Google logo

Touch Architect, XR Hardware

Google

San Jose, CAJob$188–274K/yrSeen 2w agoSeen in employer's feed 6 days ago

Most applications go out cold — see where you stand first. No sign-up to start.

You apply on the employer's site, with no Olive account needed.

Watch jobs like this.

Don't just apply. Show up ready.

Olive works from this exact posting.

At a glance

Compensation
$188–274K/yr
Location
San Jose, CA
Work Authorization
Not specified

Olive lists jobs from US employers, including remote roles you can work from the United States.

Job overview

Google seeks a technical lead for capacitive touch and fingerprint biometric subsystems across its next-generation hardware portfolio. The role bridges electrical engineering, signal processing, and human-computer interaction, partnering with UX, Industrial Design, and Human Factors teams to translate user studies into system requirements. The engineer will lead cross-functional teams and external suppliers to deliver touch and biometric performance at scale.

Skills & qualifications

RequiredNice to have

Skills

Capacitive Touch DesignFingerprint Sensor DesignSensor Subsystem IntegrationConsumer ElectronicsSensing Technology DevelopmentBiometric ModulesProduct Lifecycle ManagementHigh-Volume Consumer HardwareHardware and UX IntegrationUser Study DesignUser Study AnalysisAutomated Test Equipment

Qualifications

Bachelor's in Listed Field or Equivalent6+ Years Sensor Subsystem Design3+ Years Sensor DevelopmentMaster's or PhD in Listed Field7+ Years Industry ExperienceEnglish Proficiency

Full job description

Touch Architect, XR Hardware

Share Touch Architect, XR Hardware

corporate_fare Google place San Jose, CA, USA

Advanced

Experience owning outcomes and decision making, solving ambiguous problems and influencing stakeholders; deep expertise in domain.

Share Touch Architect, XR Hardware

Minimum qualifications:

  • Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Physics, or equivalent practical experience.

  • 6 years of experience designing, integrating, and shipping capacitive touch and fingerprint sensor subsystems in consumer electronics.

  • 3 years of experience developing sensing/fingerprint sensors and technology.

  • Experience leading capacitive sensing and biometric modules through the full product lifecycle.

Preferred qualifications:

  • Master’s or PhD degree in Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Physics, or a related field.

  • 7 years of industry experience in high-volume consumer hardware.

  • Experience operating at the intersection of Hardware Engineering and UX design.

  • Experience designing, leading, and analyzing user studies (e.g., psychophysical touch perception, ergonomic reachability, biometric FRR/FAR evaluations, real-world usability trials) to drive architectural and algorithmic decisions.

  • Experience defining custom automated test equipment (ATE).

About the job

As a Staff Touch and Fingerprint Sensor Engineer, you will serve as the technical lead for capacitive touch and fingerprint biometric subsystems across our next-generation hardware portfolio. Sitting at the intersection of electrical engineering, signal processing, and human-computer interaction, you will bridge the gap between low-level capacitive physics and high-level user experience.

You will partner upstream with UX Design, Industrial Design, and Human Factors teams to shape how users physically interact with our products. You will design and leverage user studies to turn ambiguous interaction goals into concrete electrical, mechanical, and algorithmic requirements—and lead internal cross-functional teams and external silicon/module partners to deliver industry-leading touch and biometric performance at scale.

For decades, the computing revolution has reshaped our world driven by

breakthroughs in compute, connectivity, mobile, and now, AI. Google's XR

team is at the forefront of the next major leap – the convergence of AI and

XR. This is more than just new devices – it's about reimagining how we

interact with the world around us. We're building a future where

lightweight XR devices like smart glasses and headsets pair with helpful AI

to augment human intelligence, offering personalized, conversational, and

contextually aware experiences.

Individual pay is determined by factors including job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training.

US: $188000 - $274000 (USD) + 20% bonus target + equity + benefits

Learn more aboutbenefits at Google (https://www.google.com/about/careers/applications/benefits/) .

Responsibilities

  • Own end-to-end architecture, specification, and execution of capacitive touch interfaces and fingerprint sensors across multiple product lines. Contribute to the multi-year sensing technology roadmap. Architect and oversee human-subject user studies and biometric trials to validate new touch interfaces, sensor placements, and firmware algorithms.

  • Act as primary technical bridge between Hardware and UX—co-developing interactive prototypes, defining touch and biometric UX metrics, and driving system trade-offs before architecture lock.

  • Lead complex cross-disciplinary debugging across Display, Mechanical, RF, Power, and Firmware teams to resolve noise coupling, mechanical stack-up tolerances, and algorithmic edge cases.

  • Drive IC and module suppliers on custom silicon/sensor development, factory calibration flows, compliance testing, and yield optimization through to mass production.

  • Establish internal best practices for touch/biometric benchmarking and user-experience validation. Mentor junior engineers on capacitive sensing fundamentals/human-centric hardware design.

Information collected and processed as part of your Google Careers profile, and any job applications you choose to submit is subject to Google'sApplicant and Candidate Privacy Policy (./privacy-policy) .

Google is proud to be an equal opportunity and affirmative action employer. We are committed to building a workforce that is representative of the users we serve, creating a culture of belonging, and providing an equal employment opportunity regardless of race, creed, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, national origin, disability, age, genetic information, veteran status, marital status, pregnancy or related condition (including breastfeeding), expecting or parents-to-be, criminal histories consistent with legal requirements, or any other basis protected by law. See alsoGoogle's EEO Policy (https://www.google.com/about/careers/applications/eeo/) ,Know your rights: workplace discrimination is illegal (https://careers.google.com/jobs/dist/legal/EEOC\_KnowYourRights\_10\_20.pdf) ,Belonging at Google (https://about.google/belonging/) , andHow we hire (https://careers.google.com/how-we-hire/) .

If you have a need that requires accommodation, please let us know by completing ourAccommodations for Applicants form (https://goo.gl/forms/aBt6Pu71i1kzpLHe2) .

Google is a global company and, in order to facilitate efficient collaboration and communication globally, English proficiency is a requirement for all roles unless stated otherwise in the job posting.

To all recruitment agencies: Google does not accept agency resumes. Please do not forward resumes to our jobs alias, Google employees, or any other organization location. Google is not responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes.

Equity is granted exclusively and discretionarily by Alphabet Inc. on the basis of an agreement concluded between you and Alphabet Inc. Alphabet Inc. is your sole contractual partner with respect to equity grants. GSU grants are not guaranteed, are discretionary, are subject to approval by the Alphabet Inc. board of directors or its delegate, the terms of the relevant Alphabet Inc. stock plan, and your grant agreement. They have no impact on statutory payments. Current or past grants do not confer an acquired right.

Google is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements. See also https://careers.google.com/eeo/ and https://careers.google.com/jobs/dist/legal/OFCCP_EEO_Post.pdf If you have a need that requires accommodation, please let us know by completing our Accommodations for Applicants form: https://goo.gl/forms/aBt6Pu71i1kzpLHe2.

How this job compares

Set against the 1,053 open Hardware Engineering jobs on Olive Jobs, counted November 4, 2026.

Pay
  • This posting$188–274K/yr
  • California median$172–245K/yr222 salary ranges
  • US median$146–245K/yr759 salary ranges

This range's midpoint, $231K, is 11% above the California median midpoint ($209K) — in the middle half of Hardware Engineering salary ranges in California.

Openings
Olive Jobs lists 347 open Hardware Engineering jobs in California and 1,053 across the US. Under 1% of them nationwide are listed as remote or flexible.
Hiring the most in California
Experience
This posting asks for at least 6 years of experience; Hardware Engineering postings that state a minimum ask for 7 years at the median (664 postings).
Education
344 of the 1,053 open Hardware Engineering jobs (33%) ask for a bachelor's degree or higher.

Counted across the open, public US postings on Olive Jobs on November 4, 2026. Pay medians are the middle values of the low ends and of the high ends of postings that list both ends of a range in the same cadence (a yearly salary or an hourly rate); a range's midpoint is halfway between its ends. Pay and experience figures resting on fewer than 20 postings are left out.

Prepare for this role

You've read the whole posting — now see how you match it.