Principal Firmware Validation Engineer

Job ID: 200062450Posted: 2026-10-19Location: United States, Washington, RedmondSalary: USD $142,800 - $274,800 per yearEmployment type: Full-TimeWork site: 3 days / week in-officeRole type: Individual ContributorTravel: Less than 25%Profession: Hardware EngineeringDiscipline: Firmware EngineeringCompany: MicrosoftOverviewMicrosoft Silicon and Cloud Hardware Infrastructure Engineering (SCHIE) is the team behind Microsoft’s expanding Cloud Infrastructure and responsible for powering Microsoft’s “Intelligent Cloud” mission. SCHIE delivers the core infrastructure and foundational technologies for Microsoft's over 200 online businesses including Bing, MSN, Office 365, Xbox Live, Skype, OneDrive and the Microsoft Azure platform globally with our server and data center infrastructure, security and compliance, operations, globalization, and manageability solutions. Our focus is on smart growth, high efficiency, and delivering a trusted experience to customers and partners worldwide and we are looking for passionate engineers to help achieve that mission. As Microsoft's cloud business continues to grow the ability to deploy new offerings and HW infrastructure on time, in high volume with high quality and lowest cost is of paramount importance. The Silicon and Cloud Hardware Infrastructure Engineering Firmware Development team is responsible for design and development of Server and Rack Infrastructure Firmware for Microsoft's online services. We work closely with Microsoft product groups, industry partners and researchers to architect and develop server hardware solutions that meet the requirements for our cloud services platforms at the lowest possible cost of ownership (TCO). We need to be always learning and insatiably curious. We need to be willing to lean into uncertainty, take risks and move quickly when we make mistakes, recognizing failure happens along the way to mastery. And we need to be open to the ideas of others, where the success of others does not diminish our own. Our teams are responsible for firmware development and validation of server, silicon and rack infrastructure design with a focus on innovation for Azure infrastructure for Microsoft and their customers for MAIA and Cobalt product lines. If you are an engineer with passion for building highly reliable, scalable distributed systems; If you want direct firmware and system debug experience and like to produce impact across a large number of systems; if you have a penchant to learn and utilize your broad skill set to produce an outstanding customer impact; then this opportunity is for you - Join the Azure Firmware Center of Excellence and help us envision and build technical solutions to power Azure. We are looking for a Principal Firmware Validation Engineer. This opportunity allows you to work with a team of extremely talented engineers to deliver innovation at scale and own delivery of product to Azure datacenters. #azurehwjobs   #SCHIE   #schiefwcoe  ResponsibilitiesResponsibilities:Owns coordination, validation (including validation environment), Integration, and debugging of system software/firmware comprising of different domains within AI server architecture (such as SoC FWs, Drivers, BIOS, BMC, Rack Manager etc.).Lead debug and root cause analysis of firmware, operating system, and driver-level failures across diverse pre and post silicon platforms in AI server domain.Develop and maintain debug templates, scripts, and automation pipelines for log collection, crash dump analysis, and compliance validation.Collaborate with cross-functional teams (firmware, silicon, OS, driver, platform) to triage bugs and align debug processes across forums along with ensuring to feed those learnings to long term roadmap improvements.Maintain and expand the firmware and OS debug knowledge base and wikis for onboarding and reference.Participate in daily syncs and debug forums to track high-severity issues and ensure timely resolution.Passionate about exploring and deploying noble methods to improve test coverage, release/test automation, and efficiency of our FW releases.QualificationsRequired Qualifications:Doctorate in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or related field AND 3+ years technical engineering experience OR Master's Degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or related field AND 6+ years technical engineering experience OR Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or related field AND 8+ years technical engineering experience OR equivalent experience. Other Qualifications:Ability to meet Microsoft, customer and/or government security screening requirements are required for this role. These requirements include but are not limited to the following specialized security screenings: Microsoft Cloud Background Check: This position will be required to pass the Microsoft Cloud Background Check upon hire/transfer and every two years thereafter.Preferred Qualifications:BS or MS in Computer Science/Engineering or equivalent industry experience.10+ years of professional experience in design/development, integration, validation, or system level debugging in embedded systems. Experience utilizing programing in Python or C or C++Demonstrated experience in system level debug and validation (including validation infrastructure setup) for complext embedded systems (Boards, FPGA, Emulation, Simulation etc.).Experience of system level debugging (including partner issues) with understanding of managing and triaging production level issues.Experience with PCIe, I2C, I3C, SPI, and other low-level interfaces in AI server spaceFamiliarity with silicon bring-up and validation flows.Experience of creating or working with automated testing pipeline aka CI/CD (integration + validation).Knowledge of hardware debuggers like JTAG, Oscilloscope, and Logic Analyzer etc.Knowledge of automation framework setup and deployment.Firmware Engineering IC5 - The typical base pay range for this role across the U.S. is USD $142,800 - $274,800 per year. There is a different range applicable to specific work locations, within the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, and the base pay range for this role in those locations is USD $188,000 - $304,200 per year. Certain roles may be eligible for benefits and other compensation. Find additional benefits and pay information here:This position will be open for a minimum of 5 days, with applications accepted on an ongoing basis until the position is filled.Microsoft is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, ancestry, citizenship, color, family or medical care leave, gender identity or expression, genetic information, immigration status, marital status, medical condition, national origin, physical or mental disability, political affiliation, protected veteran or military status, race, ethnicity, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, or any other characteristic protected by applicable local laws, regulations and ordinances. If you need assistance with religious accommodations and/or a reasonable accommodation due to a disability during the application process, read more about requesting accommodations.