Wi-Fi System Design and Integration Engineer
Do you have a passion for invention and self-challenge? Do you thrive with pushing the limits of what's considered feasible? As part of the Wi-Fi Connectivity team, you'll craft sophisticated, groundbreaking projects that deliver more performance in our products than ever before. You'll work across fields to transform improved hardware elements into a single, coordinated design. Join us, and you'll help us innovate new 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 worldwide.

We are seeking someone with Wi-Fi System Design and Integration expertise to work on solutions for integrating protocols and architectures to maximize performances and resource efficiency. This role focuses on analyzing protocol features, coming up with integration and architecting strategies for solutions, validating performance improvements, using simulations, modeling and prototyping. You will evaluate solution performance, quantify user benefits, analyze implementation costs, and work cross-functionally to drive solution development from proof-of-concept through product bring up and optimizations. Your solutions directly enhance the connectivity experience for millions of Apple customers.

As Wi-Fi technology advances with new protocols (Wi-Fi 8, Wi-Fi 9) and evolving application demands for performances, this role requires an engineer who has depth of knowledge and experiences on protocol integrations and optimizations, coming up with solutions that achieve performances, balancing the implementation costs.

In this role, you will be working on the following:

• Come up with solutions to control and integrate protocol features and SW, HW architectures and the systems, that maximize the system performances and the efficiency of the resource usages.
• Analyze Wi-Fi standard features (IEEE 802.11be/Wi-Fi 7, IEEE 802.11bn/Wi-Fi 8 and above) and relevant features to identify integration, architecting and implementations strategies for maximized performances and the efficiencies.
• Validate performance improvements of the solutions via simulation, modeling, and prototyping, and articulate technical capabilities as concrete user-visible outcomes reliable video, lower latency, longer battery life, smoother roaming.
• Estimate the cost of the solutions silicon area, power, HW/SW complexity, engineering effort, and schedule impact.
• Partner with architecture and design teams to vet integration, architecture and implementation viability, characterize system constraints, evaluate scalability across product lines, and surface risks and dependencies early.
• Build alignment across architecture, RF/analog, digital design, firmware, software engineering, and validation organizations to converge on agreed implementation paths.
• Drive proof-of-concept work from first prototype through product bring up and optimizations coordinating resources, unblocking the teams, and reporting outcomes to technical leadership.
• Produce engineering-ready specifications covering acceptance criteria, performance targets, interfaces, dependencies, and implementation guidance.

Core responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Conceive solutions with integration and architecting strategies that maximize Wi-Fi system performance and resource efficiency.
• Analyze protocol features including standards (IEEE 802.11be/Wi-Fi 7, 802.11bn/Wi-Fi 8, and beyond) to identify integrations of high-leverage features and system architectures.
• Quantify benefits and costs translating solution capabilities into user impact (video, latency, battery, roaming) and weighing them against silicon area, power, complexity, and schedule.
• Coordinate cross-functional collaboration and POC development with architecture, RF, digital, firmware, software engineering, and validation teams, from prototype through product bring up and optimization.
• Author technical specifications with clear acceptance criteria, performance targets, dependencies, and interfaces to guide engineering execution.

Minimum qualifications include:

• BS and a minimum of 20 years relevant industry experience
• 7+ years hands-on Wi-Fi/IEEE 802.11 system design and architecture experience, with 5+ years in technical leadership roles.
• Strong understanding of 802.11 standards with emphasis on MAC and PHY layer features.
• Knowledge of WiFi system architectures on HW/FW/SW systems and their partitioning and implementation.
• Solid foundation in wireless communication theory, signal processing, and performance modeling.
• Proficiency in performance analysis, simulation, and modeling tools (NS3 or equivalent).
• Experience analyzing complex technical trade-offs between performance, power, complexity, cost, and multi-radio coexistence challenges (WiFi/BT/UWB/Cellular).
• Experience with prototype development and proof-of-concept validation.
• Strong analytical and presentation skills with ability to synthesize complex technical information and communicate to diverse audiences.
• Proven ability to influence technical direction and drive initiatives through data-driven decision-making, persuasion, and consensus building.
• Cross-functional collaboration and project management skills, coordinating across multiple engineering disciplines.

Preferred qualifications include:

• MSEE or PhD degrees with 10+ years of relevant experience in the Wi-FI industry.
• Hands-on experience with Wi-Fi 7 features (Multi-Link Operation, 320MHz channels, 4K-QAM).
• Strong knowledge of Wi-Fi 8/IEEE 802.11bn features.
• Experience with competitive analysis and technology benchmarking.
• Familiarity with silicon development processes and constraints.
• Understanding of power management strategies for mobile devices.
• Experience with user research or product management methodologies.
• Knowledge of other wireless standards (5G/LTE, Bluetooth, UWB) and interactions with Wi-Fi.
• Experience with lab characterization and field testing.

At Apple, base pay is one part of our total compensation package and is determined within a range. This provides the opportunity to progress as you grow and develop within a role. The base pay range for this role is between $212,000 and $386,300, and your base pay will depend on your skills, qualifications, experience, and location. Apple employees also have the opportunity to become an Apple shareholder through participation in Apple's discretionary employee stock programs. Apple employees are eligible for discretionary restricted stock unit awards, and can purchase Apple stock at a discount if voluntarily participating in Apple's Employee Stock Purchase Plan. You'll also receive benefits including: Comprehensive medical and dental coverage, retirement benefits, a range of discounted products and free services, and for formal education related to advancing your career at Apple, reimbursement for certain educational expenses including tuition. Additionally, this role might be eligible for discretionary bonuses or commission payments as well as relocation.