Applied AI Engineer

Apple, Inc.; Cupertino (CA); On-site; USD 150,000 - 278,000; Full time

Job summary

Apple is seeking a software engineer at Cupertino to build AI-native platforms and data systems that accelerate how engineers ship next-generation sensing technologies. You will work with ML scientists, algorithm engineers, hardware teams, and human factors researchers to create reproducible analysis workflows, AI-powered tools, and scalable backends that power iPhone, Apple Watch, iPad features.

This role emphasizes hands-on implementation, end-to-end systems design, and collaboration across

Qualifications

• BS in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Data Engineering, or related degree.
• 3+ years of relevant industry experience.
• Proficiency in Python and at least one of: Swift, TypeScript, or another systems-level language.
• Experience designing and building backend services, data pipelines, or platform infrastructure.
• Hands-on experience building with modern AI/agent frameworks.
• Strong software architecture and API design sensibilities.
• Experience building retrieval pipelines (RAG, embeddings, vector search) or knowledge retrieval systems.
• Strong communicator who works effectively across disciplines.
• Experience evaluating and iterating on AI system outputs.
• Sharp problem-solving instincts and a bias toward shipping.

Responsibilities

• Build novel AI-powered platforms that fundamentally change how engineers explore, analyze, and act on complex program data.
• Design data infrastructure that brings together diverse knowledge sources - making the right context available to AI and engineers at the right time, with appropriate access controls
• Create reproducible analysis workflows with full provenance tracking, so that AI-generated insights can be trusted, iterated on, and shared across disciplines
• Develop agentic pipelines that automate multi-step research and analysis while keeping engineers in the loop to steer and validate
• Build infrastructure for continuous, automated intelligence — from CI-integrated analysis to background monitoring that surfaces what matters
• Design collaboration systems that help cross-functional teams (SW, HW, Design, Human Factors) accumulate and leverage shared institutional knowledge
• Partner with algorithm teams shipping features for iPhone, Apple Watch, iPad, and future products to understand their data challenges and deliver tooling that compounds in value over time

Skills

Python

Swift

TypeScript

Backend services

Data pipelines

AI frameworks

API design

RAG

Communication

Problem solving

Education

BS in Computer Science / Software Engineering / Data Engineering

MS or PhD in CS / Software Engineering / Data Engineering

Tools

Pinecone

Chroma

pgvector

LLM tool integrations

Job description

Cupertino, California, United States Machine Learning and AI

Imagine building AI infrastructure at Apple — systems that power how products are made, how engineers think, and ultimately how hundreds of millions of people experience technology every day.Here is your opportunity to join an engineering team moving Apple's algorithms programs into the AI era. We are developing AI systems that enhance the way engineers work by incorporating human judgment and integrating with data and tools. Our aim is to seamlessly incorporate AI into our processes.We are looking for a software engineer who thrives at the intersection of data systems, AI tooling, and developer experience. You'll design and build platforms that connect AI to the deep organizational context it needs to be genuinely useful — and put those capabilities directly into the hands of the engineers shipping Apple's next-generation sensing technologies. Some of what you build will power internal workflows; some may evolve into products and tools that reach far beyond our team.

Description

You will work alongside machine learning scientists, algorithm engineers, hardware teams, designers, and human factors researchers to build the AI-native platforms and data systems that accelerate how Apple ships its next generation of devices. We're a small, high-impact group with an ambitious roadmap — you'll have outsized influence on the architecture and direction of what we build.The algorithms behind Apple's most beloved features span software, hardware, and design — and the AI infrastructure you build will serve all of them. You'll be at the center of a uniquely cross-functional environment where world-class talent in each discipline depends on the platforms you create to move faster and make better decisions. The best ideas here have a way of starting as internal tools and growing into something bigger — you'll help shape that trajectory.You might have built a chatbot that needed to reason over internal docs, designed an agent that orchestrated multi-step tool calls, or created a pipeline that turned unstructured data into searchable knowledge. What matters is that you've gone beyond tutorials — you've shipped AI-powered tools that real users depend on.

Responsibilities

• Build novel AI-powered platforms that fundamentally change how engineers explore, analyze, and act on complex program data
• Design data infrastructure that brings together diverse knowledge sources - making the right context available to AI and engineers at the right time, with appropriate access controls
• Create reproducible analysis workflows with full provenance tracking, so that AI-generated insights can be trusted, iterated on, and shared across disciplines
• Develop agentic pipelines that automate multi-step research and analysis while keeping engineers in the loop to steer and validate
• Build infrastructure for continuous, automated intelligence — from CI-integrated analysis to background monitoring that surfaces what matters
• Design collaboration systems that help cross-functional teams (SW, HW, Design, Human Factors) accumulate and leverage shared institutional knowledge
• Partner with algorithm teams shipping features for iPhone, Apple Watch, iPad, and future products to understand their data challenges and deliver tooling that compounds in value over time

Minimum Qualifications

• BS in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Data Engineering, or related degree
• 3+ years of s relevant industry expeience
• Proficiency in Python and at least one of: Swift, TypeScript, or another systems-level language
• Experience designing and building backend services, data pipelines, or platform infrastructure
• Hands-on experience building with modern AI/agent frameworks
• Strong software architecture and API design sensibilities — you think in systems, not scripts
• Experience building retrieval pipelines (RAG, embeddings, vector search) or knowledge retrieval systems
• Strong communicator who works effectively across disciplines
• Experience evaluating and iterating on AI system outputs — you've built evaluation pipelines, measured quality, and know that shipping AI means shipping feedback loops
• Sharp problem-solving instincts and a bias toward shipping

Preferred Qualifications

• MS or PhD n Computer Science, Software Engineering, Data Engineering, or related degree
• Experience building macOS or iOS client applications
• Background in workflow orchestration, experiment tracking, or reproducibility tooling
• Experience designing data models, storage layers, or integration APIs for complex domains
• Experience integrating LLMs with external tools and APIs (tool-use patterns, MCP, function calling) or building custom integrations between LLMs and external systems
• Familiarity with access-controlled or policy-aware data systems
• Experience with vector databases or embedding pipelines (Pinecone, Chroma, pgvector, or similar)
• Track record building developer tools, CLIs, or internal platforms that engineers rely on daily
• Experience with cloud AI services (AWS Bedrock, Azure OpenAI, Google Vertex AI) or self-hosted model serving
• Contributions to open-source projects in AI/ML infrastructure
• Comfort navigating large, established codebases and shipping iteratively within them

At Apple, base pay is one part of our total compensation package and is determined within a range. This provides the opportunity to progress as you grow and develop within a role. The base pay range for this role is between $150,400 and $277,600, and your base pay will depend on your skills, qualifications, experience, and location.

Apple employees also have the opportunity to become an Apple shareholder through participation in Apple’s discretionary employee stock programs. Apple employees are eligible for discretionary restricted stock unit awards, and can purchase Apple stock at a discount if voluntarily participating in Apple’s Employee Stock Purchase Plan. You’ll also receive benefits including: Comprehensive medical and dental coverage, retirement benefits, a range of discounted products and free services, and for formal education related to advancing your career at Apple, reimbursement for certain educational expenses — including tuition. Additionally, this role might be eligible for discretionary bonuses or commission payments as well as relocation. Learn more about Apple Benefits.

Note: Apple benefit, compensation and employee stock programs are subject to eligibility requirements and other terms of the applicable plan or program.

Apple is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to inclusion and diversity. We seek to promote equal opportunity for all applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, Veteran status, or other legally protected characteristics. Learn more about your EEO rights as an applicant

At Apple, we believe accessibility is a fundamental human right. You’ll find that idea reflected in everything here — in our culture, our benefits and our digital tools. By welcoming as many perspectives as possible, we help you build a career where you feel like you belong.

Learn about accessibility in Apple’s workplace.

Learn about reasonable accommodations for job applicants.

Apple accepts applications to this posting on an ongoing basis.