Principal AI Architect

428 Salesforce UK Limited; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Salesforce is seeking a Principal AI Architect to lead enterprise data and AI architectures centered on D360 and Agentforce. You will guide senior customers and work with Account Executives to design scalable, secure integrations across hyperscalers and data lakes.

The role blends data engineering, platform architecture, and applied AI, requiring hands-on prototyping, customer advisory, and governance-focused design. London-based, hybrid model.

Qualifications

• 7+ years in customer-facing technical pre-sales or solution architecture.
• Experience with AI, GenAI, and Data architectures on major cloud platforms.
• Hands-on prototyping with frontier LLMs and AI tools (OpenAI, Claude).
• Experience with RAG, prompt engineering, and open standards (MCP, A2A).
• Lead workshops and co-create rapid proofs-of-value (<2 weeks).

Responsibilities

• Lead pre-sales technical design and recommend solutions for customers.
• Shape best practices for generative AI, agent interoperability & Data Cloud.
• Collaborate with AEs/SEs to build hands-on demos with Agentforce and external agents.
• Create demos, templates, and enablement content for agent lifecycle.
• Own technical architecture decisions around D360 data modeling & activation.
• Document best practices and maintain internal knowledge resources.

Skills

Pre-Sales

Solution Architecture

Enterprise AI

Cloud Platforms

AI & LLMs

Agent Interoperability

Prototype & Demo

Education

BS/MS in Computer Science or related field

Tools

AWS Bedrock/SageMaker

Azure Copilot Foundry

Databricks

Vertex AI

Snowflake

Palantir

OpenAI/Claude

LangChain/LangGraph

Cursor

Job description

About Salesforce

Salesforce is the #1 AI CRM, where humans with agents drive customer success together. Here, ambition meets action. Tech meets trust. And innovation isn’t a buzzword — it’s a way of life. The world of work as we know it is changing and we’re looking for Trailblazers who are passionate about bettering business and the world through AI, driving innovation, and keeping Salesforce's core values at the heart of it all. Ready to level-up your career at the company leading workforce transformation in the agentic era? You’re in the right place! Agentforce is the future of AI, and you are the future of Salesforce.

Job Title: Principal AI Architect (or AI and Data Technical Architect)

As a Principal AI Architect (or AI and Data Technical Architect), you will act as a senior, hands‑on technical leader and trusted advisor to our customers. You will be responsible for designing, validating, and operationalizing enterprise‑grade data and AI architectures centered on Salesforce D360 and the Agentforce platform. This role sits at the intersection of data engineering, platform architecture, and applied AI, requiring you to guide customer Chief Data Officers and Enterprise Architects through emerging AI solutions. You will work side‑by‑side with Account Executives and Product teams to ensure customers realize the full value of the platform by designing scalable, secure solutions that integrate D360 into complex enterprise ecosystems—including hyperscalers, data lakes, and governance frameworks.

Responsibilities

• Lead pre‑sales technical design by analyzing customer needs and recommending solutions aligned with Agentforce capabilities and integration with external agent frameworks.


• Shape best practices around generative AI, agent interoperability, prompt engineering, Data Cloud, and cross‑platform integrations.


• Collaborate with AEs and SEs to build hands‑on prototypes and demos using Agentforce and integrated external agents.


• Develop thought leadership content—demo templates, whitepapers, enablement sessions—focused on agent lifecycle, integration strategy, and technical effectiveness.


• Act as a central technical knowledge resource, proactively addressing internal technical inquiries, facilitating deep technical enablement, and documenting best practices to empower specialist teams across the organization.


• Understand Agent Interoperability - Map and integrate external agents from hyperscalers (e.g. Copilot, Gemini) into Agentforce via open standards (MCP, A2A); design how these systems collaborate.


• Enable Conversational & Background Agents - Use Agentforce Studio and Agent Builder to configure chat and background agents; integrate with external channels including voice via hyperscaler APIs.


• Drive Prompt Engineering & Lifecycle Strategy - Lead prompt design, testing, monitoring, and iteration; define agent lifecycle best practices from development through refinement.


• Build Hands‑On Demos & Prototypes - Co‑create quick prototypes (<2 weeks) with AEs demonstrating integration between Agentforce and external agents or services.


• Lead Pre‑Sales Workshops - Facilitate whiteboarding, deep‑dive sessions, and quick enablement for customers and internal teams.


• Advise on Data & Integration - Integrate Data Cloud (D360), CRM, MuleSoft APIs, and external agent endpoints ensuring cohesive architectures that align with compliance and governance policies.


• Support Early Adoption - Occasionally assist in proof‑of‑value engagements post‑sale by tuning agents and guiding customers toward self‑sufficient enablement.


• Own Technical Architecture Decisions - Oversee data modeling, identity resolution, real‑time vs. batch patterns, data graph design, and activation strategies within D360.


• Own Technical Enablement - Create and manage accessible technical documentation, knowledge bases, and FAQ resources to rapidly resolve internal technical inquiries, empowering specialist teams to handle technical discussions confidently.

Required Qualifications

• Technical Pre‑Sales & Solution Engineering: 7+ years in customer‑facing technical pre‑sales, solution architecture, or technical advisory, partnering side‑by‑side with Account Executives (AEs) to drive enterprise deal cycles and business outcomes.


• Enterprise AI & Hyperscaler Ecosystem Depth: Proven experience designing and delivering AI, GenAI, and Data architectures within platforms such as AWS (Bedrock/SageMaker), Microsoft (Azure AI Foundry/Copilot), Databricks, Google Cloud (Vertex AI), Snowflake, or Palantir.


• Hands‑On Modern AI & Agentic Builder Experience: Direct hands‑on experience building, prototyping, or solutioning with frontier LLMs and modern AI tools—including OpenAI, Claude, LangChain / LangGraph, Cursor, or multi‑agent orchestration frameworks.


• Agent Interoperability & Open Standards: Experience with Retrieval‑Augmented Generation (RAG), prompt engineering, background/conversational agents, voice AI integrations, or open protocols (e.g., Model Context Protocol - MCP, A2A).


• Rapid Prototyping & Whiteboarding: Demonstrated ability to lead technical discovery workshops and co‑create rapid proof‑of‑value prototypes (<2 weeks) for C‑suite stakeholders (CDO, CTO, Enterprise Architects).

Preferred Qualifications (Nice‑to‑Have)

• CRM / Salesforce Context: Prior familiarity or hands‑on experience with Salesforce CRM, Agentforce Studio, or Data Cloud (D360).


• Multi‑Modal & Advanced AI Frameworks: Experience with voice pipelines, MLOps, vector search, or custom model fine‑tuning.

Location

Based in London, UK (hybrid model).

Education

BS/MS in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Engineering, or equivalent technical field.

Unleash Your Potential

When you join Salesforce, you’ll be limitless in all areas of your life. Our benefits and resources support you to find balance and be your best, and our AI agents accelerate your impact so you can do your best. Together, we’ll bring the power of Agentforce to organizations of all sizes and deliver amazing experiences that customers love.

Posting Statement

Salesforce is an equal opportunity employer and maintains a policy of non‑discrimination with all employees and applicants for employment. What does that mean exactly? It means that at Salesforce, we believe in equality for all. And we believe we can lead the path to equality in part by creating a workplace that’s inclusive, and free from discrimination. Know your rights: workplace discrimination is illegal. Any employee or potential employee will be assessed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications – without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender expression or identity, transgender status, age, disability, veteran or marital status, political viewpoint, or other classifications protected by law. This policy applies to current and prospective employees, no matter where they are in their Salesforce employment journey. It also applies to recruiting, hiring, job assignment, compensation, promotion, training, assessment of job performance, discipline, termination, and everything in between. Recruiting, hiring, and promotion decisions at Salesforce are fair and based on merit. The same goes for compensation, benefits, promotions, transfers, reduction in workforce, recall, training, and education. We're Salesforce, the Customer Company, inspiring the future of business with AI + Data + CRM. Leading with our core values, we help companies across every industry blaze new trails and connect with customers in a whole new way. And, we empower you to be a Trailblazer, too — driving your performance and career growth, charting new paths, and improving the state of the world. If you believe in business as the greatest platform for change and in companies doing well and doing good – you've come to the right place.