AI Model SME

Phase2 Technology; Fort Meade (MD); On-site; USD 99,000 - 225,000; Full time

Job summary

Phase2 Technology is seeking an experienced AI/ML Engineer in Fort Meade, Maryland. The role involves developing, optimizing, and deploying AI models, ensuring their readiness for mission-critical operations. Candidates should have at least 6 years of experience in AI/ML systems engineering and must hold TS/SCI clearance with polygraph.

This position offers a projected compensation range of $99,000 to $225,000 annually. Responsibilities include designing model deployment pipelines and collaborating with cross-functional teams to enhance mission capabilities.

Qualifications

• 6+ years of experience with engineering AI/ML systems.
• Experience with deploying AI/ML models across various environments.
• Ability to implement monitoring frameworks for models.

Responsibilities

• Design and operationalize AI models across different environments.
• Collaborate with engineers, architects, and partners.
• Guide feature engineering approaches and evaluate AI frameworks.

Skills

AI/ML systems engineering

Model deployment pipelines

Statistical modeling

Data preprocessing

Feature engineering

Monitoring frameworks

Python programming

Cloud-native AI platforms

Education

High School diploma or GED

Bachelor's degree

Tools

AWS SageMaker

Azure ML

GCP Vertex AI

PyTorch

TensorFlow

Scikit-learn

Job description

Job Number: R0241835

Opportunity

As an experienced engineer, you understand that modern mission systems depend on the ability to develop, optimize, and deploy AI/ML models that can operate reliably at scale. Your expertise in analyzing datasets, engineering features, and applying advanced statistical and machine learning techniques will be critical to ensuring model readiness and enhancing real‑world operational outcomes. We need your technical depth and problem‑solving mindset to advance the development, deployment, and continuous improvement of AI models that directly support evolving mission needs.

As an AI Model SME on our team, you will design, test, optimize, and operationalize models across cloud, edge, and hybrid environments. You will drive the technical direction for mission‑critical AI solutions by selecting best‑fit architectures, implementing robust deployment pipelines, and integrating models with enterprise and mission systems. You will collaborate closely with data engineers, data scientists, cloud and network architects, and ISSE partners to ensure models are supported by secure, scalable infrastructure and high‑quality data pipelines. You will also contribute technical leadership by evaluating emerging AI/ML frameworks, guiding feature engineering approaches, supporting finetuning and retraining cycles, and implementing monitoring frameworks to detect performance drift.

You Have

• 6+ years of experience with engineering AI/ML systems
• Experience developing, training, validating, and deploying AI/ML models across cloud, edge, or hybrid environments
• Experience with data preprocessing, feature engineering, and exploratory data analysis
• Experience optimizing AI/ML models, including compression, pruning, quantization, and distributed training
• Experience with computing, storage, and networking requirements across model training, tuning, and inference phases
• Knowledge of statistical modeling, machine learning workflows, and model evaluation techniques
• Ability to design and implement model deployment pipelines and MLOps workflows
• Ability to implement monitoring frameworks for detecting model drift, performance degradation, and operational issues
• TS/SCI clearance with a polygraph
• HS diploma or GED

Nice If You Have

• Experience with distributed compute frameworks such as Ray, Spark, or Horovod for large‑scale model training
• Experience with cloud‑native AI platforms including AWS SageMaker, Azure ML, or GCP Vertex AI
• Experience deploying AI/ML models to edge devices or tactical and operational environments
• Experience with common ML frameworks such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, or Scikit‑learn
• Experience working in mission‑focused or national security environments
• Experience with vector databases, lakehouse architectures, or streaming data systems
• Experience evaluating new AI model architectures such as LLMs or diffusion models and conducting model benchmarking
• Knowledge of secure AI engineering best practices such as adversarial robustness, model governance, or NIST AI RMF
• Strong programming skills in Python
• Bachelor's degree

Clearance

Applicants selected will be subject to a security investigation and may need to meet eligibility requirements for access to classified information; TS/SCI clearance with polygraph is required.

Compensation

Projected compensation range: $99,000.00 to $225,000.00 (annualized USD). The posting will close within 90 days of the posting date.

Commitment to Non‑Discrimination

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to disability, status as a protected veteran or any other status protected by applicable federal, state, local, or international law.