Applied AI Engineer

AKIVA AI, LLC; Northern (KY); Hybrid; USD 110,000 - 190,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical Insurance

Vision Insurance

PTO

401(k) with company match

Short-Term Disability

Long-Term Disability

Profit Sharing

Job summary

AKIVA AI, LLC seeks an AI engineer to transform research breakthroughs into production AI systems and build scalable applications for enterprise clients. You will develop agent runtimes, RAG pipelines, and custom inference endpoints to deliver robust AI capabilities.

The role requires strong Python and web/API skills, plus hands-on work with model serving frameworks and agent orchestration. Join a veteran-owned innovator delivering high-impact AI solutions.

Qualifications

• 3+ years building production AI/ML applications.
• Strong Python and modern web/API stack experience.
• Hands-on experience with at least one model serving framework (vLLM, TGI, TensorRT-LLM, Triton Inference Server).
• Familiarity with agent frameworks (LangGraph, LlamaIndex, AutoGen) or custom orchestration.

Responsibilities

• Build and operate production AI services: agent runtimes, RAG pipelines, custom inference endpoints
• Optimize latency, throughput, and cost across the model serving stack
• Implement evaluation harnesses, observability, and guardrails for AI systems
• Collaborate closely with research scientists to productionize novel techniques
• Contribute to internal frameworks and reusable agent components

Skills

Python

Web/API stack

Model serving frameworks

Agent frameworks

Education

MS/PhD in CS or related

Tools

Kubernetes

Docker

Terraform

FastAPI

Job description

AKIVA is an AI-native engineering firm specializing in enterprise services, domain-specific solutions, and high-performance infrastructure from strategy through deployment. We build innovative systems that drive measurable results for commercial enterprises and government agencies. AKIVA is a certified Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB).

Position Overview

Transform research breakthroughs into production AI systems. Build scalable applications spanning agentic automation, custom inference services, and next-generation AI products for enterprise customers.

Key Responsibilities

• Build and operate production AI services: agent runtimes, RAG pipelines, custom inference endpoints
• Optimize latency, throughput, and cost across the model serving stack
• Implement evaluation harnesses, observability, and guardrails for AI systems
• Collaborate closely with research scientists to productionize novel techniques
• Contribute to internal frameworks and reusable agent components

Required Qualifications

• 3+ years building production AI/ML applications
• Strong Python and modern web/API stack experience
• Hands-on experience with at least one model serving framework (vLLM, TGI, TensorRT-LLM, Triton Inference Server)
• Familiarity with agent frameworks (LangGraph, LlamaIndex, AutoGen) or custom orchestration

Preferred Qualifications

• MS or PhD in CS or related; or proven track record of shipping AI systems at scale
• Open-source contributions to inference or agent frameworks
• Experience with quantization, distillation, or other inference optimization techniques

Tools, Technologies & Frameworks

Python, FastAPI, vLLM, LangGraph, Kubernetes, Docker, Terraform, observability tooling

What AKIVA Offers

• Professional development and skill-building opportunities
• Supportive management team with Veteran-owned company values
• Opportunity to work on impactful client engagements
• Long-term contract engagement with potential for extension
• AI productivity tools and training provided at no cost to employees
• 401(k) with generous company match
• Medical Insurance
• Vision Insurance
• Short-Term & Long-Term Disability Insurance
• Paid Time Off (PTO)
• Profit Sharing

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

AKIVA is committed to providing an environment of mutual respect where equal employment opportunities are available to all applicants and teammates without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, physical disability, marital status, military and Veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. We believe that diversity among our teammates is critical to our success as a company, and we seek to recruit, develop, and retain the most talented people within a qualified candidate pool.

AKIVA is a certified Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB).