Director, Cyber Defense Engineering

Details

Today, we’re tapping into the unlimited potential of AI to define the next era of computing. An era in which GPUs act as the brains of computers, robots, and self-driving cars that can understand the world. NVIDIA is seeking an experienced security engineering leader to define, validate, and implement secure product engineering and delivery practices across multiple internal teams. The role focuses on mitigating risk, threats, and vulnerabilities in NVIDIA’s machine learning, graphics, compute, and associated online and container-deployed services, with an emphasis on AI-enhanced SOC capabilities.

Responsibilities

• Lead the development and deployment of an AI-enhanced SOC with autonomous detection, response, and remediation capabilities.
• Define architecture for SOC engineering functions, integrating AI copilots, SOAR workflows, and agent-based detection logic.
• Supervise lifecycle of SOC toolsets (SIEM, SOAR, EDR, XDR, cloud-native security services, TIP).
• Optimize tool integration, coverage, and cost-effectiveness across enterprise and cloud environments.
• Lead the detection engineering program to develop, test, and maintain high-fidelity detection logic aligned to MITRE ATT&CK.
• Build a threat engineering function to simulate adversary behavior, validate controls, and stress-test detection pipelines.
• Facilitate creation of automation pipelines to reduce mean time to detect (MTTD) and mean time to respond (MTTR).
• Incorporate analytics for anomaly detection, incident triage, and contextual enrichment.
• Build and mentor a cross-functional team of detection engineers, threat engineers, automation specialists, and tool engineers.
• Collaborate closely with SOC Operations, Threat Intelligence, and Cloud Security teams to ensure coverage of top threats.

Requirements

• MS degree or equivalent experience; Ph.D. or equivalent experience in CS, EE, or a related technical field is acceptable/preferred.
• 15+ years overall proven experience in cybersecurity with at least 6+ years in a leadership/manager role.
• Proven track record in SOC engineering, detection engineering, or automation/security tool management.
• Experience building or running SOC environments that incorporate AI/ML is strongly favored.
• Proven understanding and hands-on familiarity with SIEM, SOAR, EDR/XDR, and cloud-based security solutions such as AWS GuardDuty, GCP Security Command Center, and Azure Sentinel.
• Hands-on experience with detection logic, rule tuning, and correlation pipelines.
• Familiarity with adversary simulation (red/purple team), MITRE ATT&CK, and MITRE D3FEND.
• Proficiency with automation and scripting (Python, PowerShell, Terraform, etc.).
• Understanding of agent-based AI models and their application in cybersecurity.
• Ability to build, mentor, and lead highly technical teams and to communicate effectively with engineers and executives.

Preferred / Ways to Stand Out

• Understanding of GPU architectures and associated programming techniques.
• Application development skills in C, C++, Java, and Python.
• Experience leading enterprise-scale AI, automation, and threat detection initiatives.

Benefits and Additional Information

• Base salary range: 216,000 USD - 345,000 USD (determined by location, experience, and internal pay equity).
• Eligible for equity and company benefits (see NVIDIA benefits for details).
• Applications accepted at least until October 11, 2025.
• NVIDIA is an equal opportunity employer committed to fostering a diverse work environment and does not discriminate on the basis of protected characteristics.