CAD Engineer on ML/AI for Design Verification
Qualcomm · San Diego, CA
$164,000–$246,000from the description
Jul 12, 2026
San Diego, CA
Jul 21, 2026
What this job asks for AI summary
A senior CAD engineering role focused on design verification (DV) infrastructure, primarily building and optimizing automation tools and flows, enabling EDA tools for internal DV teams, and investigating ML/AI applications to improve verification workflows. The position suits an experienced engineer with a background in ASIC design or verification who is comfortable with scripting languages and working across multiple engineering teams.
Senior level · 6+ years · San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA · Bachelor's required · Full-time
We read this from the posting text with AI. Skim the description below before ruling yourself out.
How this req sits in the market our data
Roughly 240 people in the San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad, CA area plausibly meet what this posting asks for (software developers). range 90–320
Applicant volume Moderate — A normal amount of company. The rare requirements below are what will separate a shortlisted application from the rest.
Rare in this occupation — lead with these, and say what you built with them.
Most people in this occupation already list these. Still required — just not what gets you shortlisted.
What the occupation pays Median $166,860 (middle half $131,418–$198,246). This posting is about at that midpoint.
Estimated from BLS employment for this occupation and area, per-skill prevalence across our listing corpus, and published wage benchmarks — as of Jul 28, 2026. It is a model, not a headcount.
Why we read it this way (5)
The role title is 'CAD Engineer' focused on design verification (DV) automation — it sits between a pure software developer (building automation tools and flows) and a specialized EDA/ASIC domain role. 15-1252 Software Developers was chosen because the primary day-to-day work is writing and shipping automation tools and flows; 15-1299 is noted as a runner-up given the specialized CAD/EDA domain.
The posting lists two overlapping experience thresholds: the role overview states '8+ years of working experience in CAD, DV or related domains,' while the formal Minimum Qualifications section sets a lower bar of 6+ years (BS), 5+ years (MS), or 4+ years (PhD). The overall years minimum is set to 6 (the hard minimum for the most common degree path).
Python, Perl, TCL, GNU Make, and JavaScript are listed under the Qualifications (required) section with 'such as' framing — the qualifier indicates interchangeability among the listed languages but the programming-skills requirement itself is a hard gate; all named languages are captured as required.
VLSI/EDA tools and ML/AI are explicitly flagged as 'Plus' items in the qualifications section and are therefore preferred, not required.
The degree requirement is Bachelors (minimum path stated in Minimum Qualifications); equivalent experience is not offered as a substitute — a degree is always required, just at different levels depending on years of experience.
Read the full posting
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