Lead AI Engineer

r3 Consultant; Bengaluru; On-site; INR 2,400,000 - 4,000,000; Full time

Job summary

r3 Consultant in Bengaluru is seeking a Lead AI Engineer to drive end-to-end AI initiatives, architecture, deployment, and stakeholder alignment.

The role emphasizes LLMs, retrieval-augmented generation, and cloud infrastructure with MLOps practices. You will mentor teams across pharma/retail/CPG domains and own critical AI decision making.

Qualifications

• 8–12 years total experience with demonstrable lead-level ownership of AI projects.
• Experience leading end-to-end AI solution development (LLMs & RAG).
• Experience with cloud platforms and data pipelines feeding AI systems.

Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end AI solution development—from architecture to production deployment.
• Own AI system design with emphasis on LLMs and RAG.
• Drive creation of POCs and data-driven AI strategies for client problems.
• Guide cross-functional teams (data engineers, ML engineers, product) and manage stakeholders across Pharma, Retail, or CPG domains.
• Own technical decision-making on model selection, RAG architecture, cloud infrastructure, and MLOps practices.
• Mentor and upskill junior AI engineers.
• Present AI strategy and solution trade-offs to technical and business stakeholders.

Skills

Python

SQL

LLMs & RAG design

Education

Bachelor's / Master's in CS or related field

Tools

Azure / AWS / GCP

Job description

Job Title: Lead AI Engineer

Location: Bangalore

Work Mode: Onsite / WFO

Experience: 8–12 years

Education: Bachelor's/Master's in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field (M.Tech/MS preferred but not mandatory)

Budget/CTC: Up to ₹40 LPA

Notice Period: 30 days preferred

Roles & Responsibilities

• Lead end-to-end AI solution development — from architecture design through production deployment


• Own AI system design with a strong emphasis on LLMs and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG)


• Drive creation of comprehensive POCs and data-driven AI strategies for client/business problems


• Guide cross-functional teams (data engineers, ML engineers, product) and manage stakeholder expectations across Pharma, Retail, or CPG domains


• Own technical decision-making on model selection, RAG architecture, cloud infrastructure, and MLOps practices


• Mentor and upskill junior/mid-level AI engineers


• Present AI strategy and solution trade-offs to both technical and business stakeholders

Mandatory Skills

• Python, SQL


• AI system design & end-to-end AI solution development (LLMs & RAG)


• Cloud platforms — Azure / AWS / GCP


• Data & AI solutioning (data pipelines feeding AI systems)


• 8–12 yrs total experience with demonstrable lead-level ownership of AI projects

Good to Have

• Domain experience in Pharma, Retail, or CPG


• End-to-end POC development experience


• Leadership in AI project delivery (team lead/manager track record)


• MLOps / CI-CD practices for AI pipelines

Must-Have Soft Skills

• Leadership and people management


• Strategic thinking and decision-making


• Stakeholder management


• Effective communication (technical non-technical)

Good-to-Have Soft Skills

• Mentoring and coaching junior team members


• Ability to convey complex domain concepts to mixed audiences