Real-time Linux is a key requirement for critical infrastructure like 5G towers, robotics and self-driving cars. We are excited to be bringing Ubuntu to the real-time space, and are looking for a specialist, quality-centric senior kernel engineer to lead our real-time kernel effort.

This is an exciting opportunity for a senior software engineer passionate about open source software with extensive experience working in low latency and deterministic systems at the operating system kernel level. Come build a rewarding, meaningful career working with the best and brightest people in technology at Canonical, a growing international software company.

Canonical's kernel team delivers a wide array of optimized Linux kernels for Ubuntu on many of the world’s largest clouds and data centers to robotics, IoT and edge computing.  This senior kernel position will lead the effort in optimizing our Ubuntu kernel’s performance over real-time workloads. If you have solid general kernel development experience, real-time kernel development skills and love the idea of producing high-quality, high-performance Linux kernels, we encourage you to bring your talents to our growing Linux kernel team to help us provide the same world-class Ubuntu experience to real-time workloads. 

What you’ll do

• Collaborate regularly and proactively with a globally distributed team  
• Lead the design and integration of real-time extensions in Ubuntu Linux kernels
• Work closely with a variety of customer and partner engineers to provide optimal latency and deterministic solutions for their platforms
• Drive the implementation of real-time performance measurement infrastructure
• Collaborate with internal and upstream maintainers to develop optimal Linux kernel real-time solutions
• Take responsibility for rigorous testing of the Ubuntu real-time kernels

Who you are

• You love technology and working with brilliant people
• Strong grasp of real-time as a system of distinct components with a keen interest in tuning to achieve maximum performance
• Able to function and communicate effectively as part of a globally distributed team
• Communicate effectively in English, both written and oral
• Demonstrated ability to present oneself in a professional manner when interacting with colleagues, business partners, and the open source community
• Demonstrated expertise in working in operating system kernel internals in a real-time environment, Linux or other RTOS
• Direct experience with the PREEMPT_RT patchset while not required would be highly regarded
• Earned a bachelor’s (or equivalent university level) degree, preferably in a technology field
• Significant programming experience in C, with Python and Bash scripting also highly regarded
• Solid understanding of device drivers, BSP’s, and other low level system engineering

We are seeking Software Engineers to join the Ubuntu Gaming Experience team and be part of our mission to ship the best open source operating system in the world. This is an opportunity for a Software Engineer passionate about open source software and gaming on the Linux desktop. Come build a rewarding, meaningful career working with the best and brightest people in technology at Canonical, a growing international software company.

We are in an exciting time for gaming on Linux. Compatibility tools like Proton have matured and many native Windows titles can be made to work, massively expanding the library of titles available on Linux. Delivering a well rounded gaming experience is about more than just compatibility; it’s about maximising performance across a wide range of hardware, ensuring anti-cheat is robust and secure, making it easy to access tools for content creation, driver management and HUD overlays as well as ensuring game controllers, headsets, RGB keyboards and gaming mice are fully supported and customisable.

We want to make the widest selection of games "Just Work" on Ubuntu, and we are creating a team to focus on performance, compatibility and user experience for gamers. We want to create a platform that makes it easy for players to find the games they want, use the devices they own and share those experiences with friends.

In this role you will work with open source projects like Proton and partners like Unity to improve the gaming experience for Ubuntu users around the world, as well as the wider Linux gaming ecosystem in general. You will need to be effective working with low-level libraries, drivers, and the Linux graphics, sound and input stacks.

What you’ll do

• Collaborate proactively with a distributed team, on low-level, performance and security-critical software
• Integrate work from multiple partners into Ubuntu, ensuring reliability, security and performance
• Write high quality code in C, Python and C++, debug issues and produce high quality fixes
• Work from home with global travel 2 to 4 weeks for internal and external events

Who you are

• You have experience with Linux input, sound, graphics, C and C++
• You are interested in working with OpenGL, Vulkan, Mesa, Proton, Wine, DXVK, and Direct3D
• You love to game and you understand the challenges facing gamers on Linux today!
• You love technology and working with brilliant people
• You are curious, flexible, articulate, and accountable
• You value soft skills and are passionate, enterprising, thoughtful, and self-motivated
• You have a Bachelor’s or equivalent in Computer Science, STEM or similar degree
• You are passionate about creating the best gaming experiences, open source, and solving complex problems.