Emerging Careers - Software Development Engineer (Wafer Inspection)

Western Digital • San Jose, CA

4d • Onsite

About The Position

We are seeking a full-time ML & Wafer Defect Inspection Engineer to join our advanced semiconductor manufacturing team. This Emerging Career role is ideal for early-career professionals passionate about applying machine learning to real-world challenges. You will work in a 24/7 wafer production fab, leveraging commercial ML applications to detect and report defects, optimize inspection workflows, and contribute to continuous process improvement.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in a STEM field (Engineering, Computer Science, Data Science, Physics, etc.).
• Strong analytical skills and ability to work with complex datasets.
• Completed coursework or experience in Artificial Intelligence (AI) or Machine Learning (ML).
• Ability to adapt quickly to new technologies and environments.
• Effective communication and collaboration skills across multidisciplinary teams.

Nice To Haves

• Experience working in high-tech manufacturing or semiconductor settings is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Utilize commercial machine learning applications (e.g., Cognex) to analyze and flag wafer defects.
• Collaborate with engineering teams to troubleshoot and resolve production issues using data-driven insights.
• Process and interpret large-scale image and data sets for defect classification and reporting.
• Optimize automated metrology and inspection workflows for efficiency and accuracy.
• Document findings and present recommendations to improve defect detection and manufacturing processes.
• Contribute to long-term innovation strategies in semiconductor defect inspection and automation.

Benefits

• paid vacation time
• paid sick leave
• medical/dental/vision insurance
• life, accident and disability insurance
• tax-advantaged flexible spending and health savings accounts
• employee assistance program
• other voluntary benefit programs such as supplemental life and AD&D, legal plan, pet insurance, critical illness, accident and hospital indemnity
• tuition reimbursement
• transit
• the Applause Program
• employee stock purchase plan
• the WD Savings 401(k) Plan

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level