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Principal Validation Engineer Jobs in California

Eridu Corporation

ASIC Validation Engineer

Saratoga, CA · On-site

$185 - $250/hr

Position Overview We are hiring multiple positions from Sr. Engineer to Principal Engineer. We are looking for a highly experienced Post‑Silicon ASIC Validation Engineer with deep expertise in ...

Eridu AI

ASIC Validation Engineer

Saratoga, CA · On-site

$185K - $250K/yr

Position Overview We are hiring multiple positions from Sr. Engineer to Principal Engineer. We are looking for a highly experienced Post-Silicon ASIC Validation Engineer with deep expertise in ...

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All JobsPrincipal Validation Engineer JobsPrincipal Validation Engineer Jobs in California

Principal Validation Engineer information

See California salary details

$73K

$145.3K

$209.7K

How much do principal validation engineer jobs pay per year?

As of Sep 4, 2026, the average yearly pay for principal validation engineer in California is $145,292.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $116,900.00 and $170,700.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is a principal validation engineer?

A Principal Validation Engineer is a senior-level professional responsible for leading and overseeing the validation processes within engineering projects, particularly in industries like pharmaceuticals, electronics, or manufacturing. They ensure that products, equipment, or systems meet regulatory standards and function as intended through rigorous testing and documentation. Principal Validation Engineers often develop validation protocols, analyze test results, and mentor junior engineers. Their work is crucial for quality assurance and compliance with industry regulations.

What skills and qualifications are needed to thrive as a principal validation engineer?

To thrive as a Principal Validation Engineer, you need deep expertise in validation protocols, regulatory compliance (such as FDA or ISO standards), and a relevant engineering or science degree. Familiarity with validation lifecycle documentation, risk management tools, and computerized systems validation (CSV) is typically required, along with certifications like Six Sigma or ASQ CQA being advantageous. Strong leadership, analytical thinking, and effective communication are crucial for guiding teams and collaborating across departments. These competencies ensure that products and processes consistently meet quality standards, regulatory requirements, and organizational goals.

How does a principal validation engineer typically collaborate with cross-functional teams during new product development?

As a Principal Validation Engineer, you will frequently work alongside design, manufacturing, and quality assurance teams to ensure that products meet regulatory and performance standards. Collaboration often involves participating in design reviews, establishing validation strategies, and communicating test results to stakeholders. Your expertise will be crucial in troubleshooting issues and recommending design modifications, making strong communication and teamwork skills essential. This collaborative approach not only ensures product reliability but also streamlines the development process and supports continuous improvement.

What is the difference between Principal Validation Engineer vs Validation Engineer?

AspectPrincipal Validation EngineerValidation Engineer
CredentialsTypically requires advanced degrees (BSc, MSc, or PhD) and extensive industry experienceUsually requires a bachelor's degree in engineering, science, or related field
Work EnvironmentLeads validation projects, oversees teams, and collaborates with cross-functional departmentsPerforms validation tasks, executes protocols, and documents results under supervision
Industry UsageCommonly found in pharmaceutical, biotech, and medical device industriesWidely used across similar regulated industries for validation activities

The main difference between a Principal Validation Engineer and a Validation Engineer lies in experience, responsibilities, and leadership scope. The Principal Validation Engineer typically holds advanced credentials, leads validation strategies, and manages teams, whereas the Validation Engineer focuses on executing validation tasks under guidance. Both roles are essential in regulated industries like pharmaceuticals and medical devices, but the Principal role involves higher-level planning and oversight.

Do principal validation engineers make good money?

Principal validation engineers typically earn high salaries due to their advanced expertise in testing and quality assurance, often with specialized skills in automation tools and validation processes. Compensation varies by industry and location but generally includes competitive base pay, bonuses, and benefits reflecting their seniority and technical responsibilities.

What are popular job titles related to Principal Validation Engineer jobs in California?

For Principal Validation Engineer jobs in California, the most frequently searched job titles are:

What job categories do people searching Principal Validation Engineer jobs in California look for?

The top searched job categories for Principal Validation Engineer jobs in California are:

Principal Validation Engineer jobs near you
Infographic showing various Principal Validation Engineer job openings in California as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 80% Full Time, and 20% Contract. Highlights an 100% In-person job distribution, with an average salary of $145,292 per year, or $69.9 per hour.

Principal SerDes Bring-up Validation Engineer

Astera Labs

San Jose, CA • On-site

Full-time

Re-posted 3 days ago

Key responsibilities

  • Design, develop, and execute bring-up plans for post-silicon validation and characterization of silicon.

  • Perform silicon block level bring-up, functional and parametric testing, and performance benchmarking.

  • Build and maintain automation frameworks, develop test software, and analyze data to verify silicon against specifications.

Job description

Astera Labs (NASDAQ: ALAB) provides rack-scale AI infrastructure through purpose-built connectivity solutions. By collaborating with hyperscalers and ecosystem partners, Astera Labs enables organizations to unlock the full potential of modern AI. Astera Labs' Intelligent Connectivity Platform integrates CXL®, Ethernet, NVLink, PCIe®, and UALink™ semiconductor-based technologies with the company's COSMOS software suite to unify diverse components into cohesive, flexible systems that deliver end-to-end scale-up, and scale-out connectivity. The company's custom connectivity solutions business complements its standards-based portfolio, enabling customers to deploy tailored architectures to meet their unique infrastructure requirements. Discover more at www.asteralabs.com.
Principal SerDes Bring-up Validation Engineer (2026-376)
Role Overview
Astera Labs is seeking a Principal SerDes Bring-up Validation Engineer to join a cutting-edge mixed-signal design team and lead end-to-end post-silicon bring-up, validation, and characterization. You will own bring-up and characterization strategies from the ground up, translating design and product requirements into measurable test objectives, pass/fail criteria, and schedules, and driving hands-on lab work to verify silicon against specification and performance targets.
As a hyper-growth company building the purpose-built connectivity that powers rack-scale AI infrastructure, the speed and rigor of our silicon validation directly shape what we can ship. You will partner closely with AMS design, firmware, and system teams to build automated test frameworks, debug complex analog and digital interactions at the physical layer, and deliver clear, data-driven recommendations that influence product direction. This is a high-impact role for a deep technical expert who thrives on hands-on problem solving and mentoring across disciplines.
Key Responsibilities
  • Design, develop, and execute bring-up plans. Own end-to-end post-silicon bring up and characterization strategies, translating design/product requirements into measurable test objectives, pass/fail criteria, and schedules.
  • Drive design reviews and specification alignment. Participate in architecture and design-spec reviews to ensure testability, trace requirements to verification plans, and influence design tradeoffs to meet performance and reliability targets.
  • Lead hands-on test execution and bring-up. Perform silicon block level bring-up, functional and parametric testing, interop checks, and performance benchmarking; rapidly iterate on test flows to accelerate time-to-data.
  • Build and maintain automation frameworks. Develop scalable test automation, data capture, and analysis pipelines to increase throughput, reproducibility, and coverage across mixed-signal test benches.
  • Debug and optimize system performance. Diagnose complex failures and performance bottlenecks across analog, digital, firmware, and protocol layers; propose and validate corrective actions to improve stability, yield, and power/performance tradeoffs.
  • Root-cause cross-domain failures. Trace issues to circuit, package, firmware, or protocol interactions using lab measurements, waveform analysis, and system-level tests; coordinate with design, package, and firmware teams to implement fixes.
  • Collaborate with cross-functional teams. Work closely with mixed-signal design, firmware, system engineering, and manufacturing to deliver detailed results, root-cause analyses, optimization recommendations, and formal validation/compliance reports.
  • Document findings and improve methodologies. Produce clear debug reports, formal characterization summaries, and recommendations for design/process/test improvements; contribute to failure analysis (FA) best practices and knowledge base.
  • Develop test software and platform integrations. Write robust Python test scripts and control interfaces to configure, monitor, and collect status from multiple DSP and hardware platforms, improving firmware stability and automating regression suites.
  • Measure and communicate impact. Define key validation metrics, track coverage and defect trends, and present data-driven conclusions to stakeholders to influence product direction and release decisions.
    Basic Qualifications
    • Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field.
    • 8-12 years of hands-on experience in mixed-signal, high-speed lab environments executing characterization and validation with industry instruments such as protocol analyzers, BERTs, real-time oscilloscopes, sampling scopes, TDRs, and VNAs.
    • Proven track record in post-silicon validation and bring-up of high-speed PHYs or retimers, with a strong understanding of the physical layer and experience developing characterization flows and validating silicon against specifications.
    • Deep understanding of NRZ and PAM4 architectures and high-speed building blocks (PLLs, CTLE, DFE, FFE, transmitter equalization), with the ability to investigate jitter sources, CDR/PLL behavior, crosstalk, and power integrity issues.
    • Practical experience bringing up and debugging retimers, including equalization tuning, pass-through operation, clocking strategies, and reset and link sequencing.
    • Strong programming ability in Python and C/C++ for test automation, data analysis, and firmware interaction, paired with exceptional troubleshooting skills and excellent written and verbal communication.
    Preferred Qualifications
    • MS or PhD in Electrical Engineering or a related field to demonstrate advanced technical depth and specialization.
    • Hands-on proficiency with signal integrity test equipment and methodologies (BERTs, VNAs, oscilloscopes, sampling scopes, TDRs, advanced probing) and experience designing and debugging lab characterization and demo boards.
    • Working knowledge of IEEE 802.3 Ethernet standards and experience validating Ethernet PHYs, link training, auto-negotiation, and compliance across speeds and media types.
    • Practical understanding of serial interfaces such as I2C, I3C, SPI, and UART for device bring-up, firmware interaction, and system integration.
    • Proven ability to translate SI/PI simulation results into testable lab plans and document findings that drive design or process improvements.

    Salary range is $185,000 to $240,000 depending on experience, level, and business need. This role may be eligible for discretionary bonus, incentives and benefits.

We know that creativity and innovation happen more often when teams include diverse ideas, backgrounds, and experiences, and we actively encourage everyone with relevant experience to apply, including people of color, LGBTQ+ and non-binary people, veterans, parents, and individuals with disabilities.

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