Director, Software Engineering - Semiconductor Inspection

Details

NVIDIA seeks a Director of Software Engineering to build and lead a team of researchers, engineers, and data scientists focused on AI and machine learning solutions for semiconductor manufacturing and inspection. The role is based in Santa Clara, CA and drives development of production-grade platforms in inspection, anomaly detection, metrology and yield-improvement workflows.

Responsibilities

• Define the vision and architecture for AI-powered semiconductor inspection systems spanning optical, e-beam, wafer and mask inspection, metrology, and defect review — translating research into scalable, production-grade platforms.
• Own strategy for agentic inspection solutions in air-gapped fab environments, covering data triage, model inference, review assistance, root-cause analysis, human-in-the-loop approval, and secure deployment.
• Drive integration and evolution of inspection workflows across defect detection, classification, localization, segmentation, nuisance filtering, ADC, and ADR pipelines.
• Set standards for taking research into customer-ready products, including evaluation, failure analysis, monitoring, and production deployment paths.
• Lead development of "AI copilots" for semiconductor inspection using NVIDIA's NIMs and Blueprints.
• Collaborate with robotics teams to build and validate autonomous systems prior to deployment.
• Own the engineering roadmap for "AI for Semiconductor Inspection and Manufacturing" solutions and align technical directions with business outcomes.
• Represent NVIDIA in strategic customer engagements and work cross-functionally across regions and with major tool vendors to deploy solutions in production fabs.

Requirements

• MS or PhD in VLSI Engineering, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a related field (or equivalent experience).
• 15+ years of validated experience in semiconductor manufacturing involving building and developing tools and processes.
• 5+ years of experience leading and managing planning, staffing, budgeting, expense prioritization, and implementing changes to methods.
• Experience collaborating with multiple departments to address common automation challenges.
• Knowledge of vision and signal-based measurement methods and metrology data workflows.
• Track record developing algorithms for predictive analytics and machine learning with demonstrated improvement outcomes.
• Demonstrated interest in novel ML/AI methodologies and agentic pipelines in manufacturing processes.
• Strong communication skills and attention to detail.

Compensation

• Base salary range: 320,000 USD - 488,750 USD (final base will be determined based on location, experience, and pay of employees in similar positions).
• You will also be eligible for equity and benefits.

Additional Information

• Applications for this job will be accepted at least until July 13, 2026.
• This posting is for an existing vacancy.
• NVIDIA uses AI tools in its recruiting processes.
• NVIDIA is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to fostering an inclusive work environment.