Principal AI Architect

This is a fully remote position, open to applicants in United States.

📋 Description

• Define and uphold the architecture of an enterprise-grade AI platform, encompassing orchestration layers, LLM integration methodologies, vector/RAG pipelines, agent frameworks, API mesh, and reusable shared services.

• Establish architectural standards, guardrails, and reference designs that dictate how engineering teams construct and integrate AI workloads.

• Convert business and product requirements into comprehensive technical designs, ensuring scalability, security, reliability, and conformity with enterprise architecture principles.

• Assess build-vs-buy options for AI components, frameworks, and cloud services; formulate recommendations and influence stakeholders across various functions.

• Review solution designs from engineering teams; pinpoint risks, highlight architectural deficiencies, and suggest sustainable, long-term strategies.

• Collaborate with Security, Compliance, Legal, and Risk teams to incorporate SOX, SOC 2, PCI, PII, data residency, and other regulatory mandates into architectural designs.

• Work with Data Platform teams to establish data access patterns, governance expectations, boundaries, and integration methods that align with the enterprise data strategy.

• Lead the creation of architectural decision records (ADRs), integration specifications, and platform documentation to support engineering and compliance preparedness.

• Evaluate LLM providers and model hosting methods (such as Bedrock, SageMaker, open-source models) and orchestration frameworks; continually propose enhancements based on emerging capabilities.

• Foster cross-functional alignment on AI design decisions and platform development; facilitate architectural reviews, design discussions, and in-depth technical explorations.

• Offer expert-level guidance and mentorship to engineering teams as they implement AI services, pipelines, and production applications.

• Ensure that AI solutions adhere to best cloud practices regarding reliability, cost-effectiveness, observability, performance, and operational readiness.

• Collaborate with Product, Engineering, and Enterprise Architecture to shape the long-term direction of the platform, including multi-tenant strategies, internal developer experiences, and future AI services.

• Assist in preparing for audits and risk assessments by ensuring that AI platform design documentation, logs, and controls align with enterprise and regulatory standards.

• Advocate for engineering excellence, standardization, and modernization through clear architectural principles, platform governance, and the adoption of best-in-class tools and methodologies.

⛳️ Requirements

• A bachelor's degree in computer science, engineering, or a related discipline is required; a master’s degree is preferred.

• 8–10+ years of progressive experience in software/platform engineering, with significant expertise in AI/ML system architecture.

• Practical experience in designing and deploying production AI systems utilizing LLMs, RAG pipelines, orchestration frameworks (e.g., LangChain, LlamaIndex), and cloud-native AI services.

• Extensive experience with AWS cloud architecture, including the design of scalable, secure, and highly available distributed systems.

• Experience in regulated industries or environments with stringent compliance requirements is preferred (e.g., financial services, insurance, or equivalent).

• Proven ability to influence cross-functional leaders, drive architectural standardization, and manage complex technical projects.

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to produce decision-quality technical documentation.

• Demonstrated capability to lead architecture for large-scale platforms and guide engineering teams in adopting modern, standardized practices.

🏝️ Benefits

• Health insurance

• 401(k) matching

• Flexible work hours

• Paid time off

• Remote work options