Staff Research Scientist — Compiler & Runtime Optimization 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.

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 invite you to join us on this exciting journey and drive your career forward.

Job Summary

We are seeking a highly skilled and experienced individual with strong ISA extensions experience. This is a senior-level research and development role.

Key Responsibilities

• Analyse dynamic language overhead: Profile V8 and ArkTS interpreter/JIT to identify operations that consume disproportionate cycles (type checks, inline cache misses, garbage collection barriers, dynamic dispatch, deoptimisation).
• Design ISA extensions: Propose new instructions or architectural features that accelerate common dynamic language patterns while maintaining backward compatibility and security boundaries.
• Prototype in software: Modify V8, ArkTS interpreter, or JIT compiler to use new instructions, measuring speedup on representative workloads (OpenHarmony apps, JavaScript benchmarks, browser workloads).
• Model in architectural simulators: Implement proposed extensions in GEM5.
• Collaborate on RTL implementation: Work with digital design teams to refine instruction encoding, pipeline integration, and verification requirements.
• Publish and patent: Document novel contributions through internal technical reports, conference papers, and patent applications.

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

• Deep understanding of CPU microarchitecture: pipelines, out-of-order execution, branch prediction, memory hierarchy, ISA design principles.
• Experience with architectural simulation (GEM5, Sniper, ZSim, or proprietary tools).
• Familiarity with interpreter or JIT compiler internals—any of: V8, SpiderMonkey, JavaScriptCore, HotSpot, ART, LuaJIT, PyPy, or similar.
• Strong C/C++ and systems programming skills.
• Comfortable working in Linux environments with Git, Make, scripting.
• Equivalent industry experience (5+ years in CPU architecture, compilers, or language runtimes) welcomed.
• PhD or MSc in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, or Electrical Engineering preferred.

Desired

• Experience with RISC-V or ARM ISA extensions.
• Knowledge of tagged architectures, hardware type checking, or speculative optimisation support.
• Familiarity with V8 internals (TurboFan, Ignition, inline caches, hidden classes) or ArkCompiler/ArkTS.
• Background in compiler optimisation (SSA, register allocation, instruction selection).
• Publication record in computer architecture or programming language implementation.

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.