Robots and Pencils
AI Engineering
PrincipalAIEngineer
Neural analysis suggests this role is
optimal for Senior candidates.
“Principal AI Engineer at Robots and Pencils. Skills: AI/ML systems, Generative AI, Distributed systems, Cloud platforms. Define AI architecture. Define technical strategy”
What You'll Achieve.
Deliver measurable results; Ship AI into production fast; Keep AI in production; Ship production-ready AI; Create measurable impact
Industry & Context.
Problem-solving; Systems thinking; Ambiguous challenges; Sound judgment
What They're Looking For.
Must Have
9+ years software engineering experience, 5+ years AI/ML production experience, Expert software engineering background, Deep experience designing distributed systems, Deep expertise with cloud platforms, Mastery of AWS services, Mastery of AWS GenAI offerings, Proven track record architecting agentic systems, Mastery of AI frameworks, Deep experience with evaluation frameworks, Deep expertise in AI safety, Extensive experience designing RAG architectures, API and systems design experience, Advanced cost optimization expertise, Working knowledge of Docker, Working knowledge of Kubernetes, Working knowledge of cloud-native AI architecture, Expertise in MLOps, Expertise in AI infrastructure, Demonstrable AI-forward coding tool usage, Track record of technical leadership, Track record of mentoring, Excellent problem-solving skills, Excellent stakeholder communication skills
Nice to Have
Generative AI development expertise, Experience with prompt engineering, Experience with function/tool calling, Experience with multi-agent orchestration, Experience with RAG patterns, Experience with vector databases, Experience with embeddings, Experience with streaming responses, Experience with chunking strategies, Experience with embedding models, Experience with advanced retrieval techniques, Experience with token economics, Experience with caching strategies, Experience with model routing, Experience with quantization, Experience with model versioning, Experience with monitoring, Experience with deployment automation, Experience with reproducibility, Experience with Cursor, Experience with Claude Code
What You'll Do.
Define AI architecture
Define technical strategy
Lead AI implementation
Build scalable ML platforms
Build workflow orchestration
Architect LLM-powered systems
Build LLM-powered systems
Implement function/tool calling
Orchestrate multi-agent systems
Implement RAG patterns
Utilize vector databases
Implement streaming responses
Develop backend services
Integrate AI capabilities
Lead model development
Ensure AI reliability
Ensure AI scalability
Communicate technical concepts
Define AI engineering standards
Mentor across organization
Shape engineering culture
Develop technical leaders
Own architectural decisions
Drive technical vision
How You'll Work.
Team & Collaboration
Cross-functional team; Leadership partnership; Engineering stakeholders; Non-engineering stakeholders; Product teams; Data teams
Communication Scope
Communicate complex concepts; Translate depth into decisions
Process & Methodology
Roadmap planning
Full Job Description
Robots & Pencils is an applied AI engineering firm building the next frontier of business architecture. We design and ship AI co-workers that integrate into enterprise operations and deliver measurable results for our clients. We're all in on AWS, combining deep UX capability with senior engineering talent to get AI into production fast and keep it there. We’ve earned the trust of leaders across Consumer Products and Retail, Education, Energy, Financial Services, Healthcare, and Manufacturing and more, and earned a reputation as the nimble alternative to traditional global systems integrators. Founded in 2009, with delivery centers in Canada, the United States, Eastern Europe, and Latin America, we are smaller, faster, and more senior by design. Our teams average 15+ years of experience. We move fast, sweat the details, and build things that actually ship. Position Overview We’re looking for a Principal AI Engineer to define and drive the technical direction of our AI/ML systems. This role is ideal for a deeply experienced engineer who leads from the front — shaping architecture at the system level, solving the hardest problems, and raising the bar for how AI gets built and operated across the organization. In this role, you will work on a cross-functional team, setting AI architecture standards, leading complex system design and implementation challenges, and solving integration problems that require both deep expertise and broad systems thinking. You’ll partner closely with leadership to define the AI roadmap and make high-stakes technical decisions that shape how our AI work scales across clients and over time. Why This Role Matters At Robots & Pencils, we design AI systems for a human world. Our name says it all. Robots and pencils means engineering paired with creativity, because every agent we ship has to work for real people in real workflows. That balance is baked into how we operate. Every role here contributes directly to that mission. Here, you shape how
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