Artificial Intelligence Engineer

Robert Half Technology is seeking a talented Senior Applied AI Engineer for an exciting opportunity with a mission-driven organization in San Diego. This is a highly hands-on, delivery-focused position for an engineer who thrives on transforming innovative AI concepts into production-ready applications and intelligent automation solutions. The ideal candidate has extensive experience leveraging Large Language Models (LLMs), AI orchestration frameworks, multi-agent architectures, and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) to build scalable, reliable solutions that deliver measurable business value. Working closely with the Director of Data Science & Analytics, this individual will independently design, develop, and deploy AI-powered applications, intelligent agents, and automated workflows while identifying opportunities to improve organizational efficiency. This is an applied AI engineering position, not an AI research or model-training role. The focus is on utilizing existing AI technologies to create practical, production-ready solutions.

Responsibilities

• Key Responsibilities
• AI Engineering & Application Development
• Design, develop, deploy, and maintain production-quality AI-powered applications and intelligent automation workflows.
• Architect and implement multi-agent AI systems and RAG pipelines to support organizational objectives.
• Integrate large language models and AI APIs into internal business applications.
• Independently transform loosely defined business requirements into functional, documented solutions.
• AI Orchestration & Systems Integration
• Develop intelligent workflows leveraging LangChain, LangGraph, CrewAI, n8n, Microsoft Copilot Studio, and similar frameworks.
• Integrate AI applications with enterprise data platforms, APIs, Python-based services, and internal business systems.
• Utilize emerging integration standards, including Model Context Protocol (MCP), where appropriate.
• Implement reliable automation solutions requiring minimal manual intervention.
• LLM Development & Optimization
• Develop and optimize prompts, system instructions, and evaluation frameworks to improve AI accuracy and consistency.
• Work with leading LLM providers, including OpenAI, Anthropic Claude, Google Gemini, and open-source models.
• Evaluate available AI technologies and recommend appropriate models and frameworks based on business requirements.
• Build and maintain AI-powered knowledge management solutions using vector databases, embedding models, and retrieval systems.
• Data Analytics & Solution Delivery
• Leverage Python, SQL, and data analysis techniques to explore datasets and identify actionable insights.
• Collaborate with data scientists, analysts, and business stakeholders to identify opportunities for AI adoption.
• Deliver complete solutions from initial concept through development, deployment, documentation, and ongoing support.
• Communicate technical concepts and analytical findings clearly to both technical and nontechnical audiences.

Qualifications

• Required Qualifications
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Data Science, Information Systems, or a related discipline.
• 5+ years of professional experience in software development, data engineering, or data science.
• 2+ years of hands-on professional experience developing applied AI or LLM-based solutions.
• Demonstrated experience developing and deploying production-ready AI applications used by business stakeholders.
• Hands-on experience with AI orchestration frameworks such as LangChain, LangGraph, CrewAI, AutoGen, or n8n.
• Experience implementing RAG architectures, vector databases, embeddings, and knowledge retrieval systems.
• Experience integrating LLM APIs, including OpenAI, Anthropic Claude, Google Gemini, or comparable technologies.
• Strong programming proficiency in Python and SQL.
• Experience with low-code/no-code enterprise AI tools such as Microsoft Copilot Studio, Power Automate, or similar platforms.
• Strong problem-solving, analytical, and communication skills.
• Ability to independently manage AI development projects from concept through production deployment.
• Interest in public health, scientific research, and mission-driven technology initiatives.

Required Skills

• Hands-on professional experience developing applied AI or LLM-based solutions.
• Demonstrated experience developing and deploying production-ready AI applications used by business stakeholders.
• Hands-on experience with AI orchestration frameworks such as LangChain, LangGraph, CrewAI, AutoGen, or n8n.
• Experience implementing RAG architectures, vector databases, embeddings, and knowledge retrieval systems.
• Experience integrating LLM APIs, including OpenAI, Anthropic Claude, Google Gemini, or comparable technologies.
• Strong programming proficiency in Python and SQL.
• Experience with low-code/no-code enterprise AI tools such as Microsoft Copilot Studio, Power Automate, or similar platforms.
• Strong problem-solving, analytical, and communication skills.
• Ability to independently manage AI development projects from concept through production deployment.

Preferred Skills

• Preferred Qualifications
• Master's degree in a related technical discipline.
• Experience working with Snowflake or other cloud-based data platforms.
• Familiarity with Model Context Protocol (MCP) and LLM tool-use integration patterns.
• Experience with Pinecone, ChromaDB, Weaviate, pgvector, or comparable vector databases.
• Demonstrated portfolio of deployed AI applications or ability to present live examples of previous work.