Principal Engineer, Embedded Systems

Principal Engineer, Embedded Systems

Location: San Diego, CA

Job Type: Full-Time

Pay Range: $260 -$275

About Us

We are a venture-backed, stealth-stage biotechnology company based in San Diego, focused on developing novel technologies that will redefine how disease is detected, characterized, and managed with a novel approach to clinical genomics. Our mission is to fundamentally transform healthcare through a convergence of innovation across multiple scientific disciplines.

Founded by industry veterans with decades of experience in life sciences tools and diagnostics, our leadership team brings a proven track record of translating scientific insight into successful commercial products. Our investors include some of the most respected names in healthcare and deep tech.

Position Overview

We are looking for a Principal Embedded Systems Engineer to take technical ownership of our embedded platform from early prototypes through production. This is a hands-on, high-impact individual contributor role, not a people-management position. You will set technical direction, solve the hardest system-level problems, and spend significant time in the lab bringing up hardware, debugging signals, and integrating real systems. You will work with high-performance real-time microcontrollers (Arm Cortex based), operating at the intersection of firmware, electronics, and system architecture.

Key Responsibilities

Technical Leadership & Architecture

• Own the embedded system architecture across firmware and hardware boundaries

• Define platform-level approaches for MCU selection, peripheral usage, and

  communication topology

• Establish standards for firmware structure, BSPs, drivers, and hardware

  abstraction

• Act as the escalation point for complex bring-up and system-level failures

• Influence electrical and mechanical design decisions to ensure robust embedded

  integration

MCU Bring-Up & Low-Level Firmware

• Lead first-power-on and first-silicon bring-up of new hardware

• Configure clocks, memory, boot modes, power domains, and pin multiplexing

• Design and review low-level firmware, including BSPs and peripheral drivers

• Architect and debug communication interfaces:

  • SPI, I²C, UART

  • CAN / CAN-FD

  • Ethernet (as applicable)

  • PWM, GPIO, ADC/DAC

•  Architect, configure, and debug:

  • Quadrature encoder / decoder interfaces

  • Pulse train generators, timers, capture/compare subsystems, TTL signaling

System Integration & Advanced Debugging

• Lead integration of distributed embedded systems with many nodes

• Debug complex hardware/firmware interactions involving timing, noise, and

  signal integrity

• Use oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, and signal generators to diagnose system-level

  issues

• Develop bring-up plans, validation strategies, and debug tooling

• Define observability and test hooks for long-term maintainability

Electrical Engineering & Hardware Enablement

• Perform hands-on electrical debugging and board-level troubleshooting

• Review schematics and PCB layouts with a firmware- and testability-first mindset

• Identify power, grounding, clocking, and signal integrity risks early

• Solder, rework, and modify prototypes as needed

• Design simple custom PCBs and breakout boards

• Wire and adapt MCU evaluation kits to custom system hardware

• Support rapid iteration cycles typical of an early-stage startup

Qualifications

Education:

 BS/MS in Computer Science or Engineering

Required:

Experience & Technical Skills

• 10+ years of embedded systems experience or equivalent demonstrated depth

• Proven ownership of MCU bring-up on new or custom hardware

• Expert-level embedded C/C++ skills · Deep experience with real-time or high-

  performance MCUs (NXP, Infineon, STM32 ecosystems)

• Strong understanding of:

  • Digital and analog electronics

  • Clocking, timing, DMA, and interrupt systems

  • Encoder interfaces and precision timing subsystems

• Exceptional ability to reason from datasheets, schematics, and signals on the wire

Lab & Hardware Skills

• Expert-level comfort with oscilloscopes and logic analyzers

• Experience debugging noisy, high-speed, or timing-critical signals

• Comfortable soldering and performing board-level rework

• Ability to independently wire, modify, and debug complex prototypes

• Working knowledge of PCB design tools (KiCad, Altium, Eagle) and layout

  tradeoffs

Preferred:

• Experience architecting multi-controller or distributed embedded systems

• Background in robotics, industrial automation, or precision instrumentation

• RTOS experience (FreeRTOS, Zephyr, etc.)

• Experience taking hardware from prototype through manufacturing

• Familiarity with EMC/ESD and field reliability issues

Why Join Us

• Work in a dynamic, collaborative environment where innovation and scientific rigor are

  deeply valued.

• Join a seasoned and multidisciplinary team tackling high-impact problems at the

  intersection of science and engineering.

• Competitive compensation and equity package, comprehensive benefits, and flexibility to support work-life integration.

We are an equal opportunity employer. We thrive on diversity and collaboration.