Software Engineer Embedded/Network Systems III (Full-Time) - United States
About The Position
This posting is to advertise potential job opportunities. This exact role may not be open today but could open in the near future. When you apply, a Cisco representative may contact you directly if a relevant position opens. We are a focused group of engineers with deep wireless and algorithm expertise, working within a larger organization responsible for Cisco's enterprise Wi-Fi access points. We combine that expertise with strong embedded software engineering, working closely together and moving fast. The problems we solve are real, spanning industries including industrial, medical, and smart office environments, and more. Right now we are actively investing in Wi-Fi 8, device health intelligence, and Edge AI, bringing neural processing directly onto access points to enable real-time network intelligence and next generation physical AI applications.
Requirements
- Recent graduate or in your final year of studies toward a PhD in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or related major such as Math, Physics.
- Strong understanding of Wireless technologies.
- Proficiency in C and/or C++ on embedded platforms
- Experience with embedded systems, SoC integration, or Linux kernel/driver development
- Comfortable working across software and hardware boundaries, from driver and firmware up through cloud platforms
Nice To Haves
- Background in Edge AI or embedded ML: on-device inference, model quantization, NPU/DSP acceleration, or real-time ML systems.
- Understanding of wireless protocol stacks: 802.11, 802.15.4, BLE
- Familiarity with Wi-Fi 7 / Wi-Fi 8 features
- Experience using agentic coding tools (Codex, Claude Code, Cursor, Copilot, or similar) and AI assisted development workflows in a production engineering environment.
- Strong written and verbal communication; able to explain complex technical concepts across engineering and non-engineering audiences.
Responsibilities
- Design and develop next generation enterprise Wi-Fi access point software, focused on performance and reliability at the network edge.
- Solve real world wireless challenges across industrial, medical, and smart office deployments, including dense client environments, robotic fleets, and mission critical IoT.
- Work on Wi-Fi protocols (802.11ax/be/bn, MLO, OFDMA, MU-MIMO, 6 GHz / AFC), IoT stacks (802.15.4, BLE, Thread, Matter), and radio coexistence in dense, interference heavy environments.
- Build and integrate Edge AI capabilities directly on access points using on device NPUs, including model optimization (quantization, pruning), inference frameworks (TFLite, ONNX Runtime), and real time ML pipelines for anomaly detection, RF intelligence, and network assurance.
- Work closely with silicon vendors and platform teams to get the most out of advanced Wi-Fi 8 chipsets, including NPU and other offload paths.
Benefits
- medical, dental and vision insurance
- a 401(k) plan with a Cisco matching contribution
- paid parental leave
- short and long-term disability coverage
- basic life insurance
- grants of Cisco restricted stock units
- 10 paid holidays per full calendar year
- 1 floating holiday for non-exempt employees
- 1 paid day off for employee’s birthday
- paid year-end holiday shutdown
- 4 paid days off for personal wellness
- 16 days of paid vacation time per full calendar year (non-exempt)
- flexible vacation time off program (exempt)
- 80 hours of sick time off provided on hire date and each January 1st thereafter
- up to 80 hours of unused sick time carried forward
- Additional paid time away may be requested to deal with critical or emergency issues for family members
- Optional 10 paid days per full calendar year to volunteer
- annual bonuses (non-sales roles)
- performance-based incentive pay (sales roles)
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What This Job Offers
Job Type
Full-time
Career Level
Entry Level
Education Level
Ph.D. or professional degree
