Senior Software Engineer - Firmware + Audio

We are seeking a Senior Software Engineer with deep expertise in audio subsystems to own end-to-end audio delivery on Windows-based Surface devices.

In this role, you will be the technical authority driving audio bring-up, driver ingestion, quality, and validation across flagship Surface programs – from early platform bring-up.

You will architect solutions across the hardware-firmware-driver-APO boundary, mentor junior engineers, and collaborate closely with silicon partners, audio processing vendors, and cross-functional teams to deliver a world-class audio experience on premium consumer hardware.

Responsibilities

• Technical ownership of the audio subsystem for flagship Surface programs, driving milestone exit criteria and ensuring zero-regression driver ingestions.
• Architect and design audio solutions spanning the full stack: hardware endpoints -> DSP firmware -> kernel drivers -> APO pipeline -> user-mode services.
• Lead audio bring-up and endpoint validation on new platforms, including speaker, microphone, headset jack, SoundWire, and Bluetooth audio paths.
• Develop, debug, and maintain Windows audio/media class drivers (WDM/WDF) and Audio Processing Objects (APOs) in the silicon audio stack (DSP RPC, Audio Core, APO).
• Drive partner engagements – coordinate driver ingestion cycles with silicon and IHV partners; validate, triage, and qualify driver packages before integration.
• Own root-cause analysis of complex audio quality issues (crackling, glitching, latency, distortion) using hardware-level analysers, DSP diagnostics, and Windows audio traces (WPR/WPA, AudioDG, MFTrace).
• Integrate and validate third-party audio processing pipelines (DAX, Microsoft Effect Pack, Voice Clarity) within the Windows APO chain.
• Mentor and grow team members – conduct code reviews, establish debugging best practices, and distribute domain knowledge across the team.
• Drive SelfHost stability and audio backlog resolution, proactively identifying systemic issues and unblocking critical paths.
• Collaborate on voice platform strategy, including integration of AI/ML-powered audio features (noise suppression, echo cancellation, speech enhancement).
• Champion engineering excellence – introduce automation for repetitive validation, improve triage workflows, and raise the team’s technical bar.
• Participate in secure development practices (SFI), closing critical security bugs within SLA and designing for security by default.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science or related technical field AND 10+ years technical engineering experience with coding in languages including, but not limited to, C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python.
• OR equivalent experience.
• 10+ years of experience in software development with 4+ years focused on audio/media driver or subsystem development on Windows or embedded platforms.
• Expert proficiency in C/C++ with extensive experience writing and debugging Windows kernel-mode drivers (WDM/WDF).
• Deep understanding of the Windows audio architecture – audio engine, APO framework, endpoint management, media class drivers, and audio policy.
• Proven experience working with DSP-based audio subsystems (Qualcomm ADSP, or similar), including firmware-host interaction via RPC/IPC mechanisms.
• Demonstrated ability to independently root-cause complex, cross-stack audio issues: hardware -> DSP firmware -> driver -> APO -> application.
• Solid foundation in audio signal processing: sample rates, buffer management, latency tuning, DMA transfers, and audio streaming models.
• Track record of shipping 3+ high-volume consumer products through full development cycles (bring-up to commercialization).
• Expert debugging skills using WinDbg, WPR/WPA, bus analysers (I2S/SoundWire/I2C), and audio-specific diagnostics.
• Demonstrated ability to lead cross-team technical discussions and influence partner roadmaps.