Generative AI Specialist / AI & ML Developer

Peraton; Herndon (VA); On-site; USD 135,000 - 216,000; Full time

Job summary

Peraton in Herndon, Virginia is looking for candidates to design and optimize generative AI solutions leveraging technologies like GPT 4 and Azure OpenAI. Applicants should have a strong background in software development or data science, especially in generative AI.

The ideal candidate will have experience with prompt engineering, Python, and deploying AI models in production environments. A Bachelor’s degree in a related technical field is required along with U.S. citizenship for security clearance.

Qualifications

• 5+ years relevant experience including 3+ years in software development or data science.
• Hands-on experience with foundation models (GPT 4, Claude, Gemini).
• Understanding of AI safety and prompt-injection protection.

Responsibilities

• Design and optimize generative AI solutions using GPT 4.
• Integrate generative AI into existing platforms via APIs.
• Implement responsible AI practices including bias detection.

Skills

Generative AI solutions

Prompt engineering

Python

LLMs

Cloud experience

DevSecOps practices

Education

Bachelor’s degree in a related technical field

Tools

LangChain

Hugging Face

Pinecone

ChromaDB

Azure OpenAI

Job description

Responsibilities

• Design and optimize generative AI solutions using GPT 4, Claude, Gemini, and Azure OpenAI, including prompt engineering, fine‑tuning, and retrieval‑augmented generation (RAG).
• Implement agentic LLM architectures with structured output (JSON/GeoJSON), chain‑of‑thought/debate methods, and multi‑agent orchestration.
• Build and maintain prompt libraries, evaluation frameworks, and QA pipelines for defense‑grade AI content.
• Integrate generative AI into existing platforms via well‑documented APIs, ensuring interoperability with DoD systems including Maven, C2IE, and IRIS.
• Research emerging generative AI techniques including multimodal models, synthetic data generation, and AI‑assisted analysis for information operations.
• Translate COCOM operational requirements into deployable AI solutions; support TTX events and platform demonstrations.
• Implement responsible AI practices including bias detection, validation, hallucination mitigation, and HITL workflows.
• Support MVP‑aligned milestone delivery, contributing to TRL progression and ROI measurement.
• Document novel prompting techniques, model configurations, and workflows that may constitute IP or trade secrets.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a related technical field + 5 years relevant experience. An additional 4 years will be considered in lieu of the bachelor’s degree requirement.
• 3+ years in software development or data science, including 2+ years focused on generative AI, LLMs, or NLP.
• Hands‑on experience with foundation models (GPT 4, Claude, Gemini, Llama, Mistral) including prompt engineering, few‑shot learning, fine‑tuning, and API integration.
• Strong Python skills; experience with LangChain, LlamaIndex, Hugging Face, OpenAI/Anthropic APIs.
• Experience building RAG systems using vector databases (Pinecone, Weaviate, ChromaDB, pgvector).
• Cloud experience (AWS, Azure) and deploying AI/ML models in production environments.
• Understanding of AI safety, hallucination mitigation, bias reduction, and prompt‑injection protection.
• Experience with Git, CI/CD, and DevSecOps practices.
• U.S. citizenship required.
• Ability to obtain Secret and final TS/SCI security clearances.
• Current, valid U.S. passport for potential OCONUS travel.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s degree.
• Experience with agentic AI architectures, multi‑agent workflows, and LLM tool‑use.
• Hands‑on experience with fine‑tuning, RLHF, DPO, LoRA/QLoRA.
• Familiarity with multimodal models and defense/intelligence applications.
• Experience with IRIS, OMEGA, or similar operational platforms.
• Background supporting IO, PSYOP, influence analysis, or COCOM operations.
• Knowledge of MLOps, A/B testing, and LLM evaluation frameworks (RAGAS, DeepEval).
• Experience with synthetic data generation, simulation, or Monte Carlo methods.
• Understanding of geospatial data formats (GeoJSON, KML) and visualization tools (Plotly, D3.js).
• Strong communication skills for technical‑to‑nontechnical translation and customer demos.
• Relevant cloud/AI certifications (AWS, Azure, Google, DeepLearning.AI).

Key Technologies & Platforms

• GPT 5, Claude, Gemini
• Azure OpenAI Service, LangChain, LlamaIndex, Hugging Face Transformers
• Python, Pinecone, ChromaDB, Weaviate, pgvector
• AWS, Azure, Docker, Kubernetes
• REST APIs, JSON/GeoJSON
• Plotly, D3.js
• IRIS, Maven, C2IE, OMEGA, FedRAMP IL2-4

Salary Range

$135,000 – $216,000. Salary is determined by various factors, including but not limited to, the scope and responsibilities of the position, the individual’s experience, education, knowledge, skills, and competencies, as well as geographic location and business and contract considerations.

EEO Statement

Equal Opportunity Employer, including disability and protected veterans, or other characteristics protected by law.