Sr. Embedded Software Development Engineer (C/C++), EC2 Nitro Instance Networking

Lead the low-level development of networking systems that form the foundation of cloud computing, enabling millions of applications to connect and perform reliably across the world's largest cloud platform. Join the Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (EC2) Instance Networking team where your technical leadership shapes how enterprises and AWS services experience network performance, security, and reliability at unprecedented scale.

As a Senior Embedded Software Development Engineer (C/C++), you will guide complex engineering initiatives across diverse technical domains that define modern cloud networking infrastructure. You'll architect high-performance packet processing systems handling millions of operations per second, design advanced analytics platforms that transform network telemetry data into engineering insights, lead testing infrastructure development that validates changes across global infrastructure, and implement sophisticated protection mechanisms that secure customer workloads. This role combines technical depth in systems programming with the scale challenges of distributed computing, offering opportunities to drive architectural decisions that operate at the intersection of performance optimization, security innovation, and operational excellence.

Working in partnership with Principal Engineers, hardware teams, and AWS leadership, you will influence technical roadmaps while mentoring other engineers and maintaining operational discipline required for systems that operate continuously at global scale.

Key job responsibilities

Provide technical leadership for engineering initiatives developing core networking infrastructure that enables secure, reliable, and high-performing connectivity across the EC2 platform. Drive architectural decisions for systems spanning hardware-optimized software development through distributed analytics platforms that process network behavior at significant scale.

Lead development efforts across multiple technical domains including high-performance packet processing systems, comprehensive network telemetry and analytics platforms, automated testing and validation infrastructure, and advanced security mechanisms. Champion architectural improvements when supported by performance data and operational evidence, including fundamental changes to packet processing pipelines and security enforcement mechanisms.

Mentor junior engineers and guide technical decision-making across complex networking challenges. Collaborate with hardware engineering teams to optimize software performance across evolving networking hardware platforms while ensuring compatibility and feature consistency.

Establish engineering best practices that balance rapid innovation with operational excellence, including comprehensive automated testing frameworks, performance benchmarking across diverse scenarios, and monitoring systems. Navigate complex technical challenges in distributed systems, low-level programming, and hardware-software integration while maintaining reliability standards required for mission-critical infrastructure.

Basic Qualifications

• 5+ years of non-internship professional software development experience
• 5+ years of programming with at least one software programming language experience
• 5+ years of leading design or architecture (design patterns, reliability and scaling) of new and existing systems experience
• Experience as a mentor, tech lead or leading an engineering team
• Knowledge of system performance, memory management, and parallel computing principles

Preferred Qualifications

• 5+ years of full software development life cycle, including coding standards, code reviews, source control management, build processes, testing, and operations experience
• Bachelor's degree in computer science or equivalent
• Knowledge of ARM CPUs

Amazon is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected veteran status, disability, or other legally protected status.

Our inclusive culture empowers Amazonians to deliver the best results for our customers. If you have a disability and need a workplace accommodation or adjustment during the application and hiring process, including support for the interview or onboarding process, please visit https://amazon.jobs/content/en/how-we-hire/accommodations for more information. If the country/region you’re applying in isn’t listed, please contact your Recruiting Partner.

The base salary range for this position is listed below. Your Amazon package will include sign-on payments and restricted stock units (RSUs). Final compensation will be determined based on factors including experience, qualifications, and location. Amazon also offers comprehensive benefits including health insurance (medical, dental, vision, prescription, Basic Life & AD&D insurance and option for Supplemental life plans, EAP, Mental Health Support, Medical Advice Line, Flexible Spending Accounts, Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage), 401(k) matching, paid time off, and parental leave. Learn more about our benefits at https://amazon.jobs/en/benefits.

USA, WA, Seattle - 168,100.00 - 227,400.00 USD annually