Cellular 4G/5G System Performance Engineer

San Francisco Bay Area San Diego Until 10/5/2026 First posted August 6, 2026 Last posted August 6, 2026
Job description

Do you have a passion for invention and self-challenge? Do you thrive on pushing the limits of what’s considered feasible? As part of a world class modem team, you’ll craft sophisticated leading-edge embedded firmware that deliver more performance in our products than ever before. You’ll work across disciplines to transform improved hardware elements into a single, integrated design. Join us, and you’ll help us innovate new wireless systems technologies that continually outperform the previous iterations. By collaborating with other product development groups across Apple, you’ll push the industry boundaries of what wireless systems can do and improve the product experience for our customers across the world.

Description

Do you want to have an impact on every single Apple product? As a Cellular 4G/5G System Performance Engineer, you will be at the center of the embedded 5G/4G/multimode cellular system / firmware effort within a silicon design group responsible for designing and productizing state-of-the-art cellular SoCs. This position requires someone comfortable will all aspects of embedded system/firmware verification, that thrives in a dynamic cross-functional organization, is not afraid to debate ideas openly, and is flexible enough to pivot on constantly evolving requirements.

Minimum Qualifications

Minimum requirement of a bachelors degree
Knowledge of 4G/5G physical layer, protocol stack and procedures.
Knowledge of 4G/5G development / system engineering / device performance verification.
Knowledge of investigating and troubleshooting cellular device performance issues.
Analysis and debugging capabilities to be able to debug performance issues and work with firmware development and systems design teams to close these issues.
Understanding of software engineering principles, and core computer science fundamentals.
Ability to script or program in languages such as Python, C/C++.
Experience and knowledge of multiple 4G/5G signaling and physical layer test equipment (Keysight/Anritsu/R&S) along with their automation interfaces.

Preferred Qualifications

Master's or PhD degree in wireless communication or electrical engineering.
Advanced knowledge of 4G/5G physical layer, protocol stack, and procedures.
Experience in investigating and troubleshooting cellular device performance issues.
Strong analysis and debugging capabilities to diagnose performance issues and collaborate with firmware development and systems design teams to resolve them.
Deep understanding of software engineering principles and core computer science fundamentals.
Proficient in scripting or programming languages such as Python, C/C++, and Java. A solid grasp of automation tool chain.
Extensive experience and knowledge of various 4G/5G signaling and physical layer test equipment (including Keysight, Anritsu, and R&S) and their automation interfaces.
Solid knowledge in Layer 2/Layer 3/ NAS and network performance optimization (a plus).
Experience with network emulators, silicon prototyping, emulation systems, and virtual platforms a plus.

About this role

Summary

Designs and verifies cellular system firmware, troubleshooting performance issues, collaborating across teams.

Job title

Cellular 4G/5G System Performance Engineer

Experience level

null

Industry

technology

Location requirements

San Francisco Bay Area or San Diego; remote not specified.

Salary

Not specified

Management role

No

Skills & keywords

Required skills

knowledge of 4G/5G physical layerprotocol stacksystem engineeringdevice performance verificationtroubleshooting cellular performancesoftware engineering principlesPythonC/C++test equipment automation

Preferred skills

wireless communicationdeep understanding of 4G/5Gnetwork performance optimizationtest equipment automationLayer 2/3/NAS

Specializations

wireless communicationfirmwareperformance verificationsystem debuggingprotocol stack
Locations

Structured locations inferred from the posting.

San Francisco, CA, USA

On-site City

San Diego, CA, USA

On-site City