Etched

Sr. Thermal Engineer, Liquid Cooling Systems at Etched (San Jose, CA)

Etched· San Jose, CA· $200k–$250k·

Role details

Salary
$200k–$250k
Work type
Onsite
Employment
Full-Time
Skills
Thermal engineeringWater cooling systemsThermal simulationsDirect-to-processor coolingThermal interface materials (TIMs)Heat sink designPhase change coolingLiquid cooling
Benefits

Medical, Dental, And Vision Packages · Housing Subsidy · Relocation Support · Wellness Benefits · Daily Lunch And Dinner

Etched at a glance

Transformer-specific ASICs and rack-scale systems that hardwire the transformer into silicon for faster, cheaper AI inference.

Etched designs transformer-specific ASICs and full rack-scale inference systems. Its Sohu chip hardwires the transformer architecture directly into silicon, trading a GPU's general-purpose flexibility for far higher throughput, lower latency, and better power efficiency on AI inference. Customers buy complete co-designed clusters, chip plus rack plus software, not standalone chips.

$800M raised · latest: $500M · led by Stripes · Dec 2025 (reported Jan 2026) · backed by Stripes, Peter Thiel, Ribbit Capital, VentureTech Alliance

Summary

Lead the design and optimization of thermal management systems for high-performance data center products, focusing on water cooling solutions. Responsibilities include developing water cooling components, conducting thermal simulations, and ensuring system reliability and efficiency.

Job description

About Etched

Etched is building hardware for frontier intelligence. We co-design chips, racks, software, and manufacturing to deliver best-in-class throughput and latency across both prefill and decode workloads. Our first products are heavily focused on inference. Backed by hundreds of millions from top-tier investors and staffed by leading engineers, Etched is redefining the infrastructure layer for the fastest growing industry in history.

Job Summary

We are seeking a highly experienced Senior Thermal Engineer, Liquid Cooling Systems to join our team and lead our efforts in optimizing thermal management for high-performance systems. As a Senior Thermal Engineer, Liquid Cooling Systems at Etched, you will play a crucial role in developing and implementing advanced thermal management solutions for our high-performance data center products. Your expertise in water cooling, thermal simulations, and cooling system design will be essential in ensuring optimal thermal performance and reliability. You will work with various water cooling components, including internal manifolds, quick disconnects, CDU (Coolant Distribution Units), heat exchangers, and advanced thermal interface materials.

Key responsibilities

  • Lead the design and optimization of thermal management systems for high-performance data center products, focusing on water cooling solutions and advanced cooling concepts.
  • Develop and implement water cooling solutions, including internal manifolds, quick disconnects, CDUs (Coolant Distribution Units), and heat exchangers. Ensure effective cooling and thermal management for high-power processors and other critical components.
  • Design and manage direct-to-processor water cooling systems to efficiently dissipate heat and maintain optimal operating temperatures.
  • Conduct detailed thermal simulations to predict and analyze thermal performance. Use simulation results to guide the design and optimization of cooling systems.
  • Evaluate and select thermal interface materials (TIMs) for various heat sinks and cooling solutions. Optimize TIM performance to enhance thermal conductivity and heat dissipation.
  • Explore and implement advanced thermal cooling concepts, including phase change cooling, liquid cooling, and other cutting-edge technologies.
  • Oversee the testing and validation of thermal management systems to ensure they meet performance, reliability, and efficiency standards. Address any issues related to thermal performance and provide solutions.
  • Create and maintain comprehensive documentation for thermal management designs, including design specifications, simulation results, and testing reports. Report on performance and any issues identified during testing.
  • Work closely with cross-functional teams, including mechanical engineers, electrical systems engineers, and vendors, to ensure seamless integration and operation of thermal management solutions.

You maybe a good fit if you have

  • A Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering or Thermal Engineering, or a related field. Advanced degrees or certifications in thermal management or related areas are highly desirable.
  • A Minimum of 10 years of experience in thermal engineering with a strong focus on water cooling systems and advanced thermal management solutions. Proven expertise in designing and managing direct-to-processor cooling systems and thermal simulations.
  • Extensive experience with water cooling systems, including internal manifolds, quick disconnects, CDUs, and heat exchangers
  • Expertise in direct-to-processor cooling solutions and thermal management for high-power components
  • Proficiency in thermal simulation tools and techniques to predict and analyze thermal performance
  • Knowledge of various thermal interface materials (TIMs) and heat sink designs
  • Experience with advanced thermal cooling concepts and technologies.

We encourage you to apply even if you do not believe you meet every single qualification.

Benefits

  • Medical, dental, and vision packages with generous premium coverage
  • $500 per month credit for waiving medical benefits
  • Housing subsidy of $2k per month for those living within walking distance of the office
  • Relocation support for those moving to San Jose (Santana Row)
  • Various wellness benefits covering fitness, mental health, and more
  • Daily lunch + dinner in our office
  • Unlimited compute budget subject to ROI justification

How we’re different

Etched believes in the Bitter Lesson incompleteideas.net/BitterLesson.html. We are the first inference-focused frontier AI system. Our addressable market is the entirety of inference, unlike many of our competitors.

We are a fully in-person team in San Jose (Santana Row), and greatly value engineering skills. We do not have boundaries between engineering and research, and we expect all of our technical staff to contribute to both and work across disciplines as needed.

Why work at Etched

  • Mission-driven, high-impact engineering: “Building the hardware for superintelligence” – the company is solving one of the hardest problems in compute (inference efficiency) with a focused team.
  • Top-tier team and learning environment: Colleagues from Google, NVIDIA, Apple, Tesla, Broadcom, and Intel; exposure to full-stack chip-to-system design.
  • In-office culture: All roles are in-office (Cupertino and San Jose, CA). The company emphasizes on-site collaboration for hardware development. Notable perks are not heavily advertised, but compensation is competitive for the AI hardware space (equity-heavy).
  • Growth trajectory: 141% headcount growth YoY, hundreds of open roles, and a $5B valuation signal strong backing and career acceleration potential.
  • Intellectual challenge: Work on chip simulation, RTL design, system validation, or software infrastructure for cutting-edge AI inference.

Application questions