---
title: 'Director - Silicon Validation at Ambiq Micro, Inc.'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/director-silicon-validation-ambiq-micro-inc-austin-texas-6nnawpjsktws'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-12'
---

# Director - Silicon Validation at Ambiq Micro, Inc.

- **Company:** Ambiq Micro, Inc.
- **Location:** Austin Texas, United States
- **Posted:** 2026-07-01
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-12
- **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/ambiqmicroinc/jobs/4303993009

## Job description

Company Overview

Ambiq is on a mission to enable intelligence everywhere — powering the AI edge revolution with the world's lowest-power semiconductor solutions.

Built on our proprietary sub- and near-threshold technology, our chips deliver multi-fold improvements in energy efficiency without costly process scaling. Since 2010, we've shipped over 300 million units to customers building smarter wearables, medical devices, IoT products, and AI-powered edge applications.

Our cross-functional teams span design, research, development, production, marketing, sales, and operations across Austin, Hsinchu, Shanghai, Shenzhen, and Singapore. We move fast, tackle hard problems, and create space for people to grow through complex, meaningful work that shapes the future of technology.

We're looking for self-motivated, creative problem-solvers who are eager to push technological limits and make a real impact in energy efficiency.

At Ambiq, we live by five values: Innovate. Collaborate. Focus. Learn. Achieve.

If that's you, join us — the intelligence everywhere revolution starts here.

This role will be on-site 5 days a week in NW Austin.

Position Summary

The Director, Silicon Validation Engineering is a senior technical leadership role responsible for defining and executing Ambiq's post-silicon validation strategy across multiple generations of SoCs and edge AI products.

Reporting directly to the Engineering Fellow, this leader will provide strategic and organizational leadership for silicon validation, characterization, bring-up, debug, and validation methodology across multiple product families. The role serves as a key technical partner to architecture, design, verification, firmware, systems, product engineering, and executive engineering leadership to ensure first-pass silicon success and rapid product commercialization.

In addition to leading day-to-day execution, this individual will establish the long-term vision for Ambiq's validation organization by developing scalable validation methodologies, expanding automation infrastructure, building globally distributed engineering teams, and driving engineering excellence across the company.

Key Responsibilities

- Lead Ambiq's silicon validation organization across multiple SoC and edge AI product families.
- Define validation strategy, methodologies, automation, and engineering best practices.
- Drive post-silicon bring-up, validation, characterization, debug, and production test correlation.
- Build, mentor, and lead a high-performing global validation team across engineering sites.
- Partner with Architecture, Design, Verification, Firmware, Systems, Product Engineering, and Applications teams to ensure successful product execution.
- Establish scalable validation infrastructure, automation frameworks, and lab capabilities that improve engineering productivity and product quality.
- Manage project priorities, staffing, schedules, and technical risk across multiple concurrent development programs.
- Provide technical leadership for complex silicon debug and customer issue resolution.
- Influence engineering direction across multiple product families while fostering a culture of innovation, collaboration, and continuous improvement.

Required Qualifications

- BS or MS in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or related field.
- 15+ years of semiconductor engineering experience, including post-silicon validation, characterization, or silicon bring-up.
- 5+ years leading engineering teams, including hiring, mentoring, and organizational development.
- Demonstrated success validating complex mixed-signal SoCs and bringing products from first silicon to production.
- Strong understanding of digital, analog, embedded software, and power management systems.
- Experience developing validation automation using Python, TCL, C/C++, or similar languages.
- Hands-on experience with lab instrumentation, silicon debug, and characterization.
- Proven ability to lead cross-functional teams and drive execution across globally distributed engineering organization.
- Experience with ultra-low-power SoCs, edge AI devices, and ARM core architectures.
- Experience with advanced power management architectures, low-power design techniques, dynamic voltage/frequency scaling, and power optimization.
- Experience supporting wireless SoCs including Bluetooth LE, Matter, Thread, Wi-Fi, or similar technologies.
- Experience developing validation methodologies, workflows, and reusable automation frameworks.
- Experience with statistical characterization and production data analytics.
- Experience supporting customer escalations, silicon debug, and RMAs.
- Strong analytical, communication, and organizational leadership skills.

Must be currently authorized to work in the United States for any employer.

## About Ambiq Micro, Inc.

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Ambiq develops ultra-low-power semiconductor platforms and system-on-chip (SoC) solutions that enable edge AI on battery-powered devices.
- **Entity Type**: Public (NYSE: $AMBQ, as of July 30, 2025)
- **Headquarters**: Austin, Texas, USA (with offices in Hsinchu, Shenzhen, Shanghai, and Singapore)
- **Founded**: 2010
- **Founders**: Dr. Scott Hanson (current CTO)

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: Semiconductor / Ultra-Low-Power Integrated Circuits / Edge AI Hardware
- **Target customers**: B2B — OEMs and device manufacturers building wearables, smart glasses, smart home devices, healthcare monitors, industrial sensors, and IoT products
- **Mission statement**: To enable intelligence (AI and beyond) everywhere by delivering the lowest-power semiconductor solutions on the planet.

## Products & Services
- **SPOT® Platform**: Proprietary, patented Subthreshold Power Optimized Technology that operates below 1V, delivering a quadratic improvement in energy efficiency vs. traditional designs. This is the core differentiator enabling complex AI at the edge.
- **Apollo SoC Family**: System-on-Chip solutions now in their 5th generation. Flagship products include Apollo510, Apollo510B, ApolloD Lite, and Apollo330M Plus. Designed for wearables, smart glasses, smart home, healthcare, and industrial use.
- **Atomiq SoC Family**: Additional SoC offerings for edge AI applications.
- **Real-Time Clock (RTC) Products**: Standalone ultra-low-power timing solutions.
- **Developer Tools**: Evaluation boards, display kits, debugger tools, and accompanying software/AI developer solutions.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: $1 billion valuation (pre-IPO); Market cap post-IPO not publicly disclosed in available sources.
- **Key Metric**: Total funding of over $700 million raised prior to IPO; 290 million devices sold as of early 2026.
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Raised over $700M in capital; led by CEO Fumihide Esaka who previously led Transphorm and NIEC. Specific institutional investors not detailed in available materials.
- **Growth Signals**: Went public on NYSE in July 2025; sold 290M devices (up from 270M at the start of 2025); won Embedded World Best in Show and AI Excellence Awards in 2025; IoT Semiconductor Company of the Year (3rd time).

## Competitive Advantages
- **SPOT® Technology Moat**: Proprietary subthreshold operation below 1V provides a fundamental physics-based power advantage that competitors cannot easily replicate — a 10x power reduction vs. competing MCU solutions.
- **Massive Installed Base**: 290 million devices shipped creates strong switching costs and ecosystem lock-in for customers.
- **Edge AI Leadership**: Enables always-on AI inference on battery-powered devices where thermal and power constraints make traditional chips unusable.
- **Patented Platform**: Extensive patent portfolio protecting the SPOT technology.

## Strategic Focus
- **Edge AI Expansion**: Continuing to push larger and more complex AI models onto battery-powered edge devices.
- **Market Diversification**: Growing beyond wearables into smart glasses, healthcare, smart home, and industrial IoT.
- **Public Company Growth**: Leveraging IPO capital (July 2025) to scale R&D, sales, and global operations.
- **Fifth-Generation SoCs**: Rolling out Apollo5 series with enhanced AI capabilities and broader customer adoption.

## Why Work Here
- **Cutting-Edge Technology**: Work on the frontier of ultra-low-power semiconductor design and edge AI — a niche with massive growth potential.
- **Collaborative Culture**: Company values emphasize innovation, collaboration, focus, learning, and achievement. Diverse, global team across Austin, Hsinchu, Shenzhen, Shanghai, and Singapore.
- **Growth & Learning**: Mentorship programs, continuous learning opportunities, and clear career development paths. Strong emphasis on hiring for a "learning mindset."
- **Benefits**: Medical, dental, vision, identity protection, 401K, and paid time off (varies by region).
- **Work Environment**: Mix of on-site and remote roles (e.g., Field Application Engineer roles list "Remote Employee" for Central and West Coast US). 33 open positions as of mid-2026 across hardware design, software, AI, embedded systems, sales, and operations.
- **Diversity & Inclusion**: Explicit commitment to creating an inclusive environment and hiring from diverse backgrounds.

## Sources
1. [ambiq.com](https://ambiq.com/)
2. [ambiq.com/about-us](https://www.ambiq.com/about-us/)
3. [ambiq.com/careers](https://ambiq.com/careers/)
4. [ir.ambiq.com](https://ir.ambiq.com/overview/default.aspx)
5. [job-boards.greenhouse.io/ambiqmicroinc](http://job-boards.greenhouse.io/ambiqmicroinc)

## Other roles at Ambiq Micro, Inc.

- [Sr. Director, SoC Architecture](https://feeny.ai/job/sr-director-soc-architecture-ambiq-micro-inc-austin-texas-sqzb3rrwke00) — Austin Texas, United States
- [Sr. Engineer - Analog Validation](https://feeny.ai/job/sr-engineer-analog-validation-ambiq-micro-inc-austin-texas-cc993gmmgtdj) — Austin Texas, United States
- [Staff Applications Software Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/staff-applications-software-engineer-ambiq-micro-inc-singapore-frtk4qhmt1k1) — Singapore
- [Staff Applications Hardware Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/staff-applications-hardware-engineer-ambiq-micro-inc-austin-texas-eaqvym6tpbb1) — Austin Texas, United States
- [Sr. Staff Engineer - Digital Design Verification](https://feeny.ai/job/sr-staff-engineer-digital-design-verification-ambiq-micro-inc-austin-texas-pebh77yajmq7) — Austin Texas, United States
- [Sr. Staff SoC Power & Performance Architect](https://feeny.ai/job/sr-staff-soc-power-performance-architect-ambiq-micro-inc-austin-texas-dwbapwmszy1j) — Austin Texas, United States
- [Sr. Staff Engineer, Product Test Engineering](https://feeny.ai/job/sr-staff-engineer-product-test-engineering-ambiq-micro-inc-hsinchu-city-bpnh1kr26mgd) — Hsinchu City, Taiwan
- [HW System/SoC Architect](https://feeny.ai/job/hw-system-soc-architect-ambiq-micro-inc-singapore-nghfwvt65bq2) — Singapore
- [Sr. Staff SoC RTL Engineer](https://feeny.ai/job/sr-staff-soc-rtl-engineer-ambiq-micro-inc-austin-texas-sc5gp5823b0f) — Austin Texas, United States
- [Staff Engineer, Product Test Engineering](https://feeny.ai/job/staff-engineer-product-test-engineering-ambiq-micro-inc-hsinchu-city-yqyxdzyppv8n) — Hsinchu City, Taiwan