Principal Hardware Security Architect, Advanced Technologies and Threat Modeling
Nvidia · Santa Clara · $272,000–$431,250 (stated in the posting)
We are now looking for a Principal Hardware Security Architect – Advanced Technologies & Threat Modeling! NVIDIA is seeking an experienced and visionary Hardware Security Architect to help drive the security roadmap for our next-generation SoCs and GPUs. This is a senior-level individual contributor position that will define, craft, and guide the implementation of security architecture for our innovative platforms, with a specific focus on emerging threats in advanced packaging, connectivity, and physical attack vectors.
You will work with diverse teams across NVIDIA, external partners, and industry bodies to meet and exceed security requirements for our mobile, automotive, gaming, and data center platforms.
What You'll Be Doing:
- Define Security Roadmap: Collaborate across the company to guide the direction of platform security and develop a long-term security roadmap for our products, working with hardware, software, research, and marketing teams.
- Physical Security & Standards: Research, design, and develop architecture solutions that provide mitigations against physical attacks, including fault injection and side-channel attacks. Drive the adoption of and compliance with industry standards such as the Open Compute Project (OCP) S.A.F.E. (Security Appraisal Framework and Enablement) program, ensuring our firmware and hardware supply chain meets rigorous assurance requirements.
- Advanced Packaging & Photonics Threat Modeling: Analyze and develop threat models for new technologies, including advanced packaging (2.5D/3D ICs, chiplets) and silicon photonics connectivity. Investigate vulnerabilities such as hardware Trojans in multi-chiplet photonic neural network accelerators, inter-chiplet side-channel analysis, and threats to optical on-chip networks.
- AI-Accelerated Discovery: Employ AI and other new tools to accelerate the discovery and triage of hardware vulnerabilities. Leverage AI systems to uncover deep, previously invisible flaws at scale and shift from manual triage to AI-driven direction. Lead the evaluation of AI-assisted hardware security verification methodologies and autonomous research agents for fuzzing GPU kernel drivers.
- Architecture & Verification: Review architectural, microarchitectural, and verification specifications published by internal teams to ensure all IPs align with platform security requirements. Work with customers and partners to identify and address security issues and threats.
What We Need to See:
- Education: MS, or PhD (or equivalent experience) in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, or Computer Engineering.
- Experience: 15+ years of meaningful relevant work or research experience.
- Technical Depth:
- Experience with the ASIC design process and architecture of large SoCs or GPUs.
- Programming and debugging fundamentals across languages such as C/C++, Verilog, ARM assembly, and Python/Perl scripting.
- Deep understanding of SoC security architecture, including secure/measured boot and ARM or RISCV CPU architectures.
- Security Expertise:
- Direct experience with security mitigations against physical attacks including fault injection and side-channel attacks.
- Knowledge of security threat modeling and penetration testing.
- Familiarity with OCP S.A.F.E. or similar industry security frameworks.
- Soft Skills: The ability to work in a dynamic, customer-focused team with strong interpersonal skills.
Ways to Stand Out from the Crowd:
- Advanced Packaging Security: Published research or hands-on experience securing 2.5D/3D ICs, chiplets, or System-in-Package (SiP) designs against supply-chain tampering, interconnect attacks, and hardware Trojans.
- Photonics Security: Expertise in the security risks of silicon photonics (SiPH) and optoelectronic systems, including vulnerabilities in microring resonators and quantum key distribution (QKD) hardware.
- AI for Security: Demonstrated experience deploying AI/ML models for hardware vulnerability discovery, automated triage, or autonomous fuzzing of complex systems.
- Industry Impact: Active participation in standards bodies (e.g., OCP, IEEE) or a track record of patenting security inventions (e.g., current flattening circuits for power side-channel protection).
NVIDIA is widely considered to be one of the technology world’s most desirable employers. We have some of the most forward-thinking and hardworking people in the world working for us. Are you a creative and autonomous architect with a genuine passion for advancing innovative security features into silicon? If so, we want to hear from you.
Your base salary will be determined based on your location, experience, and the pay of employees in similar positions. The base salary range is 272,000 USD - 431,250 USD.You will also be eligible for equity and benefits.
This posting is for an existing vacancy.
NVIDIA uses AI tools in its recruiting processes.
NVIDIA is committed to fostering an inclusive work environment and proud to be an equal opportunity employer. As we highly value diversity in our current and future employees, we do not discriminate (including in our hiring and promotion practices) on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability status or any other characteristic protected by law.