Linux Kernel Consultant (Remote/Anywhere)

Role overview Develop and improve Linux kernel code for widely used consumer devices, contributing changes upstream while tackling difficult product and subsystem problems. The role combines hands-on kernel engineering with technical consulting: you will work with client engineering teams, explain trade-offs, and encourage upstream-first solutions that balance long-term maintainability with delivery constraints. It offers scope to deepen subsystem expertise and build toward technical leadership.

Responsibilities - Develop and contribute changes to mainline Linux, including work in areas such as scheduling, power management, drivers, and core subsystems. - Diagnose and reproduce product issues, including reports with limited reproduction details or no useful stack trace. - Optimize Linux for consumer devices and investigate behavior that requires new or adapted kernel capabilities. - Collaborate with upstream maintainers and participate in the wider kernel community. - Translate customer needs into technical plans, explain decisions, and set realistic expectations. - Balance code quality and upstream goals with hardware limits, business needs, and delivery timelines.

Requirements - Solid Linux kernel development experience and the ability to navigate unfamiliar subsystems independently. - Product support experience, including diagnosing and resolving end-user issues. - Strong spoken and written English for patch reviews, documentation, and client discussions. - Ability to work independently in a remote, asynchronous environment.

Nice to have - Upstream contribution history or client-facing technical consulting experience. - Experience with schedulers, power management, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, or audio subsystems. - Kernel testing CI tools such as KernelCI, Jenkins, or LAVA; board support package development or board bring-up. - Experience with distributions or build systems such as Arch, Debian, Yocto, or Buildroot, or programming in Rust.

Benefits and work setup The role is fully remote, with a preference for European or US East Coast working hours. Conference participation and open source contributions are supported, and the role has no on-call rotation or out-of-hours incident response expectations. Other provisions may include flexible hours, an office setup budget, coworking support, wellbeing assessments, and a sabbatical or retention benefit after five years. Compensation is location-dependent.