Principal Architect, System Software - Orbital Data Center

Job Title

Principal Architect, System Software - Orbital Data Center

Role Summary

Lead the end-to-end system software architecture for NVIDIA's Space-1 orbital data center modules and successor platforms. The role covers the full stack from data-center software down through BMC/BIOS firmware, host OS, drivers, and CUDA to deliver a production-ready inference platform for low-Earth orbit (LEO) operation.

The architect will partner with hardware system architects, platform and mechanical engineering, and constellation customers to align software architecture with mission requirements for long-duration, remote, and radiation-exposed environments.

Experience Level

Senior-level. The role expects 15+ years of relevant experience in server/platform system software and large-scale or mission-critical platform delivery.

Responsibilities

Own and design the integrated system software stack and operational behaviors required for autonomous orbital data center modules.

• Own system architecture for inference and other workloads; design for resilience to faults encountered in space.
• Co-architect interfaces and partitioning across silicon, board, firmware, OS, and AI workload layers for multi-year LEO missions.
• Own the integrated stack: data center software, BMC firmware, BIOS, host OS, GPU/CPU drivers, CUDA, DCGM, and telemetry.
• Define manageability for unreachable systems: remote bring-up, in-orbit firmware updates, dual-module redundancy, fault containment, and recovery strategies.
• Architect rad-tolerant behaviors: ECC handling, memory scrubbing, latch-up mitigation, deterministic recovery, and graceful degradation through high thermal cycling.
• Drive adoption of management protocols (Redfish, MCTP, PLDM) across BMC, BIOS, and host software for fleet operations.
• Define BMC feature set, boot architecture, pin budget, and redundancy strategy with platform and mechanical teams.
• Translate customer mission requirements (orbit, duty cycle, security, networking, SLAs) into platform software architecture with constellation partners.
• Lead reliability and performance optimization, and support fast iteration from silicon bring-up through first launch.
• Own quality, reliability, and telemetry delivered with each orbital data center module.

Requirements

Must-have qualifications and core technical skills required to perform the role.

• Extensive experience in server/platform system software across compute libraries, BMC firmware, BIOS, host OS, drivers, and manageability.
• Proven track record delivering platform software for large data centers or mission-critical embedded systems, preferably with production AI infrastructure involvement.
• Deep knowledge of server architecture, manageability workflows, telemetry, and fault management at scale.
• Practical experience with hardware management interfaces (USB, SMBus/I2C, PCIe) and management protocols (Redfish, MCTP, PLDM).
• Strong programming skills in C/C++ and Python; experience debugging platform bring-up and pre-silicon environments.
• Familiarity with SCM tools (Git, Perforce) and project management tools such as Jira.
• Excellent written and verbal communication, demonstrable technical leadership, and ability to drive cross-functional teams.
• Self-starter comfortable with hands-on coding and resolving issues across firmware, OS, driver, and AI stack layers.

Nice-to-have:

• Experience with platform software for space, aerospace, defense, or radiation/thermal-constrained environments (SEU/SEFI mitigation, ECC strategy, TID/SEE qualification).
• Hands-on experience with autonomous or unreachable data center operations, in-orbit firmware update strategies, and dual-module redundancy.
• Experience with NVIDIA AI software stack (CUDA, DCGM, GPU drivers), x86 or ARM server architecture, and aerospace/security standards (VPX, MIL-STD, NSA PHIPs).
• Proven leadership of large complex programs spanning firmware, OS, driver, and AI teams and experience reviewing hardware schematics/PCB layouts.

Education Requirements

BS, MS, or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, or a related technical field — or equivalent practical experience.

Compensation: Base salary range: 272,000 USD - 431,250 USD (base pay varies by location and experience). Eligible for equity and benefits.

Applications accepted through August 18, 2026. This posting is for an existing vacancy.

About the Company

Company: NVIDIA

Headquarters: Santa Clara, California, USA

NVIDIA is a global leader in accelerated computing, renowned for its innovative solutions in AI and digital twins that transform diverse industries. The company specializes in networking technologies, providing end-to-end InfiniBand and Ethernet solutions for servers and storage that optimize performance and scalability. NVIDIA serves sectors such as high-performance computing, enterprise data centers, and cloud computing, constantly reinventing its products and services to stay ahead in the market.