AI Engineer, Lead

About Distyl AI Distyl is an applied AI technology company partnering with the world’s most ambitious institutions to rearchitect critical operations for the frontier of AI. Our customers include the largest companies in telecom, healthcare, insurance, manufacturing, consumer goods, and global social organizations.We research and deploy technologies that power AI-native operations — both for our partners and for Distyl itself. Our work spans research into self-constructing systems, the development of the most reliable execution of AI systems, and products that transform mission-critical workflows. As a result, Distyl's technologies affect some of the world's largest operations — from hundreds of millions of consumer interactions to tens of millions of supply chain transactions and millions of patient journeys.Distyl is backed by leading investors including Lightspeed Venture Partners, Khosla Ventures, Coatue, DST Global, and the board-members of 20+ F500s. What We Are Looking ForAI Engineers are hands-on technical leaders who own the architecture, execution, and delivery of critical production AI systems for large enterprise customers. They make technical decisions, lead project delivery, coach engineers, and partner closely with customer stakeholders and Distyl’s AI strategy team to ensure systems deliver real business value.This role is for engineers who want ownership over production outcomes: shaping system architecture, leading technical execution, working directly with customers, and improving AI systems under real-world constraints.Key ResponsibilitiesLead and mentor a team of AI Engineers—owning technical direction, code quality, execution standards, and individual growthDesign and implement AI systems that combine models, agents, retrieval, evaluation, and execution into coherent, production-ready systems aligned with real business outcomesWork directly with customer stakeholders, often in high-visibility settings, and communicate clearly about system behavior, tradeoffs, limitations, and paths to improvementOperate and improve live AI systems by measuring behavior, identifying failure modes, debugging issues, and rapidly iterating on quality, reliability, and usefulnessIntegrate AI systems into customer data platforms, APIs, and existing applications. Make pragmatic system design decisions that balance speed, robustness, maintainability, and long-term operabilityTake accountability for outcomes in production and adapt systems as requirements evolveWho You Are5+ years of engineering experience, including experience as a tech lead or engineering lead on customer-facing or production AI projectsOwnership mentality for AI systems. You take responsibility for whether an AI system delivers its intended value in production. You are comfortable making independent technical decisions across system design, evaluation, integration, and iterationTechnical leadership in teams. Management experience is not required, but you should have led engineers through technical decision-making, execution, mentorship, and delivery. Growth in this role includes taking on broader technical and leadership scope over timeStrong solutions architecture fundamentals: You have experience with cloud systems, system integrations, API design, and data engineering. You can understand how an AI system fits into a broader enterprise ecosystem and operate as a peer to customer architecture and engineering teamsAI-Native Working Style: You use AI tools daily to write and debug code, explore designs, analyze data, and automate repetitive work. You are curious about new model capabilities and techniques, and actively incorporate them into how you build and iterate on systemsWillingness to travel: Travel is typically 10–30%, depending on the project, customer needs, and your role on the engagementWhat We Offer The base salary range for this role is $200-$250K, depending on experience, location, and level. In addition to base compensation, this role is eligible for meaningful equity, along with a comprehensive benefits package100% coverage of medical, dental, and vision insurance for employee and dependentsFlexible time offRetirement and financial planning benefits, including access to pre-tax HSA, FSA, and commuter accounts, 401(k), and financial coaching resourcesComprehensive wellness benefits, including physical fitness, mental well-being, and fertility and family-building benefits through CarrotComplimentary in-office lunches and snacks providedAccess to state-of-the-art AI models, generous usage of modern AI tools, and real-world business problemsOwnership of high-impact projects across top enterprisesA mission-driven, fast-moving culture that values curiosity, pragmatism, and excellenceDistyl has offices in San Francisco and New York. This role follows a hybrid collaboration model with 3+ days per week (Tuesday–Thursday) in‑office.#LI-HybridWe believe diverse perspectives make our work stronger and more impactful. We are an equal opportunity employer and evaluate all applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other legally protected characteristic. We encourage candidates from all backgrounds to apply.LocationSan Francisco; New YorkEmployment TypeFull timeLocation TypeHybridDepartmentEngineering