lead multidisciplinary engineering teams in fast-moving startup or new-business environments.
• Excellent communication and executive-level storytelling skills; comfortable presenting complex trade-offs to non-technical stakeholders.

• Competitive base salary, commensurate with experience and impact expectations.
• Equity: Founder-level grant with significant upside tied to first-silicon and market-adoption milestones.
• Comprehensive health, dental, vision, and life benefits.
• Unlimited PTO, flexible remote work, and quarterly on-site team summits.
• Sponsored attendance at top industry conferences and access to best-in-class EDA tooling.