ASIC Design Engineer Jobs in Santa Clara, CA
Few places pack more semiconductor employers into a few square miles than Santa Clara. NVIDIA's headquarters, Intel's data center group, and Marvell's main design center all sit here, next to AI chip startups like Cerebras and Groq.
ASIC work in Santa Clara clusters around a handful of segments: GPU and AI accelerator design at NVIDIA, high-speed networking and storage ASICs at Marvell and Broadcom, and custom IP and chiplet work at the startups. RTL, physical design, and verification roles all show up in volume.
Most postings want a BS or MS in EE or CE, solid RTL skills, and hands-on time with the EDA flow. Day to day you might write and lint SystemVerilog, close timing in Synopsys ICC2 or Cadence Innovus, or build UVM testbenches and drive coverage in Synopsys VCS. Larger teams at NVIDIA and Intel offer structured ladders and deep tool support. Startup roles trade that for broader ownership and a faster path to leading a block.
NVIDIA runs GPU and data center silicon from its Santa Clara campus. Intel staffs its data center and foundry groups nearby. Marvell designs networking and storage controllers, and Alphawave keeps a US office in the city for SerDes and connectivity IP. See the wider roster of companies hiring for chip design for the rest.
Compensation tracks the rest of the Bay Area. New graduates commonly start near $130K–$160K base, and staff and principal ASIC engineers reach $250K–$400K in total comp once equity is included. The salary guide has the ranges by level and role.
Stanford, UC Berkeley, and San Jose State feed a steady pipeline of new graduates into the area, and local IEEE chapters and meetups make it easy to stay current. For a wider net, look at semiconductor design engineer jobs across Silicon Valley and physical design engineer jobs in San Jose.
Set up a saved search on SemiDesignJobs for Santa Clara, add a job-function filter for ASIC design, and turn on alerts so new postings reach you the day they open.
FAQ
What major semiconductor companies have offices in Santa Clara?
Santa Clara hosts NVIDIA's global headquarters, Intel's data center division, Marvell's primary design center, Alphawave's US office, and AI chip startups including Cerebras and Groq. It is one of the most semiconductor-dense cities in the world.
What types of ASIC design roles are common in Santa Clara?
Santa Clara ASIC roles lean toward GPU and AI accelerator design at NVIDIA, high-speed networking ASICs at Marvell and Broadcom, and chiplet and 3D IC work at various startups. RTL, physical design, and verification roles are all well represented.
How do I find ASIC design engineer jobs specifically in Santa Clara on SemiDesignJobs?
Use the location filter to select Santa Clara, CA, then add filters for job function (ASIC design) and experience level. Save the search with email alerts so new Santa Clara ASIC postings reach you as soon as they post.