Gen AI Principal Lead

Ciklum India; Chennai District; On-site; INR 3,000,000 - 6,000,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Company-paid medical insurance

Udemy access

Language courses

Company-paid certifications

Mental health support

Financial & legal consultations

Job summary

Ciklum is looking for a Gen AI Principal Lead to join our team full-time in India. As a POSITION_NAME, become a part of a cross-functional development team engineering experiences of tomorrow.

Lead the transformation of software development lifecycle into an AI-agentic model — where autonomous and semi-autonomous AI agents handle defined portions of requirements analysis, coding, testing, code review, and deployment, under a governed human-oversight framework.

Qualifications

• 10+ years software engineering with architecture ownership.
• Production experience with AI agent frameworks and LLM tool-use patterns.
• Deep knowledge of modern SDLC/DevOps tooling and CI/CD pipelines.
• Experience leading a cross-functional technology change initiative.

Responsibilities

• Assess the current SDLC end-to-end and identify stages for agent autonomy, agent-assist, or human ownership.
• Design and stand up the agentic architecture: orchestration layer, tool scoping, gates, and CI/CD integration.
• Define and implement guardrails: security review for agent-generated code, cost controls, rollback and audit mechanisms, human sign-offs.
• Select and integrate the agent tooling stack (build vs. buy, orchestration, coding/testing/deployment agents).
• Run a phased rollout with clear success metrics at each stage: cycle time, defect rate, agent-error rate, adoption.
• Own change management: training teams on new workflows, redefining code-review/QA roles, coordinating with security/compliance.
• Report to engineering leadership on ROI, risk, and adoption — distinguishing autonomous vs. assisted.

Skills

Architecture ownership

AI agent frameworks

LLM tool usage

SDLC & DevOps

Cross-functional leadership

Job description

Job Description

Ciklum is looking for a Gen AI Principal Lead to join our team full-time in India.

We are a custom product engineering company that supports both multinational organizations and scaling startups to solve their most complex business challenges. With a global team of over 4,000 highly skilled developers, consultants, analysts and product owners, we engineer technology that redefines industries and shapes the way people live.

About The Role

As a POSITION_NAME, become a part of a cross-functional development team engineering experiences of tomorrow. Lead the transformation of software development lifecycle into an AI-agentic model — where autonomous and semi-autonomous AI agents handle defined portions of requirements analysis, coding, testing, code review, and deployment, under a governed human-oversight framework. Own both the technical architecture and the organizational rollout.

Responsibilities

• Assess the current SDLC end-to-end and identify which stages are suitable for agent autonomy, agent-assist, or remain human-owned (a maturity/readiness map, not a blanket "automate everything")
• Design and stand up the agentic architecture: agent orchestration layer, tool/permission scoping, approval and escalation gates, integration with existing CI/CD and code review systems
• Define and implement guardrails: security review for agent-generated code, cost/usage controls, rollback and audit mechanisms, human sign-off checkpoints for high-risk changes
• Select and integrate the agent tooling stack (build vs. buy decisions across orchestration frameworks, coding agents, testing agents, deployment agents)
• Run a phased rollout (pilot team → expanded pilot → org-wide) with clear success metrics at each stage — cycle time, defect rate, agent-error rate, developer trust/adoption
• Own change management: training engineering teams on new workflows, redefining code-review and QA roles, working with security/compliance on new risk surfaces
• Report to engineering leadership on ROI, risk, and adoption — with honest calibration of what's actually autonomous vs. assisted

Requirements

• 10+ years software engineering experience, including senior/staff-level architecture ownership
• Demonstrated production experience with AI agent frameworks and LLM tool-use patterns
• Deep knowledge of modern SDLC/DevOps tooling and CI/CD pipelines
• Experience leading a cross-functional technology change initiative (not just a technical build)

Desirable

• Experience in a regulated or security-sensitive environment (agent guardrails matter more there)
• Prior consulting/transformation-program background
• Familiarity with MCP (Model Context Protocol) or similar agent-tool integration standards

What’s in it for you?

• Strong community: Work alongside top professionals in a friendly, open-door environment
• Growth focus: Take on large-scale projects with a global impact and expand your expertise
• Tailored learning: Boost your skills with internal events (meetups, conferences, workshops), Udemy access, language courses, and company-paid certifications
• Endless opportunities: Explore diverse domains through internal mobility, finding the best fit to gain hands‑on experience with cutting‑edge technologies
• Care: We’ve got you covered with company-paid medical insurance, mental health support, and financial & legal consultations

About Us

At Ciklum, we are always exploring innovations, empowering each other to achieve more, and engineering solutions that matter. With us, you’ll work with cutting‑edge technologies, contribute to impactful projects, and be part of a One Team culture that values collaboration and progress.

India is a strategic innovation hub for Ciklum, with growing teams in Chennai and Pune leading advancements in EdgeTech, AR/VR, IoT, and beyond. Join us to collaborate on game‑changing solutions and take your career to the next level.

Explore, empower, engineer with Ciklum!