Staff Android Platform Engineer

The Trade Desk•San Jose, CA

About The Position

We're a small, high-impact team building the next-generation TV operating system. Our flexible structure gives engineers direct influence over product direction—an opportunity rarely found in larger companies. Our innovative approach to the CTV industry optimizes the advertising supply chain, creating better outcomes for advertisers, publishers, and TV viewers alike. As part of our Ventura OS project, we're developing sophisticated backend infrastructure to power our platform, with a strong emphasis on quality at scale. We believe culture matters. We foster an environment where engineers thrive through collaboration, innovation, and continuous learning. Our teams build cutting-edge streaming technology that enables advertisers to leverage data for more relevant and effective ad experiences—while improving efficiency across the entire supply chain ecosystem. We're actively seeking an experienced Android Platform Software Engineer to contribute to developing platform software for Android devices, focusing on advancing technology and incorporating new design elements. Your role will involve close collaboration with Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) in hardware or System-on-Chip (SoC) integration to ensure top-notch performance.

Requirements

10+ years of hands-on experience with at last 5+ years in Android platform development
Strong expertise in Board Bring-up: bootloader (U-Boot/ABL), Linux kernel customization, device tree
Deep knowledge of Android BSP development: HAL implementation, kernel drivers, and system integration
Proficiency in C/C++ for system-level programming or Java/Kotlin for Framework development
Experience working with major SoC vendors (Qualcomm, MediaTek, Broadcom, Amlogic, Realtek, etc) and their reference platforms
Proven track record of successful OEM collaboration: requirement gathering, technical support, and issue resolution
Strong understanding of Android architecture: from bootloader → kernel → HAL → Framework → Apps
Experience with: Android build system (AOSP, BoardConfig.mk, device tree) Debugging tools (ADB, fastboot, QPST, QXDM, GDB, etc.) Version control (Git, Gerrit) and code review processes System performance analysis and optimization
Eagerness to tackle new and challenging projects.
Self-motivated with a capacity for independent learning and adaptation.
Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities.
Proficient debugging skills.
Exceptional verbal and written communication capabilities.

Nice To Haves

Experience with Android security (SELinux, Verified Boot, dm-verity)
Experience of multimedia subsystems (Audio, Display pipelines)
Understanding of hardware schematics and ability to work with hardware teams

Responsibilities

Lead board bring-up activities for new Android devices, including bootloader customization, kernel porting, and device driver integration
Design and develop Android Framework components (System Services, Hardware Abstraction Layer, Native Daemons)
Create and maintain Board Support Packages (BSP) for various SoC platforms (Qualcomm, MediaTek, NVIDIA, etc.)
Work directly with OEM partners to integrate platform software, debug hardware-software integration issues, and optimize device performance
Conduct comprehensive system-level debugging using tools like Trace32, logcat, and systrace
Develop and maintain device tree configurations, kernel modules, and hardware-specific drivers
Optimize boot time, power consumption, and system performance metrics
Support multiple Android release versions and manage AOSP customization

Benefits

comprehensive healthcare (medical, dental, and vision) with premiums paid in full for employees and dependents
retirement benefits such as a 401k plan and company match
short and long-term disability coverage
basic life insurance
well-being benefits
reimbursement for certain tuition expenses
parental leave
sick time of 1 hour per 30 hours worked
vacation time for full-time employees up to 120 hours thru the first year and 160 hours thereafter
around 13 paid holidays per year
Employees can also purchase The Trade Desk stock at a discount through The Trade Desk’s Employee Stock Purchase Plan.