At the SEI AI Division, we conduct research in applied artificial
intelligence and the engineering questions related to the practical
design and implementation of AI technologies and systems. We
currently lead a community-wide movement to mature the discipline
of AI Engineering for Defense and National Security.
As our government customers adopt AI and machine learning to provide leap-ahead mission capabilities, we
As our government customers adopt AI and machine learning to provide leap-ahead mission capabilities, we
- build real-world, mission-scale AI capabilities through solving
practical engineering problems
- discover and define the processes, practices, and tools to
support operationalizing AI for robust, secure, scalable, and
human-centered mission capabilities
- prepare our customers to be ready for the unique challenges of
adopting, deploying, using, and maintaining AI capabilities
- identify and investigate emerging AI and AI-adjacent
technologies that are rapidly transforming the technology
landscape
Overview
As an AI Engineer who thrives at the intersection of deep‑learning research and production‑grade software development, you will translate cutting‑edge AI concepts into robust, mission‑scale solutions for the warfighting community. You will work comfortably with large‑scale foundation models such as GPT and LLaMA, designing and deploying agentic workflows, as well as apply and advance traditional ML research and engineering across domains such as natural language processing, computer vision, time series forecasting, and other predictive analytics. You will collaborate closely with senior researchers, software engineers, and government sponsors to define problem statements, iterate on experimental designs, and deliver secure, reliable AI capabilities that meet stringent mission requirements.
The Mission Innovation Lab within the SEI’s AI Division works with the defense and national security community to translate the “ recently possible” in AI into reliable mission and warfighting capabilities.
Key Responsibilities
- De sign, de velop, and fine ‑ tune a variety of AI model s
.
- Design autonomous agents and multi ‑ step pipelines using
LangChain, ReAct, tool ‑ calling, or custom orchestration; employ
the Model Context protocol to manage stateful interactions .
- Build Retrieval ‑ Augmented Generation pipelines that combine
external knowledge bases with LLMs to improve factual accuracy for
warfighting applications .
- Implement end ‑ to ‑ end data pipelines, ETL processes, and
back ‑ end services (Python, C/C++, Java) that feed data to models
.
- Create CI/CD pipelines for model training, validation,
containerized deployment (Docker/Kubernetes), and security
scanning; maintain model registries, monitoring, and version
control of context protocols .
- Produce rapid prototypes, run benchmarks, and conduct
robustness/adversarial testing in realistic environments.
- Work closely with senior ML engineers, software developers, and
government customers; mentor junior staff and contribute to design
reviews and documentation .
- Stay current with emerging LLM architectures, agentic
paradigms, PEFT/ LoRA methods, and AI ‑ safety techniques;
translate new research into operational capabilities .
- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Machine Learn ing,
Statistics, Applied Mathematics, or a related field with at least
eight (8) years of relevant experience, or a MS degree in the same
with at least five (5) years of relevant experience.
- You will be subject to a background investigation and must be
able to obtain and maintain an active Department of War ( DoW )
security clearance.
- You must be able and willing to work onsite 5 days per week at
an SEI office in either Pittsburgh, PA or Arlington, VA.
- Proficiency in Python and at least one compiled language (C/C++
or Java); experience with REST/ GraphQL APIs and
containerization.
- Strong grasp of ML theory (supervised, unsupervised,
reinforcement learning) and evaluation metrics.
- Hands ‑ on experience fine ‑ tuning LLMs and using frameworks
such as Hugging Face Transformers, LangChain, or comparable agent
tools.
- Familiarity with building RAG pipelines (vector stores,
dense/sparse retrievers).
- Experience applying PEFT/ LoRA methods (e.g., LoRA, adapters)
to large models.
- Understanding of Model Context protocols for managing model
state across multi ‑ turn interactions.
- Experience building evaluation frameworks, benchmarks, or data
quality pipelines
- Experience with TensorFlow, PyTorch, or JAX; knowledge of data
‑ pipeline tools (Airflow, Prefect, Ray) is a plus.
- Awareness of DevSecOps practices (CI/CD, GitOps, container
security scanning, model ‑ registry concepts) is desirable.
- Deploying LLM APIs ( FastAPI, gRPC ) at scale, handling latency
and load balancing.
- Building multi ‑ tool agents, planner ‑ executor loops, or tool
‑ calling pipelines for complex decision ‑ making.
- Conducting adversarial testing, implementing input
sanitization, and contributing to AI ‑ safety research.
- Utilizing GPU/TPU resources, mixed ‑ precision training, and
distributed training frameworks such as DeepSpeed or ZeRO .
- Prior work on defense, intelligence, or government ‑ focused AI
projects and familiarity with DoW acquisition or compliance
processes.
- Contributing to open ‑ source AI and ML libraries, agentic
frameworks, or context ‑ protocol implementations.
- Analytical thinking: decompose complex AI problems into
tractable components and iterate rapidly.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills for documenting
designs and presenting results to technical and non ‑ technical
stakeholders.
- Proven teamwork: collaborate in interdisciplinary groups,
mentor peers, and contribute to shared codebases.
- High curiosity and autonomy: proactively explore emerging
technologies and integrate them into mission work.
Benefits eligible employees enjoy a wide array of benefits including comprehensive medical, prescription, dental, and vision insurance as well as a generous retirement savings program with employer contributions. Unlock your potential with tuition benefits , take well-deserved breaks with ample paid time off and observed holidays , and rest easy with life and accidental death and disability insurance.
Additional perks include a free Pittsburgh Regional Transit bus pass, access to our Family Concierge Team to help navigate childcare needs, fitness center access , and much more!
For a comprehensive overview of the benefits available, explore our Benefits page .
At Carnegie Mellon, we value the whole package when extending offers of employment. Beyond credentials, we evaluate the role and responsibilities, your valuable work experience, and the knowledge gained through education and training. We appreciate your unique skills and the perspective you bring. Your journey with us is about more than just a job; it’s about finding the perfect fit for your professional growth and personal aspirations.
Are you interested in an exciting opportunity with an exceptional organization?! Apply today!
Location
Arlington, VA, Pittsburgh, PA
Job Function
Software/Applications Development/Engineering
Position Type
Staff – Regular
Full Time/Part time
Full time
Pay Basis
Salary
More Information:
- Please visit “ Why Carnegie Mellon ” to learn more about
becoming part of an institution inspiring innovations that change
the world.
- Click here to view a listing of employee benefits
- Carnegie Mellon University is an Equal Opportunity
Employer/Disability/Veteran .
- Statement of Assurance
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