Principal AI Network Technical Lead

Job ID: 200054220Posted: 2026-09-09Location: 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: Hardware EngineeringCompany: MicrosoftOverviewMicrosoft Silicon, Cloud Hardware, and 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, Teams, 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 engineers to help achieve that mission. As Microsoft's cloud business continues to grow the ability to deploy new offerings and hardware infrastructure on time, in high volume with high quality and lowest cost is of paramount importance. To achieve this goal, the Cloud Hardware Systems Engineering (CHSE) team is instrumental in defining and delivering operational measures of success for hardware manufacturing, improving the planning process, quality, delivery, scale and sustainability related to Microsoft cloud hardware. We are looking for engineers with a dedicated passion for customer focused solutions, insight and industry knowledge to envision and implement future technical solutions that will manage and optimize the Cloud infrastructure. We are looking for a Principal AI Network Technical Lead to join the team. #SCHIE ResponsibilitiesOwn end-to-end development, validation, deployment, and sustaining of Microsoft's AI scale-up switch platforms. Drive network switch requirements, specifications, and technical decisions based on AI workload and system requirements. Lead switch vendor selection, RFIs/RFQs/RFPs, technical evaluations, and supplier engagement strategy. Own switch hardware development including ASICs, SerDes, retimers, connectors, SI/PI, mechanical, thermal, and power design. Drive development of next-generation optical scale-up solutions including OCI, XPO, CPO, fiber management, and optical interconnect technologies. Partner with software teams on SONiC, control plane, telemetry, diagnostics, fleet management, and operational readiness. Lead switch bring-up, validation, DVT/PVT, system integration, qualification, and production readiness activities. Own integration of scale-up switches into compute racks, switch racks, pods, and AI clusters. Drive ODM/JDM development models and manage technical engagement with switch vendors, ODMs, and ecosystem partners. Lead cross-functional teams spanning networking, systems, silicon, optics, firmware, software, operations, and manufacturing. Drive system-level optimization across performance, reliability, serviceability, manufacturability, power, cost, and time-to-market. Serve as the technical lead for Microsoft's next-generation AI scale-up switch solutions and networking platforms.QualificationsRequired Qualifications: Master's Degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or related field AND 7+ years technical engineering experienceOR Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or related field AND 8+ years technical engineering experienceOR equivalent experience.Other Requirements: Ability to meet Microsoft, customer, and/or government security screening requirements is required for this role. These requirements include, but are not limited to, the following specialized security screening: Microsoft Cloud Background Check. This position is required to pass the Microsoft Cloud Background Check upon hire or transfer and every two years thereafter. This role will require access to information that is controlled for export under export control regulations, potentially under the U.S. International Traffic in Arms Regulations or Export Administration Regulations, the EU Dual Use Regulation, and/or other export control regulations.  As a condition of employment, the successful candidate will be required to provide either proof of their country of citizenship or proof of their U.S. permanent residency or other protected status (e.g., under 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3)) for assessment of eligibility to access the export-controlled information. To meet this legal requirement, and as a condition of employment, the successful candidate’s citizenship will be verified with a valid passport. Lawful permanent residents, refugees, and asylees may verify status using other documents, where applicable. Preferred Qualifications: 10+ years of experience in networking, AI infrastructure, or large-scale system architecture. 10+ years of relevant experience in system (compute, storage, networking, and/or accelerator) level design and/or implementation across the hardware development lifecycle. 10+ years of hands-on experience in server hardware architecture, design, and development with solid understanding of hardware, firmware, and Operating System (OS). Proven experience delivering AI and GPU-based systems to production. Experience developing high-performance network switches, AI fabrics, or hyperscale networking solutions. Deep understanding of scale-up and scale-out networks, Ethernet switching, RDMA/RoCE, and SONiC. Knowledge of switch ASICs, 112G/224G SerDes, PAM4, retimers, PHYs, and high-speed interconnects. Experience with optical networking technologies such as OCI, XPO, CPO, OBO, and DR optics. Experience leading hardware development from architecture through validation and production. Familiarity with rack-scale systems, power, thermal, reliability, and serviceability design. Experience working with ODM/JDM partners and external suppliers. Proven ability to lead cross-functional teams across hardware, firmware, software, and systems engineering. BS / MS in Electrical/Computer Engineering or equivalent industry experience.Hardware 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.