Job Description

Job Title

Platform SW Engineer III

The Elevator Pitch 

Are you looking for a role that has meaning and purpose on a team that is crafting the future of security? Evolv’s R&D team is looking for an experienced and innovative Platform Software Engineer to provide technical leadership, improve software engineering practices, and be hands on with our team of SW engineers with expertise in embedded, real-time, and computer vision. In Evolv's fast-paced development environment, the R&D team is continuously innovating new features and integrating complementary technologies into our products.

We're looking for a senior embedded Linux developer who can own the platform from the ground up — bringing up a custom Yocto-based Linux distribution, writing and debugging kernel drivers, and building the secure boot and provisioning pipeline that ships with our hardware. You'll work directly with Electrical Engineering Hardware Engineers to translate schematics into working device drivers and device tree configurations, and partner closely with our senior IC on peripheral architecture and automated validation.

Success in the Role: Performance Outcomes

In the first 30 days, you will: 

• Demonstrate technical depth and earn the respect of senior developers.
• Learn the product's hardware architecture.
• Review existing code and software architecture.
• Get hands-on in Yocto, contributing to Evolv's custom Linux distribution.

Within 90 days you will: 

• Ship production-quality pull requests for small-to-medium features, with your first landing by day 30–45.
• Assess the current product roadmap, BSP structure, and repository organization, and outline a platform strategy so future product lines share a common, reliable software foundation.
• Actively contribute to architecture and design discussions, surfacing risks and improvements.
• Evaluate the current CI/CD and build-automation setup and land at least one concrete improvement.
• Get fluent in Evolv's full software development lifecycle, including DevOps, QA, and hardware integration touchpoints.

Within 12 months, you will: 

• Own the architecture of reusable, enterprise-grade C++ platforms — modular, cleanly abstracted, and built for reuse across product lines (see "Enterprise-Level Software Development" below for the full scope).
• Lead at least one internal technical workshop or knowledge-sharing session.
• Improve cross-functional workflows around testing, deployment, and system reliability.
• Help define and enforce coding standards and best practices across the team.
• Weigh in on long-term architectural decisions and product roadmap planning.
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement, innovation, and psychological safety.

What You'll Do

• Linux C++ Development for Embedded Systems with strong focus on BSP and Kernel
• Maintain ownership of the OS layer build process, constructing and optimizing custom Yocto recipes, layers, and configurations.
• Write, modify, and optimize Linux kernel device trees to map custom hardware peripherals and ensure clean boot routines.
• Debug low-level Linux kernel issues (boot failures, driver crashes, interrupt/DMA issues) using standard embedded Linux tooling (JTAG, serial console, kernel logs, ftrace/perf).
• Own the secure boot and provisioning pipeline end to end — signed images, secure key storage/injection, fused security state — from design through production readiness.
• Diagnose hardware-software interface boundaries, including real-time timing constraints, power profiles, and thermal behavior.
• Design and implement real-time systems interfacing with Linux on an SoC, meeting deterministic, low-latency requirements.

Enterprise-Level Software Development

• Design reusable, enterprise-grade C++ software - modular component reuse and clean API abstraction, built for longevity across multiple product lines.
• Manage component versioning, dependency trees, and decoupling strategies in resource-constrained environments.
• Write production-quality C/C++17 for both user-space applications and kernel-adjacent components.
• Apply advanced design patterns and object-oriented principles to keep core libraries scalable and maintainable.
• Build multithreaded applications using modern C++ concurrency primitives, thread synchronization, and lock-free techniques.
• Write clean, well-documented, testable code; maintain quality through peer review and unit/functional testing.
• Thoroughly document requirements, design intent, and validation data.
• Use AI coding assistants (e.g., Claude) to accelerate development, testing, and documentation across the software lifecycle.

Electronics Integration & Prototyping

• Build and maintain Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) test rigs and automated validation strategies to catch regressions at the hardware layer.
• Bring up raw prototype boards in the lab, using bench instrumentation (oscilloscope, logic analyzer, multimeter) to root-cause signal-level issues.
• Build Python-based scripting frameworks to automate test execution, parse hardware logs, and orchestrate system-level test behavior.

Cross Functional Collaboration

• Partner with EE/hardware teams throughout the product lifecycle — schematic review, component selection, and physical layout constraints.
• Work with manufacturing to scale the provisioning process into production.
• Support build automation, CI/CD pipelines, and SQA.

Leadership, Team Structure & Culture

You will be joining the Firmware Engineering team and working closely with our C++ Software Development Team. This role reports to the Principal Firmware Engineer and works alongside a team of software, systems and hardware talented engineers.

Our culture is built on the belief that exceptional products are created by teams that trust one another, challenge ideas respectfully, and remain committed to continuous growth. We are guided by our core values: Do the Right Thing, Always, Put People First, Win Together, Own It, and Be Bold, Stay Curious. These values shape how we make decisions, collaborate across teams, and deliver technology that drives meaningful business impact.

This is a team that enjoys solving hard problems together. We celebrate wins, learn openly from setbacks, and believe that high performance and having fun are not mutually exclusive. If you're energized by mentoring others, shaping technical direction, and building scalable platforms in a collaborative environment, you'll thrive here.

Where is the role located?

Our headquarters (and this role) is located in Waltham, Massachusetts. As a member of the Engineering team we expect you to come into the office daily, but we understand that things come up—you can work remotely from time to time for one-off needs.

Compensation and Transparency Statement

The base salary range for this full-time position is $114,000 – $184,000. In addition to base salary, this role offers a competitive target bonus, equity, and a comprehensive benefits package. This range reflects our commitment to pay transparency and equity, in alignment with applicable state laws. Our compensation ranges are determined based on factors such as role, level, location, market benchmarks, and internal equity. The posted range represents the good-faith estimate of what we expect to pay for this role across U.S. locations. Actual compensation within the range will be based on the candidate’s skills, experience, education, and geographic location.

In accordance with state and local pay transparency laws—including those in California, Colorado, Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, and others—we disclose salary ranges in all job postings and provide additional information upon request.

We are committed to fair pay practices, and we regularly review our compensation programs to ensure they are competitive, equitable, and aligned with our values.

Requirements

• 10+ years of professional embedded/firmware software development experience.
• Deep hands-on experience building embedded Linux systems with Yocto (bitbake, layers, recipes, image customization) — ideally including a from-scratch board bring-up.
• Strong Linux kernel driver development and debugging experience (character/platform drivers, interrupt handling, DMA).
• Working knowledge of Device Tree syntax, bindings, and Yocto-based DT configuration/overlay workflows.
• Proficiency in C and C++17 for embedded/Linux development.
• Solid digital hardware fundamentals — comfortable reading schematics, using a scope/logic analyzer, and reasoning about I2C/SPI bus timing and electrical behavior.
• Direct experience with I2C and SPI Linux driver development on an SoC.
• Experience with secure boot, image signing, or device provisioning on embedded Linux platforms.
• Comfortable working cross-functionally with EE teams to turn hardware requirements into software.

Benefits

If you want to solve one of the most difficult issues of our time and save lives doing it, you want to work at Evolv. We are passionate, knowing that what we do and how we do it can affect life or death situations for our customers. At Evolv, you will have unparalleled exposure to all aspects of our business, working with a talented team that shares our vision for a safer world. If you are inspired by invention and gain satisfaction from seeing how your work impacts the bigger picture, Evolv will be a great fit.

Our Benefits Include:

• Equity as part of your total compensation package
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA)
• A 401(k) plan (and 2% company match)
• Unlimited vacation policy
• Quarterly stipend for perks and benefits that matter most to you
• Tuition reimbursement to support your ongoing learning and development
• Subscription to Calm

Evolv Technology (“Evolv”) is an Equal Opportunity Employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any kind. We welcome and encourage diversity in the workplace, and all employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, national, social or ethnic origin, sex (including pregnancy), age, disability, HIV Status, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, veteran status, or any other status protected by law in the locations where we operate. Evolv will not tolerate discrimination or harassment based on any of these characteristics.

Evolv is committed to offering an inclusive and accessible experience for all job seekers, including individuals with disabilities. If you need a reasonable accommodation as part of the job application process, please connect with us at careers@evolvtechnology.com.

Evolv participates in E-verify for all employees after the completion of Form I-9.