
By burning the transformer architecture into our chips, we’re creating the world’s most powerful servers for transformer inference.

By burning the transformer architecture into our chips, we’re creating the world’s most powerful servers for transformer inference.
Product: Sohu — transformer-optimized inference ASIC and server stack
Headquarters: Cupertino, California, United States
Founding timeframe: Circa 2022
Total reported funding: Approximately $625.4M (reported aggregate varies by source)
Notable investors: Includes Stripes, Peter Thiel, Primary Venture Partners, Two Sigma Ventures (reported participation)
Transformer-model inference performance and efficiency in AI hardware
2022
Computer Hardware Manufacturing
$5.4M
Reported seed round ~ $5.4M
$120M
Reported round bringing total raised to roughly $125M in some coverage; included participation from institutional and angel investors
$500M
Reported round valuing company at about $5B and bringing aggregate funding toward ~$1B in some reports
“Includes participation from Stripes, Peter Thiel, Primary Venture Partners, Two Sigma Ventures and other institutional and angel investors (reported)”
| Company |
|---|
About Etched Etched is building the world’s first AI inference system purpose-built for transformers - delivering over 10x higher performance and dramatically lower cost and latency than a B200. With Etched ASICs, you can build products that would be impossible with GPUs, like real-time video generation models and extremely deep & parallel chain-of-thought reasoning agents. Backed by hundreds of millions from top-tier investors and staffed by leading engineers, Etched is redefining the infrastructure layer for the fastest growing industry in history.
Job Summary Our Platform Team designs the server systems that bring our chips to life. We are seeking a Head of Platform Electrical & Validation Engineering to lead and scale a multidisciplinary team of electrical, validation, and system engineers responsible for module- and system-level design.
This leader will own both hands-on product design and the development of the design and validation infrastructure needed to ensure our servers are robust, manufacturable, and performant at scale.
Key Responsibilities
You may be a good fit if you have
Benefits
Medical, dental, and vision packages with generous premium coverage
$500 per month credit for waiving medical benefits
Housing subsidy of $2k per month for those living within walking distance of the office
Relocation support for those moving to San Jose (Santana Row)
Various wellness benefits covering fitness, mental health, and more
Daily lunch + dinner in our office
How We’re Different Etched believes in the Bitter Lesson. We think most of the progress in the AI field has come from using more FLOPs to train and run models, and the best way to get more FLOPs is to build model-specific hardware. Larger and larger training runs encourage companies to consolidate around fewer model architectures, which creates a market for single-model ASICs.
We are a fully in-person team in San Jose (Santana Row), and greatly value engineering skills. We do not have boundaries between engineering and research, and we expect all of our technical staff to contribute to both as needed.
Your next opportunity is in here somewhere. Sign up to explore 52,000+ startups and their open roles. No spam. No gamification. Just jobs.
52,000+
Startups
66,000+
Open Roles
1,500+
New This Week
Leadership & Team Building
Direct, mentor, and grow teams of electrical engineers, validation engineers, and system engineers.
Define organizational priorities, set technical standards, and drive cross-functional collaboration across silicon, mechanical, and software groups.
Product & Module Design
Oversee server L6 & L10, and the Sohu module electrical design, from concept through production for Electrical & Validation engineers.
Guide schematic capture, PCB design, BOM, power delivery, signal integrity, and system integration.
Intense focus on the electrical PCB design for high power large ASIC design, and 112GHz+ signaling
Validation & Reliability
Build and scale validation strategies for modules, boards, and full server systems.
Establish rigorous bring-up, debug, and test plans that accelerate time-to-market.
Partner with manufacturing ODM to align any design & validation expectations with volume production needs.
Infrastructure & Process Development
Define and implement design engineering infrastructure, including simulation tools, validation frameworks, and lab capabilities.
Introduce best practices for design reviews, verification sign-off, and data-driven decision-making.
Ensure traceability and repeatability across engineering workflows.
Cross-Functional Engagement
Collaborate with silicon architects, mechanical designers, and software/firmware teams to ensure system-level optimization.
Act as a key technical voice with vendors, ODMs, and manufacturing partners.
Provide executive-level updates on risks, milestones, and resource needs.