Principal CPU Microarchitect in Cambridge

About Huawei Research and Development UK Limited. Founded in 1987, Huawei is a leading global provider of information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure and smart devices. We have 207,000 employees and operate in over 170 countries and regions, serving more than three billion people around the world.

Our vision and mission is to bring digital to every person, home and organization for a fully connected, intelligent world. To this end, we will drive ubiquitous connectivity and promote equal access to networks; bring cloud and artificial intelligence to all four corners of the earth to provide superior computing power where you need it, when you need it; build digital platforms to help all industries and organizations become more agile, efficient, and dynamic; redefine user experience with AI, making it more personalized for people in all aspects of their life, whether they’re at home, in the office, or on the go.

This spirit of innovation has led Huawei to work in close partnership with leading academic institutions in the UK to develop and refine the latest technologies. With a shared commitment to innovation and progress, both parties have worked together to achieve common goals and establish a strong partnership. The partnership between UK and Huawei helps to develop the technologies of the future that will transform the way we all communicate, work and live.

For the past 30 years we have maintained an unwavering focus, rejecting shortcuts and easy opportunities that don't align with our core business. With a practical approach to everything we do, we concentrate our efforts and invest patiently to drive technological breakthroughs.

This strategic focus is a reflection of our core values:

• Staying customer-centric
• Inspiring dedication
• Persevering
• Growing by reflection

Huawei’s vision is a fully connected, intelligent world. To achieve this, we work to inspire passion for basic research around the world. Our combined passion drives development across the global innovation value chain. Huawei has the largest Research and Development organization in the world with 96,000+ employees in research centers around the globe. In the UK, we already have design centers in Cambridge, London, Edinburgh and Ipswich. We continue to explore and define new research directions and new services. We have expanded our collaborations with academic researchers; researched new network architectures, integration of communications and key enabling technologies; and developed the fundamental theories of these technologies. We invite you to join us on this exciting journey and drive your career forward.

Job Summary: We are seeking a Senior CPU Microarchitect to join the Kirin CPU Team at Huawei R&D UK (Cambridge), working on next-generation out-of-order processor cores powering Huawei's flagship mobile and compute platforms. You will define and evaluate microarchitectural features across the front-end, execution engine, and memory subsystem through cycle-accurate modelling and rigorous workload analysis, with a focus on workload-driven innovation for demanding mobile workloads. This is a pure microarchitecture and architecture modelling role, working closely with compiler, runtime, and downstream design teams.

Key Responsibilities:

• Define and specify microarchitectural features across pipeline stages — fetch/decode, OoO execution, LSU, prefetchers, branch prediction, and cache hierarchy.
• Build and maintain cycle-accurate performance models (gem5 or equivalent) to evaluate new features against SPEC CPU 2017 and representative mobile workloads.
• Drive workload analysis combining cycle-accurate gem5 modelling with simpleperf, hardware counters, and trace-based methods to identify bottlenecks and quantify uplift opportunities.
• Co-design ISA extensions with compiler and runtime teams, including ISA extensions, prefetch hints, and semantic acceleration primitives.
• Author detailed microarchitecture specifications and partner with design teams on implementation trade-offs.
• Mentor junior engineers and contribute to the team's technical direction across multiple parallel tracks (prefetch, semantic acceleration, AI4CPU).

This job description is only an outline of the tasks, responsibilities and outcomes required of the role. The jobholder will carry out any other duties as may be reasonably required by his/her line manager. The job description and personal specification may be reviewed on an ongoing basis in accordance with the changing needs of Huawei Research and Development UK Limited.

Required:

• MSc or PhD in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, or equivalent industry experience.
• 5+ years of hands-on CPU microarchitecture experience on out-of-order cores.
• Deep working knowledge of at least one major area: branch prediction, prefetching, OoO execution, memory subsystem, or cache coherence.
• Proven experience with cycle-accurate simulators (gem5 or proprietary equivalents).
• Strong workload analysis skills — performance counter methodology, top-down analysis, trace inspection.
• Proficient in C++ and Python for modelling, analysis tooling, and automation.
• Familiarity with ARMv8/v9, Intel x86_64 or RISC-V ISA at the microarchitectural level.

Desired:

• PhD in computer architecture with publications at ISCA, MICRO, HPCA, or ASPLOS.
• Experience with dynamic language runtimes (V8, SpiderMonkey, ArkCompiler) and JIT/AOT code generation.
• Exposure to AI/ML inference workloads on CPU and CPU-NPU co-design.
• Track record of features that shipped in production silicon.
• Familiarity with LLM-driven design exploration or agentic optimisation flows.

What we offer:

• 33 days annual leave entitlement per year (including UK public holidays).
• Group Personal Pension.
• Life insurance.
• Private medical insurance.
• Medical expense claim scheme.
• Employee Assistance Program.
• Cycle to work scheme.
• Company sports club and social events.
• Additional time off for learning and development.