Senior FPGA Design Engineer

It started with a simple idea: what if surgery could be less invasive and recovery less painful? Nearly 30 years later, that question still fuels everything we do at Intuitive. As a global leader in robotic-assisted surgery and minimally invasive care, our technologies—like the da Vinci surgical system and Ion—have transformed how care is delivered for millions of patients worldwide.

We’re a team of engineers, clinicians, and innovators united by one purpose: to make surgery smarter, safer, and more human. Every day, our work helps care teams perform with greater precision and patients recover faster, improving outcomes around the world.

The problems we solve demand creativity, rigor, and collaboration. The work is challenging, but deeply meaningful—because every improvement we make has the potential to change a life.

If you’re ready to contribute to something bigger than yourself and help transform the future of healthcare, you’ll find your purpose here.

Primary Function of Position:

We are seeking a talented FPGA Design Engineer to join our FPGA design team.  The successful candidate will work with a group of dedicated engineers focused on developing the world’s leading surgical robotics systems.  As a member of the FPGA Core team, the individual in this position will play a key role in FPGA design - developing and integrating FPGA designs for communications, embedded processing, sensor interfacing and motor control.

Roles & Responsibilities:

In this role you will:

• Work closely on a daily basis with other FPGA team members to build and maintain a world-class FPGA design platform.
• Be provided with the challenge for delivering the highest quality FPGA designs that are critical to the safety and effectiveness of our robotics systems.
• Own entire FPGA designs from concept to production.
• Develop modular FPGA content for highly shared applications.
• Continually be exposed to, evaluate, and implement new technologies, tools, and processes.
• Provide your input on architectural decisions ranging from FPGA designs to electrical system architecture implementation.
• Understand system-level requirements to develop FPGA specification and test protocol documentation.
• Collaborate with our FPGA Verification team to identify and implement essential FPGA functional simulation coverage.
• Have the opportunity to learn from and work with many cross-functional teams – Hardware, Software, Mechanical, Manufacturing – to ensure correct implementation of FPGA designs from concept to system integration.
• Design, implement, and perform critical robotic in-system verification and validation procedures for your FPGA designs to ensure that the overall product meets required specifications.

Skills, Experience, Education, & Training:

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in electrical or computer engineering
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Minimum 8 years’ experience designing complex FPGA modules.
• Fluent in System-Verilog/Verilog (VHDL a plus)
• Strong foundation in implementing FPGAs with AMD Versal, Zynq UltraScale+ MPSoC devices
• Strong foundation in using FPGA build tools – AMD Vitis/Vivado/SDK/HLS
• Strong foundation in using FPGA simulation tools, environments and in test bench development - QuestaSim and UVM preferred
• Experience with various communication protocols - DDRX, AXI4, PCIE, SPI, I2C, embedded processing, motor control
• Experience with using lab equipment – oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, power supplies, etc.
• Strong foundation in FPGA bringup, debug, and software/system integration.
• Strong foundation in FPGA verification and validation methods.
• Experience with programming/scripting languages – C, Python, etc.
• Experience with Linux OS.

Due to the nature of our business and the role, please note that Intuitive and/or your customer(s) may require that you show current proof of vaccination against certain diseases including COVID-19.  Details can vary by role.

Intuitive is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We provide equal employment opportunities to all qualified applicants and employees, and prohibit discrimination and harassment of any type, without regard to race, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, color, age, religion, protected veteran or disability status, genetic information or any other status protected under federal, state, or local applicable laws.

Mandatory Notices

U.S. Export Controls Disclaimer:  In accordance with the U.S. Export Administration Regulations (15 CFR §743.13(b)), some roles at Intuitive Surgical may be subject to U.S. export controls for prospective employees
who are nationals from countries currently on embargo or sanctions status.

Certain information you provide as part of the application will be used for purposes of determining whether Intuitive Surgical will need to (i) obtain an export license from the U.S. Government on your behalf (note: the government’s licensing process can take 3 to 6+ months) or (ii) implement a Technology Control Plan (“TCP”) (note: typically adds 2 weeks to the hiring process).  

For any Intuitive role subject to export controls, final offers are contingent upon obtaining an approved export license and/or an executed TCP prior to the prospective employee’s
start date, which may or may not be flexible, and within a timeframe that does not unreasonably impede the hiring need. If applicable, candidates will be notified and instructed on any requirements for these purposes. 

We will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records in accordance with fair chance laws.

Preference will be given to qualified candidates who do not reside, or plan to reside, in Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, or Tennessee.

This position may be filled at a different job level than listed here depending on
business need and/or on the selected candidate’s experience, knowledge and skills.
Compensation will be based primarily on the job level at which the role is filled and the
candidate’s qualifications, consistent with applicable law.

We provide market-competitive compensation packages, inclusive of base pay, incentives, benefits, and equity. It would not be typical for someone to be hired at the top end of range for the role, as actual pay will be determined based on several factors, including experience, skills, and qualifications. The target compensation ranges are listed.