Audio Firmware Engineer

Title: Audio Firmware Engineer

Location: United States, San Mateo, CA

Why Sony Interactive Entertainment?

Sony Interactive Entertainment isn’t just the Best Place to Play — it’s also the Best Place to Work. Sony Interactive Entertainment (SIE) is the company behind the PlayStation brand. As a subsidiary of Sony Group Corporation, we’re part of a proud legacy of innovation and excellence. SIE is a dynamic technology company, delivering cutting-edge hardware and network services to more than 100 million people and an entertainment leader, home to some of the most beloved and recognizable intellectual properties (IP) in the world. Our role at SIE is to create and nurture the experiences under the PlayStation brand, a name synonymous with entertainment excellence and creativity.

Audio Firmware Engineer

We are building a small team to create new products for the PlayStation community. Our team recently delivered the new PlayStation Link, PULSE Explore and PULSE Elite products, recently announced the FlexStrike and PULSE Elevate products, and are hard at work on what comes next.

We are seeking a connectivity protocol engineer for design, implement, and optimize wireless connectivity features across our product ecosystem. You’ll work at the intersection of systems software, wireless standards, and hardware integration—building robust pairing and provisioning flows, debugging low-level protocols, and driving performance under real-world RF constraints. You will also support certification, field interoperability, and fleet-scale connectivity infrastructure.

Come and play with us!

Responsibilities

In this role, you will own and develop firmware for gaming peripherals. You will be responsible for technical leadership, system architecture, and execution across the firmware domain, working closely with internal teams and external partners.

• Design, implement, and debug Bluetooth/BLE features across RTOS and/or kernel drivers, systemd/D-Bus services. ALS<span class="highlight-KW_EDCTN">A/ASoC, codec and DSP drivers, A2DP,HFP, AVRCP.
• Deliver robust pairing, bonding, and provisioning flows GATT/GAP, LE Audio/LC3
• Optimize end-to-end audio latency, buffer sizing and xrun/glitch elimination, clock drift and sample-rate conversion, jitter buffer behavior, and low-power idle/wake paths, coexistence, nearby discovery.
• Reconcile wireless link clock against codec’s I2S clock without audible drift or resampling artifacts and concurrent-path operation
• Instrument and analyze with packet captures and tooling: ALSA/PipeWire debug(pw-top, alsa-info, tinyalsa), tracepoints and perf/EBPF; logic analyzer on I2S/SoundWire, and an audio analyzer for TBHD+N, SNR frequency response, btmon.
• Drive interoperability and certification readiness (Bluetooth SIG, USB-IF, Microsoft HLK) and resolve field issues with root-cause fixes
• Contribute to OTA-safe configuration, telemetry, and diagnostics for fleet-scale operation
• Support manufacturing builds, per-unit acoustic calibration and coordinate firmware activities during product bring-up
• Support products post-launch

Skills

• Are highly proficient in C/C++ with scripting experience (Python or shell) and systems debugging (gdb, strace, logs, packet traces)
• Possess deep knowledge of Bluetooth Classic/BLE (HCI, L2CAP, GATT/GAP, profiles)
• Bring hands-on experience with BlueZ, and driver bring-up on ARM64 or x86 platforms
• Experience with A2DP,HFP, AVRCP, and BAS/ASCS/PACS for LE Audio. Codec familiarity – SBC, AAC, aptX, LDAC, LC3

Qualifications

• Have deep experience shipping wireless features on Mac, Windows or Linux-based and/or Console SDK experience·     
• Bluetooth audio SoC vendor stacks – Qualcomm QCC, Airoha, Realtek, Nordic RnF·      Proprietary 2.4Ghz link design (custom TDMA, low latency dongle protocols.)·     
• Passion for gaming, digital entertainment and consumer electronics industry
• Have a proven track record of improving real-world performance and reliability under RF constraints

Nice to Have:

• DSP feature integration: AEC, noise suppression, beamforming, sidetone, spatial audio/HRTF·     
• Host-side audio: WASAPI/APOs on Windows, CoreAudio on MacOS·     
• Secureboot, signed images, key management for OTA·     
• Battery life profiling and power-state tuning·      Yocto or buildroot·     
• Direct ODM/CM engagement in Asia 

Working Conditions

Small team environment; feels like a start-up within a large organization.

At SIE, we consider several factors when setting each role’s base pay range, including the competitive benchmarking data for the market and geographic location.

Please note that the base pay range may vary in line with our hybrid working policy and individual base pay will be determined based on job-related factors which may include knowledge, skills, experience, and location. 

In addition, this role is eligible for SIE’s top-tier benefits package that includes medical, dental, vision, matching 401(k), paid time off, wellness program and coveted employee discounts for Sony products. This role also may be eligible for a bonus package. Click here to learn more.

The estimated base pay range for this role is listed below.

$234,200 - $351,200 USD

Please note, Sony Interactive Entertainment conducts background checks at the offer stage for all new employees (which may include criminal background checks for some roles) and will need to process personal information to support these checks.

Please refer to our Candidate Privacy Notice for more information about what personal information we collect, how we use it, who we share it with, and your data protection rights.

Equal Opportunity Statement:

Sony is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All persons will receive consideration for employment without regard to gender (including gender identity, gender expression and gender reassignment), race (including colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin), religion or belief, marital or civil partnership status, disability, age, sexual orientation, pregnancy, maternity or parental status, trade union membership or membership in any other legally protected category.

We strive to create an inclusive environment, empower employees and embrace diversity. We encourage everyone to respond. 

Sony Interactive Entertainment is a Fair Chance employer and qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records will be considered for employment.