Job description
Unikernels, as pioneered by MirageOS, are also called "library operating system". Unikernel frameworks allow building minimal operating systems with just enough capabilities to run a single application, by selecting from a set of existing components what the application actually needs. This minimal OS can then be combined with the application to form a single binary, a unikernel. This unikernel can then be run on a variety of targets, usually an hypervisor such as KVM.
Tarides is exploring their application in embedded systems and in particular within satellites, where their security properties (i.e. their ability to be fully virtualized) make them interesting as a core building block for creating a multi-tenant environment where different applications can exploit the same on-board resources (CPU, memory, sensors, FPGA, etc.) without a need for a lengthy audit of each application.
Key to making this environment successful is ensuring a smooth development experience for a wide range of programming languages (notably C/C++, Python, OCaml, etc.), especially when porting existing applications. To achieve this, we work with both MirageOS and Unikraft, the latter providing support for the POSIX interface.
We are looking for an engineer interested to further the compatibility of Unikraft and MirageOS with existing applications (in particular on arm64), and continuing our efforts to make sure unikernels can access capabilities of commonsatellite targets (in particular the Xilinx Versal family and its FPGA functionalities). These efforts are part long-running consortiums of which Tarides takes part along several industry partners such as Thales, funded by the HORIZON 2030 program and the BPI.
Responsibilities:
- Contribute to Unikraft to improve compatibility with existing applications in common programming languages
- Port several earth-observation applications to Unikraft or MirageOS for arm64
- Improve existing methods for communication between unikernels and FPGAs/GPGPUs in a performant way
- Build and test full Linux system images for the Xilinx Versal family of hardware
- Perform safety and security analysis of these deployments
- Design and implement benchmarks to measure and improve the end-to-end performance of earth observation use cases on such systems
- Work with external partners to gather requirements, discuss technical solutions, etc.
Why Join Tarides?
- Join an international, highly technical team with a strong engineering culture and a focus on long-term, high-quality work.
- Enjoy a flexible, remote-friendly environment with the option to work from our Paris office.
- Be part of a company that values autonomy, craftsmanship, and knowledge sharing.
Profile required
Ideally, you will have:
- Working knowledge of computer architecture and micro-architecture, in
particular aarch64 systems
- Experience with unikernels and the internals of unikernel frameworks (ideally Unikraft in particular)
- Experience with hypervisors (in particular KVM)
- Past experiences of dealing with Xilinx hardware, FPGAs, or embedded Linux in
general
- Basic proficiency in C/C++, Python
- Good communication skills in English; French would be ideal, but optional
- Experience of working in multidisciplinary teams - ability to collaborate with external partners from diverse technical backgrounds with domain-specific jargon.
Company description
Tarides is an international software company with offices in Cambridge (UK), Paris (France), and Chennai (India), founded in 2018 by pioneers of systems and functional programming.
We have a worldwide presence with collaborators working remotely from the US, Australia, Canada, India, Japan, and across Europe.
We have a solid academic background with connections to the University of Cambridge, Inria, and IIT Madras. Our diverse team of 40+ people performs groundbreaking innovation, feature development, and crucial maintenance of OCaml-based projects.
Tarides was previously part of Station F's Founder program in 2018 and was selected for the “Concours d’Innovation i-Lab,” organised by the French Ministry of Higher Education, Research, and Innovation in partnership with Bpifrance.
Tarides was also recognised during the FIC (International Cybersecurity Forum) 2020 fair, the leading European event on cybersecurity. These awards acknowledge the high quality solutions developed by Tarides and emphasise the interest they have gained from the cybersecurity community.
In 2022, OCaml Labs (a spinout from the University of Cambridge) and Segfault Systems (a spinout from IIT-Madras) both joined Tarides, aligning towards a shared goal: empowering developers, communities, and organisations to adopt OCaml as their primary programming experience by providing training, expertise, and development services.
Job offer published on 1/20/2026