---
title: 'Principal Silicon Photonics Layout Engineer at nEye.ai'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/principal-silicon-photonics-layout-engineer-neye-ai-santa-clara-y42n3tnzex99'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-08'
---

# Principal Silicon Photonics Layout Engineer at nEye.ai

- **Company:** nEye.ai
- **Location:** Santa Clara, CA
- **Compensation:** $220k–$290k
- **Employment:** full-time
- **Work type:** onsite
- **Posted:** 2026-02-23
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-08
- **Apply:** https://jobs.lever.co/neye-systems-inc./64a40b80-3c15-4c11-9256-5a796de6072e

## Job description

About Us:

nEye.ai, a well-funded optical switch startup, is poised to revolutionize the future of data centers. nEye’s MEMS-based silicon photonics optical circuit switches (OCS) eliminate critical bottlenecks in AI processing by enabling direct optical connections among thousands of GPUs and memory units. The company's SuperSwitch is an ultra-low power consumption, high radix, compact chip-scale design, offering hyperscale data centers enhanced performance, efficiency, and scalability.

Job Overview:

nEye is seeking a Principal Silicon Photonics Layout Engineer  to actively lead the company’s  design and tapeout of complex Photonic Integrated Circuits (PICs) using a code-based, functional layout methodology.

In this role, you will be responsible for architecting and maintaining a robust script-based library of parametric components. You will bridge the gap between optical physics and software engineering, ensuring layouts are highly reproducible and optimized for high-yield, production-scale fabrication. This position is ideal for a candidate who treats layout as a software engineering challenge and thrives in a programmatic, automation-first environment.

## Responsibilities

- Functional Library Development: Architect and maintain a robust library of Python functions to generate parametric geometries.
- Production-Scale Layout: Execute full-chip assembly for high-volume manufacturing (HVM).
- Design for Test (DFT) Automation: Develop and implement automated functions for the insertion of optical/electrical test structures[.](http://structures.Automated)
- Automated Routing: Develop scripts to automate complex optical routing and other design features via code.
- Physical Verification: Lead the DRC/LVS cleanup process using tools like Calibre or KLayout.
- Version Control & CI/CD: Utilize Git and “Layout CI” to manage the evolution of the function library and validate code changes.

Required Skills

- Production SiPh Experience: 8-12+ years of experience in high-complexity layout design with a track record of shipping Silicon Photonics designs to production. You must understand how layout decisions impact wafer-level yield and performance consistency.
- Code-Based Layout Mastery: Advanced proficiency in Python and experience with functional layout frameworks.
- Version Control Expertise: Expert mastery of Git.
- DFT Mindset: Demonstrated experience in placing and routing test structures for automated wafer-scale probing.
- Verification Tools: Expert-level debugging of DRC in the EDA ecosystem , with the ability to translate foundry rule decks into layout code constraints.
- Education: M.S. in Electrical Engineering, Physics, or Computer Science with a focus on Physical Design.
- Deep familiarity using AI tools (e.g., LLMs, copilots) to accelerate engineering workflows, debugging, and problem-solving.

## Preferred Skills

- MEMS Layout: Experience designing layout functions for MEMS structures.
- Data-Driven Feedback: Ability to parse large-scale foundry PCM data to refine the function library parameters.

nEye.ai is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.

## About nEye.ai

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: nEye.ai develops ultra-low-power MEMS-based silicon photonic optical circuit switches (OCS) that eliminate connectivity bottlenecks in AI data centers, enabling direct optical links among thousands of GPUs.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Series C funding stage)
- **Headquarters**: Santa Clara, California, United States
- **Founded**: 2020
- **Founders**: Ashish Vengsarkar (CEO), Ming Wu (Chief Scientist & Co-Founder), Tae Joon Seok (CTO & Co-Founder)

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: Semiconductor manufacturing (silicon photonics) / AI data center infrastructure
- **Target customers**: Hyperscale data centers, cloud providers, AI/ML infrastructure operators (B2B, Enterprise)
- **Mission**: To transform data center networks through innovative optical circuit switching technology, solving the most challenging problems in AI infrastructure.

## Products & Services
- **[SuperSwitch](https://www.neye.ai)**: A chip-scale, high-radix optical circuit switch leveraging MEMS-based silicon photonics. It enables direct optical connections among GPUs and memory units, dramatically reducing power consumption and latency compared to electrical switches. Type: Hardware (silicon photonic switch).

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not publicly disclosed
- **Key Metric**: Total funding of **$152.5M** across four rounds (Series A, B, C, and a corporate round) as of April 2026
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Sutter Hill Ventures (led Series C, $80M, April 2026), CapitalG (led Series B, $58M, May 2025), TEDA (led Series A, $14.5M, September 2023)
- **Growth Signals**: Headcount grew **+164.7% YoY** to 36 employees; 12 active job postings (up 300% YoY); filed 12 patents in photonics, fiber optics, and optical devices; key hires from Google, AWS, Ayar Labs, and Intel.

## Competitive Advantages
- **MEMS + Silicon Photonics Integration**: Combines micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) with silicon photonics on a single chip, enabling ultra-low power, high-radix switching in a compact form factor.
- **Founding Team Depth**: Led by industry veterans with decades of experience at Bell Labs, UC Berkeley, Google, and successful optical startups (Photuris, Nistica). Chief Scientist Ming C. Wu is a renowned professor at UC Berkeley.
- **Patented Technology**: 12 granted/pending patents covering lidar, photonic switch arrays, and optical devices.
- **Hyperscaler Relevance**: Directly addresses the critical bottleneck in AI cluster networking, a problem actively being tackled by major cloud providers.

## Strategic Focus
- **Scaling Engineering & Operations**: Heavily hiring across MEMS design, photonics, silicon photonics layout, test systems, and lab operations to accelerate product development and deployment.
- **Hyperscale Deployment**: Targeting volume production and integration into the world’s largest AI data centers, leveraging team members’ prior experience at Google and AWS.
- **Product Maturation**: Moving from prototype to commercial-grade SuperSwitch, with emphasis on reliability, yield, and cost efficiency.

## Why Work Here
- **Mission-Driven**: Tackle one of the hardest problems in AI infrastructure – optical connectivity at scale.
- **On-Site Culture**: Roles are based in Santa Clara, CA (with an additional Berkeley office), fostering close collaboration among a tight-knit, highly technical team.
- **Impact & Ownership**: Small team (~36 people) means engineers have broad responsibility and direct influence on product direction.
- **Veteran Leadership**: Work alongside former Google, Bell Labs, and successful startup leaders who have raised over $100M and achieved multiple exits.
- **Growth Trajectory**: Rapid headcount growth and significant venture backing signal a company in an aggressive scaling phase, offering career advancement opportunities.

## Sources
1. [LinkedIn – nEye Systems Company Page](https://linkedin.com/company/neye-systems)
2. [CB Insights – nEye Systems Profile](https://www.cbinsights.com/company/neye-systems)
3. [nEye.ai About Us](https://www.neye.ai/about-us)
4. [nEye.ai Join Us / Careers](https://www.neye.ai/join-us)
5. [Lever Jobs – nEye Systems Openings](https://jobs.lever.co/neye-systems-inc)

## Other roles at nEye.ai

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