Senior Principal AI Engineer

Job DescriptionVertex is seeking aSeniorPrincipal AI Engineerto design, build, and optimize the shared platform capabilities that power AI-enabled products and intelligent workflows across the enterprise.Working within the Agentic AI Platform team, thisrole will focus on delivering production-grade platform services for model integration, prompt and workflow orchestration, evaluation, observability, performance optimization, and agent lifecycle management.A key focus of this role will be enabling a build/bring-your-own-agents capability within the Agentic AI Platform, allowing teams across Vertex to create, integrate, customize, and operationalize their own agents using shared platform standards, tooling, and governance controls.The ideal candidate combines strong software engineering fundamentals with deep experience in applied AI systems. This individual will be comfortable operating across rapid experimentation and engineering rigor, translating emerging AI capabilities into scalable, reliable, secure, and reusable platform components. The Senior Principal AI Engineer will play a critical leadership role in accelerating AI adoption across Vertex by enabling product teams to build and deploy AI solutions faster and more effectively.Key ResponsibilitiesBuild/bring-your-own-agents capability (primary focus): the frameworks, SDKs, templates, interfaces, and guardrails that let teams across Vertex create, integrate, customize, and operationalize their own agents on shared platform standardsPlatform services: model integration, prompt and workflow orchestration, tool use, memory patterns, and agentic task coordination that other teams build againstAgent lifecycle and quality: registration, configuration, testing, deployment, versioning, monitoring, and retirement, plus the evaluation and benchmarking frameworks behind themDeveloper experience: self-service onboarding, documentation, reference implementations, and enablement resources that shorten the path from idea to productionStandards and technical leadership: platform APIs, service contracts, architecture patterns, and the engineering practices that keep custom agents safe, reliable, and supportableArchitect and develop shared AI/agentic platform services that support enterprise AI products and internal workflowsDesign and implement a build/bring-your-own-agents capability that enables teams to create, register, integrate, deploy, and manage their own agents within the enterprise agentic platformEstablish reusable frameworks, SDKs, templates, interfaces, and guardrails that standardize how custom agents are built and onboarded onto the platformOwn thedeveloper experiencefor the platform, delivering intuitive self-service onboarding, SDKs, CLIs, sandbox environments, reference implementations, and clear documentation that let builders move from idea to production quicklyDefine agent lifecycle capabilities including agent registration, configuration, testing, deployment, monitoring, versioning, and retirementBuild and maintain robust integrations with foundation models, model gateways, APIs, enterprise tools, and related AI infrastructureDesign and implement systems for prompt orchestration, workflow execution, tool use, memory patterns, and agentic task coordinationDevelop reusable frameworks and services for evaluation, benchmarking, and validation of AI model, agent, and workflow performanceEstablish platform capabilities for observability, monitoring, tracing, logging, and alerting across AI workloads and autonomous agent interactionsOptimize platform performance, scalability, latency, reliability, and cost efficiency for production AI and agentic systemsPartner with product, data, engineering, security, and architecture teams to enable enterprise-ready AI solutionsTranslate prototypes and experimental concepts into hardened, maintainable, production-grade servicesDefine engineering standards, best practices, and design patterns for AI platform development and deploymentSupport governance, risk management, and responsible AI practices through measurable controls, policy enforcement, and technical safeguards for agent behaviorDrive platform adoption by creating reusable components, documentation, onboarding patterns, and developer enablement resourcesMentor engineers and provide technical leadership across AI platform initiativesEvaluate emerging tools, frameworks, and architectural patterns in generative AI and agentic systems to inform platform strategyRequired QualificationsBachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Machine Learning, Data Engineering, or a related technical field; advanced degree preferredSignificant industry experience in software engineering, machine learning engineering, or AI platform development, including experience in senior or principal-level technical rolesProven track record designing and delivering production-scale AI or ML platformsStrong experience building distributed systems, APIs, microservices, and cloud-native applicationsDemonstrated experience operationalizing machine learning, generative AI, or agent-based solutions in enterprise environmentsExperience designing extensible platform capabilities that enable internal teams to build or integrate custom applications, tools, or servicesDeep understanding of software engineering best practices including testing, CI/CD, version control, code review, and system reliabilityDeep understanding of AI-native software engineering practices and experience establishing standards, governance, and best practices for the responsible use of AI coding assistants and software engineering agents across engineering teamsExperience defining architecture, standards, and reusable services for large-scale enterprise environmentsExperience leading complex technical initiatives and influencing architecture across cross-functional teamsStrong communication skills with the ability to explain complex technical concepts to varied audiencesExperience balancing experimentation speed with production engineering discipline, security, and maintainabilityTechnical Skills RequiredAI/ML platform architectureGenerative AI systems and large language model integrationAgentic workflows and orchestration frameworksMulti-agent or autonomous agent system designPrompt engineering and prompt managementWorkflow orchestration and automationAgent lifecycle managementModel evaluation, benchmarking, and performance measurementAI observability, tracing, monitoring, and loggingAPI design and service integrationDistributed systems and scalable backend engineeringCloud platforms and cloud-native deployment patternsProductionization of AI/ML servicesReliability, latency, throughput, and cost optimizationCI/CD pipelines and DevOps/MLOps practicesSecure software development and enterprise platform controlsPreferred SkillsAdvanced degree in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, or a related disciplineExperience with enterprise AI platforms, developer platforms, or internal tooling ecosystemsExperience building frameworks or platforms that support bring-your-own-component or extensible developer patternsDemonstrated focus on developer experience, including designing self-service onboarding, SDKs, CLIs, sandboxes, templates, and documentation that reduce friction and accelerate time-to-first-deploymentfor internal buildersFamiliarity with model gateways, retrieval-augmented generation, and evaluation frameworksExperience implementing AI governance, responsible AI controls, and compliance-oriented technical solutionsKnowledge of vector databases, knowledge retrieval systems, and orchestration layers for intelligent applicationsExperience in regulated industries such as biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, or life sciencesStrong mentoring and technical leadership experience in highly collaborative environmentsAbility to assess emerging AI technologies and translate them into practical platform capabilities#LI-HYBRIDAt Vertex, we embrace continuous learning and encourage employees to stay informed on advances in AI, technology, automation, and industry trends. We seek talent who bring an external perspective, demonstrate curiosity and sound judgment, and thoughtfully adopt new capabilities that improve decision-making, drive innovation, increase efficiency, and help deliver better outcomes for patients.Pay Range:$188,000 - $282,000Disclosure Statement:The range provided is based on what we believe is a reasonable estimate for the base salary pay range for this job at the time of posting. This role is eligible for an annual bonus and annual equity awards. Some roles may also be eligible for overtime pay, in accordance with federal and state requirements. Actual base salary pay will be based on a number of factors, including skills, competencies, experience, and other job-related factors permitted by law.At Vertex, our Total Rewards offerings also include inclusive market-leading benefits to meet our employees wherever they are in their career, financial, family and wellbeing journey while providing flexibility and resources to support their growth and aspirations. From medical, dental and vision benefits to generous paid time off (including a week-long company shutdown in the Summer and the Winter), educational assistance programs including student loan repayment, a generous commuting subsidy, matching charitable donations, 401(k) and so much more.Company InformationVertex is a global biotechnology company that invests in scientific innovation. Vertex is committed to equal employment opportunity and non-discrimination for all employees and qualified applicants without regard to a person's race, color, sex, gender identity or expression, age, religion, national origin, ancestry, ethnicity, disability, veteran status, genetic information, sexual orientation, marital status, or any characteristic protected under applicable law. Vertex is an E-Verify Employer in the United States. Vertex will make reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with known disabilities, in accordance with applicable law. Any applicant requiring an accommodation in connection with the hiring process and/or to perform the essential functions of the position for which the applicant has applied should make a request to the recruiter or hiring manager, or contact Talent Acquisition at View email address on click.appcast.io: Boston, MAType: Full time