Astera Labs is at the epicenter of the AI infrastructure revolution, building the intelligent connectivity solutions that power the world's most advanced data centers. As AI workloads scale to unprecedented levels, the demand for purpose-built, rack-scale platforms that seamlessly integrate high-speed connectivity, firmware intelligence, and composable architectures has never been greater — and neither has the opportunity to shape what comes next.

The AI Platform Solutions Group is seeking a Sr. Principal Systems/Rack SW Architect  to serve as the technical visionary for next-generation AI infrastructure, spanning server firmware, high-speed connectivity, and rack-scale system design. In this role, you will define the end-to-end architecture for AI platforms that integrate cutting-edge technologies such as PCIe Gen5/6, UAlink, CXL, composable rack architectures, and advanced interconnect solutions including Astera Labs' portfolio of retimers, switches, and fabric controllers. 

This is a high-impact, high-visibility role where you will drive innovation across silicon integration, platform firmware, system performance, and rack-level orchestration — directly enabling hyperscale AI training and inference workloads. You will partner with silicon vendors, hyperscalers, OEMs, and ODMs while influencing industry standards and mentoring the next generation of platform architects. If you want to architect the future of AI infrastructure at a company that is defining the connectivity backbone of modern data centers, this is your role. 

ASTERA LABS has been transforming computer graphics, PC gaming, and accelerated computing for more than 25 years. It’s a unique legacy of innovation that’s fueled by great technology—and amazing people. Today, we’re tapping into the unlimited potential of AI to define the next era of computing. An era in which our GPU acts as the brains of computers, robots, and self-driving cars that can understand the world. Doing what’s never been done before takes vision, innovation, and the world’s best talent. As an ASTERA LABSN, you’ll be immersed in a diverse, supportive environment where everyone is inspired to do their best work. 

ASTERA LABS has a rapidly expanding ecosystem of data center platform & node designs. From single node HGX/DGX systems all the way up to large multi-node NVLink domain rack architectures. These designs have become core to ASTERA LABS's rapidly growing enterprise and cloud provider businesses. Each bringing together the full power of ASTERA LABS GPUs, ASTERA LABS NVLink, ASTERA LABS InfiniBand networking, ASTERA LABS Grace CPUs, and a fully optimized ASTERA LABS AI and HPC software stack. We're searching for a highly motivated, technical leader to drive the engineering roadmap and innovation for our rack system software architecture. From firmware, kernel drivers, operating systems, networking, fabrics and associated user mode drivers + manageability software. You will work with component leads internally and engage with industry leading hyperscalar / cloud service providers on taking these products to market. 

Key Responsibilities 

• AI Platform & Rack-Scale Architecture 

• Define the end-to-end architecture for AI platforms, from node-level design to rack-scale composable systems 

• Drive adoption of PCIe / UAlink -based fabrics for disaggregated compute, memory, and accelerator scalability 

• Architect solutions for GPU/accelerator-dense systems optimized for AI training and inference workloads 

• Lead integration of connectivity solutions — retimers, switches, and fabric controllers — aligned with Astera Labs' product ecosystem

System Architecture & Platform Leadership 

• Lead system architecture and design for high- performance compute platforms optimized for AI and accelerator-driven workloads  

• Design and integrate PCIe-based subsystems including GPU, accelerator, and high-speed I/O components leveraging PCIe Gen5/6 technologies  

• Define and implement GPU-enabled server platforms for AI training, inference, and HPC workloads  

• Architect and optimize high-speed Ethernet networking interfaces (25G/100G/400G+) within platform designs  

• Define the technical vision and multi-year Product roadmap for AI infrastructure platforms 
• Drive the software end-to-end architecture for ASTERA LABS's rack-scale products 

• Maintain deep understanding of the product portfolio and roadmap; translate forward-looking plans into clear, formal software requirements that anchor execution across the organization. 

• Ensure high quality & reliable software; serving as a trusted architectural partner to teams requiring guidance or oversight. 

• Work directly with major customers to understand their requirements and work to align their roadmap with ASTERA LABS’s roadmap. 

• Work with business partners and vendors to shape their products to meet ASTERA LABS’s needs. 

• Develop a roadmap of new technologies and protocols; drive their design and adoption. 

• Mentor architects and engineering teams to grow them into future leaders. 

• Make key technical decisions even when faced with ambiguity 

Platform Management & Cross-Functional Leadership  

• Define and implement platform management solutions including BMC integration, telemetry, health monitoring, and system-level diagnostics  

• Collaborate with cross-functional teams spanning hardware, firmware, BIOS, and OS to ensure seamless platform integration  

• Partner with silicon vendors, OEMs, and hyperscalers on custom platform development aligned with Astera Labs' connectivity ecosystem  

• Drive performance optimization across PCIe topology, accelerator interconnects, and memory subsystems  

• Own end-to-end AI platform performance strategy including PCIe topology optimization, bandwidth scaling, latency reduction, and CPU performance tuning for AI orchestration workloads 

• Lead performance tuning for multi-accelerator systems (GPU/ASIC/FPGA), high-throughput data pipelines, and distributed AI workloads

Ecosystem & Industry Leadership 

• Collaborate with silicon vendors (CPU, GPU, AI accelerators), connectivity ecosystem partners, OEMs, ODMs, and hyperscalers 

• Influence industry standards across OpenBMC, Redfish, OCP, and related consortia 

• Mentor senior engineers and grow deep technical bench strength across the organization 

• Represent Astera Labs as a recognized thought leader in AI infrastructure and platform innovation 

Basic Qualifications 

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

• 20+ years of experience in system architecture, server firmware, or platform engineering 

• Deep experience in designing architecture for scalable and performant server systems, particularly at the SW/HW interface. 

• Strong understanding of networking technology & protocols (e.g. Ethernet, Infiniband) 

• Previous experience working with complex system software for accelerators such as GPUs, DPUs, or FPGAs 

• Expertise in out-of-band and in-band management architectures. 

• Knowledge of system management protocols such as Redfish and IPMI. 

• Experience working with platform security experts to define tradeoffs between security and ease of use. 

• Demonstrable experience in implementing left shift strategy to de-risk program execution. Excellent written and verbal communication skills. 

• Deep expertise in server BIOS/UEFI, OpenBMC and BMC firmware stacks, and Redfish or datacenter management frameworks 

• Strong knowledge of PCIe architecture and performance optimization (Gen4/5/6) 

• Experience with CPU, memory, and system-level performance tuning for high-performance computing or AI platforms 

• Strong programming experience in C/C++ and low-level system software 

• Proven track record of leading cross-functional, large-scale architecture initiatives 

Preferred Qualifications 

• Master's degree or PhD in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or a related field 

• Experience with rack-scale composable infrastructure and disaggregated architectures 

• Background in AI training clusters, accelerator-based systems, or hyperscale datacenter design 

• Expertise in high-speed interconnect solutions such as retimers, switches, and fabric ICs 

• Experience with platform lifecycle management systems and fleet-level automation 

• Contributions to industry standards bodies or open-source firmware ecosystems 

• Demonstrated ability to define multi-year technical roadmaps and influence executive strategy