SpaceX was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not. Today, SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of making life multiplanetary and expanding consciousness to the stars.
SpaceXSI is building Super Intelligence to help humanity understand the universe. Our teams are building the full Super Intelligence stack: from our Colossus supercomputers, to Grok models, to our suite of applications, including Grok Bot, Grok Build, Grok Imagine, Grok Voice, and X. We're creating a powerful flywheel where more compute trains better models, better models power more useful products, and what we learn from people using those products shapes what we build next.
At SpaceXSI, we design, build, and operate the largest AI supercomputers in the world, from the ground up. As a member of the Platform Core team, you will be responsible for the lowest layers of the software stack on the devices setting the pace for how fast we can push the frontier of AI. Our team’s software interfaces directly with the core hardware of the supercomputer and its network fabric. Our mission is to expose the full capability of that hardware — limited only by physics — to the rest of the stack, all while retaining the smallest, most robust footprint possible.
RESPONSIBILITIES:- Build and maintain the lean, high-reliability Linux-based operating system that underpins our supercomputer network fabric
- Write (or rewrite) high-performance device drivers to extract the maximum physical capability from our network and compute hardware
- Manage deployment, operation, and debugging of our platform in production, including: rigorous resolution and root-causing of anomalies to ensure the system is constantly improving in reliability and developing and constantly improving our tools for observability and configuration management
- Collaborate with our hardware teams and external partners to design the next generation of supercomputer hardware – and then bring up our OS and software stack on it
- 5+ years of hands-on systems programming experience in C or C++
- Strong operating systems fundamentals (scheduling, memory management, I/O) — you must be able to articulate in extreme detail how a computer works, from the hardware all the way up to high-level applications
- Understanding of computer networking, both in the host (OS stack) as well as common network devices like switches and routers
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Deep knowledge of the Linux kernel and its networking stack — transferable experience with another production-grade kernel is okay, too!
- Proficiency with debugging tools spanning kernel, network, and userspace (e.g., ftrace, perf, Wireshark/tcpdump, eBPF, gdb, and more)
- Experience bringing up new hardware from scratch — you have flashed bare-metal software on a microcontroller with JTAG, or bootstrapped a Linux kernel and rootfs on new hardware
- Demonstrated track record of developing and optimizing device/peripheral drivers — ideally for high-speed interfaces, or with advanced considerations like DMA and cache coherency
- Understanding of major peripheral hardware interface standards (Ethernet, PCIe, I2C, SPI, etc.) — you can critically review a schematic, and debug these interfaces if needed
- Experience with product security, OS/system hardening, and secure boot schemes
$200,000 - $375,000 USD
Base salary is just one part of our total rewards package at SpaceXSI, which also includes equity, comprehensive medical, vision, and dental coverage, access to a 401(k) retirement plan, short & long-term disability insurance, life insurance, and various other discounts and perks.
SpaceXSI is an equal opportunity employer. For details on data processing, view our Recruitment Privacy Notice.
Skills Required
- 5+ years of hands-on systems programming experience in C or C++
- Strong operating systems fundamentals, including scheduling, memory management, and I/O
- Understanding of computer networking in host operating systems and network devices
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Deep knowledge of the Linux kernel and networking stack, or transferable experience with another production-grade kernel
- Proficiency with kernel, network, and userspace debugging tools such as ftrace, perf, Wireshark, tcpdump, eBPF, and gdb
- Experience bringing up new hardware, including flashing bare-metal software or bootstrapping a Linux kernel and root filesystem
- Experience developing and optimizing device or peripheral drivers, including high-speed interfaces, DMA, and cache coherency
- Understanding of Ethernet, PCIe, I2C, SPI, and other peripheral hardware interface standards
- Experience with product security, operating system or system hardening, and secure boot schemes
xAI Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about xAI and has not been reviewed or approved by xAI.
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Healthcare Strength — Healthcare is described as comprehensive, including medical, dental, vision, mental health support, and fertility benefits. Additional protections such as disability and life insurance, plus HSA/FSA options, are also outlined.
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Equity Value & Accessibility — Equity is positioned as a core component of total rewards alongside high base salaries for technical roles. Pre‑IPO stock grants are highlighted as enabling participation in potential company growth.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — The package includes flexible or generous PTO, paid holidays, and paid sick days. Company materials also describe flexible vacation policies intended to help manage fast‑paced workloads.
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What We Do
Understand the Universe
