Principal AI Engineer, Solutions

YTL AI Labs; Kuala Lumpur; On-site; MYR 180,000 - 320,000; Full time

Job summary

YTL AI Labs is seeking a Principal AI Engineer to serve as the senior technical authority for AI systems deployed to government and enterprise clients. You will design, review, and guide production-grade architectures to be secure, scalable, and cost-efficient.

You will partner with the Head of AI Engineering, solution architects, and platform teams to ensure consistent standards and safe deployments across ministries, GLCs, and Tier-1 enterprises, with hands-on execution and mentorship.

Qualifications

• Experience delivering AI systems in government, regulated, or high-availability environments.
• Hands-on experience with Python, Node.js, or similar languages.
• Familiarity with LLM inference APIs (OpenAI, Claude, Ilmu, etc.).
• Experience with AI infrastructure, observability, and MLOps practices.
• Experience working with cross-functional delivery teams (solution architects, security, compliance).

Responsibilities

• Act as the technical authority for AI system design across government and enterprise deployments.
• Architect and review end-to-end AI systems, including LLM integration, prompting strategies, RAG pipelines, vector search, and agent workflows.
• Define and enforce engineering standards and patterns for AI platforms and services.
• Lead complex technical problem-solving across performance, reliability, and cost optimization.
• Partner with Solution Architecture & Delivery teams to translate requirements into deployable technical designs.
• Support production readiness through design reviews, testing strategies, observability, and failure analysis.
• Provide technical mentorship to senior and mid-level engineers.
• Contribute to security, data governance, and compliance-by-design for AI systems.
• Communicate technical risks and trade-offs clearly to engineering leads and stakeholders.

Skills

Python

Node.js

LLM inference APIs

AI infrastructure

Observability

MLOps

Cross-functional teams

Government/regulatory

Job description

At YTL AI Labs, we build sovereign AI models that perform on par with the world’s best—while staying grounded in local needs, values, and context. Our flagship model, Ilmu, is designed to be culturally aware, contextually intelligent, and fluent in Bahasa Melayu, delivering cutting‑edge solutions that empower Malaysian businesses with intelligence that truly understands the market and the people they serve.

As pioneers of sovereign AI, we believe every nation should have the power to shape its own intelligence—guided by its people, priorities, and principles.

About the Role

As Principal AI Engineer, you will serve as the senior technical authority for AI systems delivered to government and large enterprise clients. You will be responsible for designing, reviewing, and guiding the implementation of production‑grade AI architectures, ensuring they are secure, scalable, cost‑efficient, and fit for high‑scrutiny environments.

You will work closely with the Head of AI Engineering, Solution Architects, and platform teams to ensure AI systems are built to a consistent standard and can be safely deployed across ministries, GLCs, and Tier‑1 enterprises.

This role is hands‑on, deeply technical, and focused on making AI systems work reliably in the real world.

Key Responsibilities

• Act as the technical authority for AI system design across government and enterprise deployments
• Architect and review end‑to‑end AI systems, including LLM integration, prompting strategies, RAG pipelines, vector search, and agent workflows
• Define and enforce engineering standards and patterns for AI platforms and services
• Lead complex technical problem‑solving across performance, reliability, and cost optimisation
• Partner with Solution Architecture & Delivery teams to translate requirements into deployable technical designs
• Support production readiness through design reviews, testing strategies, observability, and failure analysis
• Provide technical mentorship to senior and mid‑level engineers
• Contribute to security, data governance, and compliance‑by‑design for AI systems
• Communicate technical risks and trade‑offs clearly to engineering leads and stakeholders

What We’re Looking For

• Experience delivering systems in government, regulated, or high‑availability enterprise environments
• Hands‑on experience with Python, Node.js, or similar languages
• Familiarity with LLM inference APIs (OpenAI, Claude, Ilmu, etc.)
• Experience with AI infrastructure, observability, and MLOps practices
• Experience working with cross‑functional delivery teams (solution architects, security, compliance)