below marketmost similar roles pay hereabove market
This role pays more than
68%
of similar roles. Most pay
$169,550–$220,800
— the blue band above.
At the midpoint, this role pays about
$209k
versus about
$195k
for comparable roles.
Based on 240 similar postings.
Employer
About Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is a global technology leader producing software, hardware, and cloud services including Windows, Office 365, Azure cloud platform, Xbox gaming, and Surface devices. Industry: Software & Cloud Computing
Microsoft currently has
694 open roles
on FindRole.
Listed pay typically runs
$119,800–$234,700
across 651 roles with salary data.
JOB TITLE: Principal Software Engineer
The Principal Software Engineer joins the Compute Graph Compiler team within DirectX to build core compiler and execution technologies for the Windows Machine Learning Platform. In this role, you will lead the technical vision, architecture, and roadmap for the Windows ML compiler stack. You will design and develop high-performance compiler infrastructure, execution engines, and developer tooling while solving complex systems challenges involving scheduling, memory management, code generation, graph optimization, and hardware abstraction. You will drive NPU enablement and optimization for next-generation AI processors across CPUs, GPUs, and NPUs. Required skills include proficiency in C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python. You will work on the technical problem of enabling efficient execution of complex AI workloads, including computer vision, audio, video, and generative AI.
What does a Software Engineer earn?
Median $197400 from 2576 postings across 150 companies.
Define the technical vision, architecture, and roadmap for the Windows ML compiler stack.
Lead cross-team initiatives to improve AI workload performance across CPU, GPU, and NPU hardware.
Drive NPU enablement strategies and advanced optimization techniques for next-generation AI processors.
Design and develop high-performance compiler infrastructure, execution engines, and developer tooling.
Solve complex systems challenges involving scheduling, memory management, code generation, and graph optimization.
Partner with hardware vendors and internal platform teams to influence future AI hardware capabilities.
Mentor engineers across experience levels and provide technical leadership across multiple projects.
Shape the long-term strategy for on-device and generative AI execution on Windows.
What we're looking for
Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field and 6+ years of technical engineering experience in languages like C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python.
Ability to pass the Microsoft Cloud background check.
Master's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field and 8+ years of technical engineering experience in languages like C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python (preferred).
Bachelor's Degree in Computer Science or related technical field and 12+ years of technical engineering experience in languages like C, C++, C#, Java, JavaScript, or Python (preferred).
6+ years of experience working at low levels of software stack, device driver development, and/or integration of hardware and software (preferred).
Deep knowledge with hands-on experience in ML compiler, tool, and platform technology (preferred).
10+ years of experience delivering world-class system software (preferred).
In-depth experience in operating system development in either user-mode or kernel-mode driver development (preferred).
Video Coding
AV1
AV2
AVC
HEVC
VVC
Deep Learning
Computer Vision
C++
Python
gStreamer
Docker
REST APIs
XML
JSON
Git
GitHub
ABR Algorithms
Video Processing