Lead Developer, AI Workflows & Media Supply Chain

Apple Inc.; Culver City (CA); On-site; USD 138,000 - 251,000; Full time

Job summary

Apple seeks a Lead Developer, AI Workflows & Media Supply Chain in Culver City, CA to design, build, and maintain AI-driven automation and agentic workflows that streamline ingest, metadata enrichment, QC, and downstream distribution across the media supply chain.

You'll bridge AI models with internal data systems, deploy secure interfaces, create dashboards, collaborate with AI/ML teams, and mentor engineers in a fast-paced production environment.

Qualifications

• We are looking for experienced professionals who have built and operated production automation or AI/ML systems within the media, entertainment, or technology industries.
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical field, or equivalent practical experience.
• 5+ years of experience as an automation and workflow engineer.
• Experience designing and shipping automated, end-to-end workflows (e.g., ingest, metadata enrichment, QC, delivery) that measurably reduced manual effort or turnaround time.
• Experience applying AI/ML or LLM-based automation to production systems, beyond prototyping.
• Experience programming in Python and SQL to build automation, integrations, or data pipelines.
• Experience working with professional media file formats and QC/delivery standards used in streaming or entertainment operations.
• Experience writing tested, maintainable production code and following standard software engineering practices (code review, version control, CI/CD).
• Direct experience handling sensitive and confidential information with integrity and discretion.

Responsibilities

• Design, build, and maintain AI/ML-driven automation and agentic workflows that streamline ingest, metadata enrichment, QC, asset validation, and downstream distribution across the media supply chain.
• Bridge AI models and internal data systems by deploying secure, scalable interfaces (e.g., MCP servers) and robust API integrations with MAM, inventory, and metadata platforms.
• Build automated validation loops and human-in-the-loop review systems to ensure AI-generated metadata and decisions meet accuracy, compliance, and auditability standards before hitting systems of record.
• Design, build, and maintain internal tools (dashboards, UIs, CLI utilities) that give operators visibility into and control over autonomous AI-driven workflows.
• Collaborate with AI/ML developers to determine where AI/ML genuinely improves supply chain efficiency versus where deterministic automation is the better tool.
• Establish processes to detect, reconcile, and resolve data and workflow inconsistencies across the media supply chain, ensuring outputs consistently meet Apple's delivery specifications.
• Prototype and deploy targeted automation scripts, micro-services, and workflows to resolve emerging bottlenecks in content ingest, QC, and delivery pipelines.
• Act as a technical lead and review for other engineers working on supply chain and automation initiatives, and represent the team's technical direction to cross-functional stakeholders.
• Manage multiple concurrent priorities and adapt to shifting requirements in a fast-changing production environment.
• Mentor or review the work of other engineers, and incorporate differing technical perspectives into technical decisions.

Skills

Automation & workflow engineering

Python

SQL

AI/ML

API integration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related field

Tools

Airflow

Temporal

Kafka

Docker

Kubernetes

MCP servers

Job description

Lead Developer, AI Workflows & Media Supply Chain

Culver City, California, United States Marketing

The Original Content Services group, part of Apple Services, focuses on creating the premiere video experience for all content types, with impact throughout the industry, for a worldwide digital audience. The team brings together expertise in Partner Relations, TV App Services, Video Services, Technical Operations, and Quality Control to support that mission.We're looking for a Lead Developer, AI Workflows & Media Supply Chain to join our Integration and Technology team. This role is centered on building and maintaining the software systems that automate our media supply chain, including title and asset management, metadata curation, archival policy, system governance, technical workflow improvement, and distribution standardization with AI/ML applied with the same engineering discipline, testing, and accountability expected of any production system. We're looking for someone who is passionate about building scalable media supply chain workflows and can contribute to a diverse organization.

Description

The Lead Developer, AI Workflows & Media Supply Chain will support the following:Design, build, and maintain AI/ML-driven automation and agentic workflows that streamline ingest, metadata enrichment, QC, asset validation, and downstream distribution across the media supply chain.Bridge AI models and internal data systems by deploying secure, scalable interfaces (e.g., Model Context Protocol (MCP) servers) and robust API integrations with Media Asset Management (MAM), inventory, and metadata platforms.Build automated validation loops and human-in-the-loop review systems to ensure AI-generated metadata and decisions meet accuracy, compliance, and auditability standards before hitting systems of record.Design, build, and maintain internal tools (dashboards, UIs, CLI utilities) that give operators visibility into and control over autonomous AI-driven workflows.Collaborate with AI/ML developers to determine where AI/ML genuinely improves supply chain efficiency versus where deterministic automation is the better tool.Establish processes to detect, reconcile, and resolve data and workflow inconsistencies across the media supply chain, ensuring outputs consistently meet Apple's delivery specifications.Prototype and deploy targeted automation scripts, micro-services, and workflows to resolve emerging bottlenecks in content ingest, QC, and delivery pipelines.Act as a technical lead and review for other engineers working on supply chain and automation initiatives, and represent the team's technical direction to cross-functional stakeholders.Manage multiple concurrent priorities and adapt to shifting requirements in a fast-changing production environment.Mentor or review the work of other engineers, and incorporate differing technical perspectives into technical decisions.

Minimum Qualifications

• We are looking for experienced professionals who have built and operated production automation or AI/ML systems within the media, entertainment, or technology industries.
• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical field, or equivalent practical experience.
• 5+ years of experience as an automation and workflow engineer.
• Experience designing and shipping automated, end-to-end workflows (e.g., ingest, metadata enrichment, QC, delivery) that measurably reduced manual effort or turnaround time.
• Experience applying AI/ML or LLM-based automation to production systems, beyond prototyping.
• Experience programming in Python and SQL to build automation, integrations, or data pipelines.
• Experience working with professional media file formats and QC/delivery standards used in streaming or entertainment operations.
• Experience writing tested, maintainable production code and following standard software engineering practices (code review, version control, CI/CD).
• Direct experience handling sensitive and confidential information with integrity and discretion.
• Ability to be onsite; this role is an in-person, onsite position.
• Available to work some nights and weekends as needed.
• Up to 10% travel required; both domestic and international.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience building or operating secure API layers (e.g., MCP servers) that give AI agents standardized access to order or asset management systems.
• Experience with Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) or metadata indexing techniques for querying large-scale content archives.
• Experience with workflow orchestration (e.g., Airflow, Temporal), message queuing (e.g., Kafka, SQS), and containerized deployments (Docker/Kubernetes).
• Experience building human-in-the-loop review processes to validate automated or AI-generated outputs before they reach systems of record.
• Experience communicating technical trade-offs to non-technical partners and adjusting a technical direction based on their input.

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 $137,500 and $250,700, 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
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Apple accepts applications to this posting on an ongoing basis.