---
title: 'Staff Embedded Linux Software Engineer at SirenOpt'
canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/staff-embedded-linux-software-engineer-sirenopt-san-leandro-1tppdmzfax32'
type: 'job'
last_seen: '2026-10-18'
---

# Staff Embedded Linux Software Engineer at SirenOpt

- **Company:** SirenOpt
- **Location:** San Leandro, CA
- **Compensation:** $180k–$240k
- **Posted:** 2026-10-16
- **Last confirmed live:** 2026-10-18
- **Apply:** https://job-boards.greenhouse.io/sirenopt/jobs/4456016009

## Job description

## About SirenOpt

SirenOpt helps manufacturers make better, safer, and more reliable micro- and nano-materials. These materials are the building blocks of critical sectors of the global economy such as batteries, computer chips, aircraft components, and power systems. But, surging material demand and growing complexity are pushing production to unprecedented scales and speeds, leaving manufacturers effectively flying blind. Small, undetected variations during production lead to wastage, lower performance, higher costs, and safety risks.

SirenOpt is changing this by developing a manufacturing intelligence platform that non-destructively probes materials during production, revealing critical internal information without damaging them. Using a novel combination of cold atmospheric plasma, physics-informed machine learning, and predictive analytics, SirenOpt generates unique, real-time material fingerprints that capture material signals not accessible through conventional measurement techniques. These insights give manufacturers unprecedented visibility into how materials behave as they are made.

We turn hidden data into actionable intelligence to help manufacturers reduce variability and thus increase yield and performance. The technology can be deployed as a standalone tool or integrated directly into factory production lines. SirenOpt is currently deploying early versions of its platform with some of the largest industrial manufacturers in the world across North America, Europe, and Asia.

## About the job

Job Title: Staff Embedded Linux Software Engineer — Firmware Team

Location: On-Site (San Leandro, CA)

Job Type: Full-Time

## Role Overview

SirenOpt is seeking an Embedded Linux Software Engineer to join a small, high-impact firmware team building the embedded software stack for a commercial bench-top scientific instrument. The platform is an AMD/Xilinx FPGA SoC (Zynq / UltraScale+) running PetaLinux, with a mix of userspace applications, device drivers, and real-time control interfacing with custom programmable logic.

You’ll work alongside an embedded systems architect who owns the Linux application layer, peripheral subsystems, protocol design, and hardware integration. Your core mandate is threefold: share the Linux application workload, own test automation infrastructure, and establish CI/build reliability. You’ll write production code and the tooling that proves it works.

This is a small, documentation-driven team, and you’ll be expected to write clear design docs and track progress in Jira/Confluence. The role combines hands-on lab work with prototype hardware and desk-based software development, following a sequenced release cadence (HDL → OS/drivers → embedded applications → system integration).

## What You'll Do

- Develop embedded Linux application software in C (userspace, POSIX)
- Develop userspace and kernel-space drivers for internal and external devices (sensors, actuators, instruments)
- Implement and extend application-level command/control/data protocols over TCP/IP
- Implement communication drivers for industrial instruments (mass flow controllers, vacuum gauges, motor controllers) over serial and CAN interfaces
- Design, build, and maintain hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) automated test systems
- Develop host-side test tooling (Python GUIs, emulators, scripted instrument drivers)
- Establish and maintain CI/CD pipelines and reproducible build infrastructure
- Participate in hardware bring-up, board-level validation, and lab bench debugging
- Contribute to architecture decisions, documentation, and design reviews

## What We're Looking For

- S., M.S., or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Software Engineering, or a related field, with 10+ years of relevant industry experience
- C for embedded Linux userspace, including threading, IPC, and POSIX APIs
- Python for test automation (pytest or equivalent framework) and scripted instrumentation
- TCP/IP socket programming on Linux (non-blocking I/O, connection lifecycle, streaming)
- UDP for discovery and lightweight telemetry
- Bus and serial protocols: UART, SPI, I2C, and CAN
- RS-232 and RS-485, including byte-level protocol implementation (framing, CRC, state machines, multi-device arbitration)
- Hardware bring-up and board-level debugging using oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, and protocol analyzers
- Producer-consumer and ring buffer patterns for real-time data flow
- Hardware-in-the-loop test development and execution

Nice to have:

- Linux DMA programming (scatter-gather, buffer pool management, AXI-DMA)
- CI/CD tooling (Jenkins, GitLab CI, GitHub Actions, Docker-based build environments)
- Yocto or PetaLinux BSP experience
- Unit test frameworks for C (gtest, cmocka, Unity)
- Familiarity with FPGA register interfaces (UIO, devmem, register maps)
- Performance profiling and network analysis (Wireshark, throughput characterization)
- Python GUI development for test/operator tooling (Tkinter, PyQt)
- Familiarity with scientific or process-control instrumentation

Base Pay Range $180,000—$240,000 USD

## Benefits

- Equity and Salary compensation depends on experience
- Health, Dental, Vision plans provided
- 401k matching provided
- Time off: 20 days of PTO per year, plus approximately 15 paid US holidays per year

## About SirenOpt

## Company Overview
- **One-liner**: SirenOpt provides a non-destructive, real-time materials characterization platform that uses cold atmospheric plasma and AI to create detailed material fingerprints for manufacturing quality control.
- **Entity Type**: Private (Venture stage; total funding $21.5M)
- **Headquarters**: San Leandro, California, United States
- **Founded**: 2022
- **Founders**: Jared O’Leary (CEO), Ali Mesbah (CTO, UC Berkeley), Joel Paulson (co-founder, UW–Madison)

## Core Business
- **Primary Industry**: Manufacturing intelligence / advanced materials characterization (battery, semiconductor, aerospace, medical devices, packaging, electronics)
- **Target Customers**: B2B, Enterprise manufacturers with high-throughput production lines (roll-to-roll, piece-to-piece)
- **Mission**: “Create a paradigm shift in advanced materials characterization by leveraging cold atmospheric plasma, machine learning and predictive analytics to non-destructively create a uniquely distinctive, multifaceted material fingerprint in real-time.” [sirenopt.com](https://www.sirenopt.com/about)

## Products & Services
- **PlasmaSens™** – A modular, scalable platform for inline and offline material analysis. Uses cold atmospheric plasma to measure multiple material properties (e.g., cathodes, anodes, separators, coatings) non-destructively and in real time. Available as a benchtop standalone system, piece-to-piece (robot-arm mounted) for inline inspection, and roll-to-roll (up to 1.5m width) for continuous high-throughput monitoring. Delivers pass/fail feedback and enables predictive quality control. [sirenopt.com](https://www.sirenopt.com/)

## Market Standing
- **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not disclosed
- **Key Metric**: Total funding **$21.5M** across five rounds (Pre-Seed $3.0M led by SkyDeck Berkeley, Seed $6.6M led by Visionaries Tomorrow and Voyager Ventures, Venture $6.5M led by Hitachi Ventures and InMotion Ventures, Grant $2.4M from California Energy Commission) [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/sirenopt) [cbinsights.com](https://www.cbinsights.com/company/sirenopt)
- **Notable Investors/Partners**: Voyager Ventures, Visionaries Tomorrow, Hitachi Ventures, InMotion Ventures, SkyDeck Berkeley, California Energy Commission (BRIDGE Grant), Lawrence Berkeley National Lab Cyclotron Road, Activate
- **Growth Signals**: 41 employees (59% technical), deploying with largest industrial manufacturers across North America, Europe, and Asia; first commercial product scheduled for 2026; announced deployment at ECF in Autumn 2026 [sirenopt.com](https://www.sirenopt.com/) [linkedin.com](https://www.linkedin.com/company/sirenopt)

## Competitive Advantages
- **Unique technology**: The only non-destructive measurement method using cold atmospheric plasma to generate a rich, multi-property material fingerprint in real time, without chemicals or sample preparation.
- **Speed**: From hours to seconds – quality decisions made at production speed, catching defects before they propagate.
- **Physics-informed AI**: Combines plasma signals with machine learning to detect hidden defects and predict failure modes, providing insights conventional testing cannot.
- **Flexibility**: Modular platform (benchtop, inline, roll-to-roll) adaptable to diverse substrate sizes and production environments.

## Strategic Focus
- **Commercialization**: Accelerating deployment of PlasmaSens into factory production lines, with a first commercial release in 2026 and an inline deployment at ECF that autumn.
- **Market expansion**: Targeting battery, semiconductor, aerospace, medical device, and packaging manufacturers globally.
- **Sustainability**: Enabling smarter manufacturing to reduce waste, improve yield, and accelerate development of advanced materials. [sirenopt.com](https://www.sirenopt.com/about)

## Why Work Here
- **Impact**: Join a deep-tech startup at the forefront of manufacturing intelligence, working on a “new to the world” metrology tool that transforms how materials are measured and controlled.
- **Engineering culture**: 59% of the team holds technical roles (specialist/senior level); the company values hands-on work in hardware, firmware, software, and AI.
- **Benefits**: Incentive stock options, comprehensive health coverage (medical, dental, vision), 20 days PTO, 15 paid company holidays, and 401(k) matching for qualified employees. [sirenopt.com](https://www.sirenopt.com/careers)
- **Location**: Based in San Leandro, CA (Bay Area). Office presence expected; remote/hybrid policy not explicitly stated.
- **Growth trajectory**: Early-stage (41 employees, $21.5M funding) with active hiring (5 open roles including Lead Software Engineer, Staff EE, Quality Manager) and strong backing from top-tier investors.

## Sources
1. [sirenopt.com](https://www.sirenopt.com/) – Product details, company overview
2. [sirenopt.com/about](https://www.sirenopt.com/about) – Mission, leadership, investors
3. [sirenopt.com/careers](https://www.sirenopt.com/careers) – Benefits, job openings
4. [linkedin.com/company/sirenopt](https://www.linkedin.com/company/sirenopt) – Employee count, funding rounds, department breakdown
5. [cbinsights.com/company/sirenopt](https://www.cbinsights.com/company/sirenopt) – Funding details, product differentiators

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