Machine Learning Sales Engineer

Socket.dev; New York (NY); Hybrid; USD 280,000 - 320,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive Health Coverage

Equity

401(k) matching

Unlimited PTO

Hybrid work model

Office meals

Job summary

Lightning AI is seeking a Head of Solutions Engineering to build and lead our global field organization. You will shape the technical sales approach for enterprise opportunities, align with Revenue and Product, and drive customer value through strategic demos, architecture reviews, and robust POC programs.

You will recruit top talent, establish scalable field assets, and partner with cross-functional teams to accelerate enterprise adoption of AI infrastructure and platforms.

Qualifications

• 12+ years in solutions engineering or related leadership roles.
• 5+ years leading high-performing field teams in enterprise markets.
• Deep understanding of complex technical selling and enterprise evaluation cycles.

Responsibilities

• Build, lead, and scale the Solutions Engineering organization across enterprise, channel, and technical motions.
• Own the technical sales strategy for complex enterprise opportunities, including discovery, demos, architecture, and POC methodology.
• Partner with Sales to improve win rates, deal velocity, forecast confidence, and technical differentiation.
• Develop a repeatable field engineering playbook for AI infrastructure, ML workflows, security reviews, and enterprise buying committees.
• Recruit and develop exceptional MLSEs, solutions engineers, and field leaders.
• Create standards for demos, POCs, discovery, architecture reviews, and customer handoffs.
• Represent Lightning AI with executive and technical stakeholders across customers and partners.
• Collaborate with Product and Engineering to surface field patterns and influence roadmap priorities.
• Work with Partnerships, Customer Success, Marketing, and Revenue Enablement to build scalable field assets.
• Establish metrics, inspection points, and operating cadence for a world-class pre-sales org.

Skills

Solutions engineering leadership

Enterprise sales

Pre-sales strategy

Executive alignment

Cross-functional partnership

Forecasting discipline

Hiring and coaching

Public speaking / demos

Job description

Who We Are

Lightning AI is the company behind PyTorch Lightning. Founded in 2019, we build an end-to-end platform for developing, training, and deploying AI systems—designed to take ideas from research to production with less friction.

Through our merger with Voltage Park, a neocloud and AI Factory, Lightning AI combines developer-first software with cost-efficient, large-scale compute. Teams get the tools they need for experimentation, training, and production inference, with security, observability, and control built in.

We serve solo researchers, startups, and large enterprises. Lightning AI operates globally with offices in New York City, San Francisco, Seattle, and London, and is backed by Coatue, Index Ventures, Bain Capital Ventures, and Firstminute.

The Way We Work

The people who thrive here are builders who move fast, communicate openly, take ownership, and continuously improve themselves, their teams, and our company. Here's what that looks like in practice:

• Move with Urgency: We move quickly, make thoughtful decisions, and keep momentum. We value action over perfection and learn by shipping.
• Take Ownership: We own outcomes, not just our individual work. We make decisions that move the company forward and follow through.
• Communicate Openly: We communicate directly, seek to understand, and create clarity for others. Honest conversations help us move faster together.
• Build Great Teams: We lead by example, empower others, and create healthy teams where people can do their best work.
• Raise the Bar: We're always improving ourselves. We learn from feedback, consistently challenge ourselves to grow, and focus on the work that matters most.
• Think Long-Term: We design for what's next. We create scalable systems, simplify complexity, and use AI and automation to amplify our impact.

Head of Solutions Engineering

Team: Solutions Engineering

Location: [NYC] - Hybrid

Reports to: CRO or CEO

About Lightning AI

Lightning AI is building the platform and infrastructure that make it dramatically easier for teams to develop, train, deploy, and scale AI systems. As the company behind PyTorch Lightning, and following our merger with Voltage Park, we bring together developer-first AI tooling with high-performance compute infrastructure for researchers, startups, and enterprises building at the frontier of AI.

We operate with a simple set of values: Move Fast, Focus, Balance, Craftsmanship, and Minimal. We care about people who can operate with urgency, solve hard problems directly, and build with high standards without creating unnecessary complexity.

About the Role

We are looking for a Head of Solutions Engineering to build and lead the technical field organization that helps Lightning AI win, onboard, and expand strategic customers. This is a senior leadership role for someone who can combine technical depth, enterprise selling discipline, customer empathy, and operating rigor. You will define how Lightning AI proves value in the field, how our technical teams partner with Revenue, and how customer patterns translate into better product and GTM execution.

What You'll Do

• Build, lead, and scale the Solutions Engineering organization across enterprise, strategic, channel, and technical specialist motions.
• Own the technical sales strategy for complex enterprise opportunities, including discovery, demo strategy, architecture, POC methodology, technical validation, and executive alignment.
• Partner with Sales leadership to improve win rates, deal velocity, qualification quality, forecast confidence, and technical differentiation.
• Develop a repeatable field engineering playbook for AI infrastructure, ML workflows, platform adoption, technical evaluations, security reviews, and enterprise buying committees.
• Recruit and develop exceptional MLSEs, Solutions Engineers, technical leaders, and field specialists.
• Create clear standards for demos, POCs, technical discovery, architecture reviews, customer handoffs, and product feedback loops.
• Represent Lightning AI with executive and technical customer stakeholders, including CTOs, VP Engineering, Heads of AI, ML platform leaders, research leaders, and infrastructure leaders.
• Partner deeply with Product and Engineering to surface field patterns, influence roadmap priorities, and close gaps that block enterprise adoption.
• Work with Partnerships, Customer Success, Marketing, and Revenue Enablement to build consistent technical messaging and scalable field assets.
• Establish the metrics, inspection points, and operating cadence for a world-class technical pre-sales organization.

What We're Looking For

• 12+ years in solutions engineering, sales engineering, field engineering, technical pre-sales, ML infrastructure, or related technical leadership roles.
• 5+ years building and leading high-performing technical field teams in enterprise technology markets.
• Deep understanding of complex technical selling, enterprise evaluation cycles, POCs, executive alignment, and cross-functional deal execution.
• Credibility with technical buyers and the ability to simplify AI, infrastructure, platform, and architecture concepts for senior business stakeholders.
• Experience partnering closely with Sales, Product, Engineering, Customer Success, Partnerships, Marketing, and Revenue Operations.
• Strong talent judgment and a track record of hiring, coaching, and developing technical field leaders.
• A high-accountability operating style with strong forecasting discipline, field inspection, and customer follow-through.
• Comfort leading in a fast-moving startup where the market, product, and GTM motion are evolving quickly.

Nice-to-Haves

• Experience in AI infrastructure, cloud infrastructure, developer platforms, MLOps, data platforms, GPUs, or high-performance compute.
• Experience building a solutions engineering organization through rapid growth or category creation.
• Hands-on technical background in software engineering, ML engineering, platform engineering, infrastructure, or data systems.
• Experience supporting both direct enterprise sales and partner/channel technical motions.

Why Lightning AI

• You will help define how companies build and scale real AI systems, not just sell another generic software product.
• You will work with technical customers and teammates who care about speed, clarity, craft, and direct problem-solving.
• You will join a company with developer credibility, infrastructure ambition, and a GTM motion that is still early enough to shape.

We are committed to offering competitive compensation that reflects the value each team member brings to our mission. Final offers are based on factors such as experience, skills, geographic location, and role expectations. In addition to base salary, our total rewards package for eligible roles includes a discretionary bonus, a meaningful equity component, and comprehensive benefits.

The anticipated annual base salary range for this role is: $280,000 — $320,000 USD

Benefits and Perks

We offer a comprehensive and competitive benefits package designed to support our employees’ health, well-being, and long-term success:

• Comprehensive Health Coverage: Medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees and eligible dependents.
• Meaningful Equity: RSUs that give employees a stake in the company's long-term success.
• Retirement Savings: 401(k) matching (U.S.) and pension contributions (U.K.).
• Flexible Time Off: Unlimited PTO, company holidays, and floating holidays to support work-life balance.
• Company-Wide Winter Break: Two weeks of company closure each winter to disconnect and recharge.
• Paid Parental & Family Leave: Paid leave to support you and your family through life's important moments.
• Professional Development: Annual learning and development allowance to support your professional growth.
• Wellness Benefits: Wellness and work-from-home stipends to support your physical and mental well-being.
• Sabbatical Program: Four weeks of paid sabbatical leave after four years of service.
• Flexible Work: Flexible schedules and a hybrid work model for our office-based teams.
• In-Office Meals: Complimentary meals at our office hubs.

Benefits may vary by location, team, and role.

At Lightning AI, we are committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace. We believe that diverse teams drive innovation and create better products. We provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic. We are dedicated to building a culture where everyone can thrive and contribute to their fullest potential.