---
title: 'Senior Power & Performance Validation Engineer at Graphcore'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/senior-power-performance-validation-engineer-graphcore-bengaluru-q7sb5wsh09xn'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-09-08'
---

# Senior Power & Performance Validation Engineer at Graphcore

- **Company:** Graphcore
- **Location:** Bengaluru, India
- **Posted:** 2026-06-12
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-09-08
- **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/graphcore/jobs/8587344002

## Job description

Senior -Power and Performance Validation Engineer

## About us

Graphcore is one of the world’s leading innovators in Artificial Intelligence compute. It is developing hardware, software and systems infrastructure that will unlock the next generation of AI breakthroughs and power the widespread adoption of AI solutions across every industry.

As part of the SoftBank Group, Graphcore is a member of an elite family of companies responsible for some of the world’s most transformative technologies. Together, they share a bold vision: to enable Artificial Super Intelligence and ensure its benefits are accessible to everyone.

Graphcore’s teams are drawn from diverse backgrounds and bring a broad range of skills and perspectives. A melting pot of AI research specialists, silicon designers, software engineers and systems architects, Graphcore enjoys a culture of continuous learning and constant innovation.

Job Summary

Reporting to senior leadership within Architecture and Validation, the Power and Performance Validation Lead will drive validation strategy and execution for advanced AI compute silicon and systems. The role is responsible for leading power, thermal and performance validation activities across pre-silicon and post-silicon environments to ensure products meet efficiency, reliability and scalability expectations.

This role requires strong technical expertise and collaboration across multiple engineering disciplines to deliver robust validation methodologies, scalable automation frameworks and actionable performance insights.

The Team

The Power and Performance Validation team sits within the Architecture and Validation organisation and is responsible for validating the performance, efficiency and thermal behaviour of Graphcore silicon and systems.

The team supports the full product lifecycle, from early architectural modelling through to first silicon bring-up, characterization and production readiness. Engineers work closely with cross-functional teams globally to debug complex issues, optimize workloads and continuously improve validation infrastructure and methodologies.

## Responsibilities and Duties

- Define and lead validation strategies for power, thermal and performance characterization of AI compute silicon and platforms
- Contribute to planning and execution of validation activities across multiple projects and milestones
- Develop comprehensive validation plans covering functional, stress, workload and corner-case scenarios
- Lead post-silicon bring-up and characterization activities for power and performance validation
- Drive validation of CPU, memory, interconnect and high-speed I/O subsystems under complex workload conditions
- Develop scalable automation frameworks, regression infrastructure and reporting tools using Python
- Design and execute benchmark workloads, parameter sweeps and performance experiments to identify optimization opportunities
- Collaborate with architecture, RTL, firmware, software and systems teams to debug and resolve complex technical issues
- Define validation metrics, pass/fail criteria and reporting methodologies to ensure repeatable and high-quality analysis
- Guide development of custom workload generators and micro-benchmarks where required
- Analyse power, thermal and performance data to identify bottlenecks and recommend improvements
- Contribute to continuous improvement of validation processes, tooling and engineering practices
- Communicate technical findings, project status, risks and recommendations clearly to stakeholders and engineering leadership
- Support knowledge sharing and contribute to continuous improvement across the validation organisation

Candidate Profile

Essential:

- Strong experience in power and performance validation, silicon characterization or system performance engineering
- Deep understanding of modern SoC architecture, including CPU, memory, interconnect and high-speed I/O technologies
- Strong Linux systems knowledge and low-level performance analysis experience
- Strong Python programming skills for automation, orchestration and data analysis
- Experience with benchmarking and profiling tools such as stress-ng, fio, perf, iperf or equivalent technologies
- Experience debugging complex hardware and software interactions
- Ability to define structured validation methodologies, workload models and test strategies
- Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret large datasets and identify system bottlenecks
- Strong communication and cross-functional collaboration skills
- Ability to work independently on complex technical tasks while collaborating effectively across teams

Desirable

- Experience with AI accelerator, GPU or high-performance compute architectures
- Experience with pre-silicon modelling or simulation environments
- Knowledge of power management technologies and silicon characterization methodologies
- Programming experience in C/C++ for low-level system or benchmark development
- Familiarity with hardware instrumentation and telemetry systems
- Experience working with high core-count or large-scale compute systems
- Experience contributing to shared validation infrastructure and engineering best practices

## About Graphcore

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: Graphcore designs and builds the Intelligence Processing Unit (IPU), a processor purpose-built for machine intelligence, and provides a complete AI compute stack from silicon to software.
- **Entity Type**: Private (wholly owned subsidiary of SoftBank Group Corp as of 2025/2026)
- **Headquarters**: Bristol, England, UK
- **Founded**: 2016
- **Founders**: Nigel Toon and Simon Knowles

## Core Business
- **Primary industry**: AI hardware/accelerators, semiconductor design, AI software platform
- **Target customers**: Cloud providers (Microsoft Azure), enterprises, AI researchers, hyperscalers
- **Mission statement**: “Let innovators create the next breakthroughs in machine intelligence to enhance human potential”

## Products & Services
- **[IPU (Intelligence Processing Unit)](https://www.graphcore.ai/)**: A processor designed from the ground up for machine intelligence workloads; uses a massively parallel architecture (MIMD) with fine-grained compute and on-chip memory.
- **[IPU-Machine M2000](https://www.graphcore.ai/about)**: Second-generation IPU platform – a 1U server appliance housing 4 MK2 GC200 IPU processors, delivering an 8× performance uplift over the first generation.
- **[C2 IPU Accelerator PCIe Card](https://www.graphcore.ai/about)**: PCIe form factor accelerator for server integration, first demonstrated at ICML 2018.
- **[Poplar Software Stack](https://www.graphcore.ai/)**: Full SDK and framework integration (PyTorch, TensorFlow) that lets developers target the IPU directly.

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Acquired by SoftBank Group Corp (amount undisclosed); prior to acquisition valued at $2.77 B (Series E, lead by Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board).
- **Key Metric**: Total funding raised prior to acquisition – over $680 M across Series A through E.
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: SoftBank (owner), Microsoft (customer and investor), BMW, Samsung, Dell Technologies, Bosch, Sequoia Capital, Atomico, Fidelity, Baillie Gifford, Ontario Teachers’.
- **Growth Signals**: Part of the fast-growing SoftBank AI ecosystem; expanding teams globally (Bristol, London, Cambridge, Gdańsk, Hsinchu, Bengaluru); first customer (Microsoft Azure) live since 2018.

## Competitive Advantages
- **First purpose-built AI processor**: The IPU architecture is fundamentally different from GPUs – designed specifically for the sparse, parallel nature of neural network computation.
- **Full stack ownership**: Graphcore controls silicon, system hardware, and software (Poplar), enabling tight optimisation across the entire compute chain.
- **Cloud + on‑prem availability**: IPUs are available in the cloud on Microsoft Azure and as hardware from Dell, giving customers flexible deployment options.
- **Strong IP and ecosystem**: 99+ engineering staff; deep expertise in semiconductor, systems, and AI software, backed by long-term SoftBank investment.

## Strategic Focus
- **Scale AI infrastructure**: Delivering key technology into SoftBank’s global AI ecosystem and expanding the IPU platform to meet growing demand for AI compute.
- **Expand into new regions**: Opening offices and hiring in India (Bengaluru) and across Europe (Gdańsk, London, Cambridge) to accelerate R&D and customer support.
- **Democratise AI**: Continuing to lower the barrier for machine intelligence by providing accessible, high-efficiency hardware and software for innovators worldwide.

## Why Work Here
- **Flexible hybrid work**: Employees are expected on-site three days a week, with trust and flexibility to balance work and life.
- **Comprehensive benefits**: Unlimited annual leave, private medical insurance (UK), dental & health cash plan, income protection, life assurance, pension matched up to 5%, generous parental leave, and a personal development plan.
- **Culture and growth**: ML reading groups, board game socials, book clubs, yoga, running, watersports, team events; strong DE+I initiatives; ambitious but supportive environment.
- **Perks**: Free barista‑made coffee, snacks, and wellbeing rooms; cycle‑to‑work scheme; gym membership discount; education/training allowances.
- **Purpose-driven work**: Opportunity to shape the future of AI compute and see your contributions used by global innovators.

## Sources
1. [graphcore.ai/about](https://www.graphcore.ai/about)
2. [graphcore.ai/](https://www.graphcore.ai/)
3. [graphcore.ai/careers](https://www.graphcore.ai/careers)
4. [graphcore.ai/jobs](https://www.graphcore.ai/jobs)
5. [builtin.com/company/graphcore](https://builtin.com/company/graphcore)

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