Principal Performance Modeling Engineer

At Groq. We believe in an AI economy powered by human agency. We envision a world where AI is accessible to all, a world that demands processing power that is better, faster, and more affordable than is available today. AI applications are currently constrained by the limitations of the Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), a technology originally developed for the gaming market and soon to become the weakest link in the AI economy.

Enter Groq's LPU™ Inference Engine. Specifically engineered for the demands of large language models (LLMs), the Language Processing Unit outpaces the GPU in speed, power, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness. The quickest way to understand the opportunity is to watch the following talk – groq.link/scspdemo.

Why join Groq? AI will change humanity forever, and we believe preservation of human agency and self determination is only possible if AI is made affordably and universally accessible. Groq’s LPUs will power AI from an early stage, and you will get to leave your fingerprint on civilization.

Principal Performance Modeling Engineer

Mission: Performance modeling of Groq systems on state-of-the-art AI/ML workloads, identify bottlenecks early and guide future hardware development of the most advanced AI accelerator on the market.

Responsibilities & opportunities in this role:

• Develop and maintain performance models for multiple generations of Groq hardware on the latest AI/ML workloads (LLMs, CNNs, LSTMs, etc.)
• Analyze AI/ML algorithms to understand their compute, networking and memory requirements, and map them effectively onto the underlying hardware architecture
• Lead a matrixed team to enable SW/HW co-optimization across chip, system and software teams
• Identify performance bottlenecks and help drive next generation chip architecture through a solid understanding of Groq's software and hardware
• Work with silicon and system integration engineers to evaluate the costs & benefits of new technologies on Groq systems
• Provide what-if scenarios / continuous guidance directly to CEO & senior leadership
• Develop the Design Space Exploration (DSE) tool for performance analysis and exploration of both chip and system across various workloads
• Define custom hardware solutions for high profile customers

Ideal candidates have/are:

• Computer science, mathematics, ECE or equivalent background and/or experience in this domain
• Strong fundamentals in computer architecture, with deep knowledge and experience of working on domain specific AI architectures, is highly preferred
• In-depth understanding of latest AI/ML algorithms and their hardware implications
• Ability to analyze and simplify complex hardware designs into simple abstracted timing models
• Past experience on modeling AI/ML workloads, and creating necessary tools for performance optimization. Experience with modeling LLM performance is beneficial, but not required
• Proficient in programming languages such as C/C++ and Python
• Experience with cycle-accurate simulators for benchmarking analysis
• Experience with developing ASIC microarchitecture design is a plus
• Experience with understanding and simulating RTL (systemVerilog) designs is a plus

Attributes of a Groqster:

• Humility - Egos are checked at the door
• Collaborative & Team Savvy - We make up the smartest person in the room, together
• Growth & Giver Mindset - Learn it all versus know it all, we share knowledge generously
• Curious & Innovative - Take a creative approach to projects, problems, and design
• Passion, Grit, & Boldness - no limit thinking, fueling informed risk taking

If this sounds like you, we’d love to hear from you!

Compensation: At Groq, a competitive base salary is part of our comprehensive compensation package, which includes equity and benefits. For this role, the base salary range is $240,200 to $420,400, determined by your skills, qualifications, experience and internal benchmarks.

Location: Groq is a geo-agnostic company, meaning you work where you are. Exceptional candidates will thrive in asynchronous partnerships and remote collaboration methods. Some roles may require being located near our primary sites, as indicated in the job description.

At Groq: Our goal is to hire and promote an exceptional workforce as diverse as the global populations we serve. Groq is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity, inclusion, and belonging in all aspects of our organization. We value and celebrate diversity in thought, beliefs, talent, expression, and backgrounds. We know that our individual differences make us better.

Groq is an Equal Opportunity Employer that is committed to inclusion and diversity. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability or protected veteran status. We also take affirmative action to offer employment opportunities to minorities, women, individuals with disabilities, and protected veterans.

Groq is committed to working with qualified individuals with physical or mental disabilities. Applicants who would like to contact us regarding the accessibility of our website or who need special assistance or a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or hiring process may contact us at: talent@groq.com. This contact information is for accommodation requests only. Evaluation of requests for reasonable accommodations will be determined on a case-by-case basis. #LI-Remote