Principal AI Engineer, Special Programs

InvestedintheMission; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 180,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

SpaceX seeks a Principal AI Engineer for Special Programs in the Washington, DC area to design, build, and deploy AI integrations with government systems, ensuring safety and scalability.

You will work跨 product, research, governance, and legal teams; require 6+ years in software engineering, strong Python, cloud solutions, and experience with large language models.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in computer science or another STEM discipline; OR 2+ years of professional software development experience in lieu of a degree
• 6+ years of hands-on software engineering experience building scalable systems, APIs, or AI/ML applications (strong Python proficiency)

Responsibilities

• Design, build, and optimize integrations between AI frontier models and government systems, platforms, and data environments
• Collaborate on custom SDKs, APIs, developer tools, and documentation for government and enterprise developers
• Partner with agency stakeholders to understand requirements, prototype solutions, and iterate rapidly based on real-world feedback
• Ship production-grade code and features with a bias toward speed, simplicity, and measurable impact

Skills

Python

APIs

AI/ML

Cloud platforms

Docker/Kubernetes

Government/compliance

OpenAI models

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree in CS or STEM

Tools

Docker

Kubernetes

AWS

GCP

Azure

Job description

PRINCIPAL AI ENGINEER, SPECIAL PROGRAMS

SpaceX was founded under the belief that a future where humanity is out exploring the stars is fundamentally more exciting than one where we are not. Today SpaceX is actively developing the technologies to make this possible, with the ultimate goal of enabling human life on Mars.

This team focuses on engineering and deploying AI capabilities (models, APIs, tools, and integrations) for U.S. federal agencies. You'll work closely with product, research, infrastructure, and legal/governance teams to make AI and future models maximally useful for missions while upholding safety, transparency, and ethical standards.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Design, build, and optimize integrations between AI frontier models (e.g., Grok family) and government systems, platforms, and data environments
• Collaborate on custom SDKs, APIs, developer tools, and documentation tailored for government and enterprise developers
• Partner with agency stakeholders to understand requirements, prototype solutions, and iterate rapidly based on real-world feedback
• Ship production-grade code and features with a bias toward speed, simplicity, and measurable impact

BASIC QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor's degree in computer science or another STEM discipline; OR 2+ years of professional experience in software development in lieu of a degree
• 6+ years of hands-on software engineering experience building scalable systems, APIs, or AI/ML applications (strong Python proficiency, other languages a plus)

PREFERRED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE:

• Experience working with large language models, generative AI, or agentic systems—either in research, production, or applied engineering
• Familiarity with government or public sector technology environments (federal civilian agencies, state/local gov, or regulated industries like healthcare, finance, or infrastructure)
• Strong product sensibility: ability to translate ambiguous stakeholder needs into concrete technical solutions
• Demonstrated ability to write clean, maintainable, high-performance code under tight timelines
• Exceptional problem-solving skills and intellectual curiosity—you thrive on hard, ambiguous challenges
• Excellent communication skills; you can explain complex technical concepts to non-technical partners clearly and concisely
• Prior work on AI safety, governance, red-teaming, or responsible AI deployment
• Experience with cloud platforms (AWS, GCP, Azure), containerization (Docker/Kubernetes), or API orchestration
• Background in policy-adjacent technical roles, civic tech, or public-interest technology
• Contributions to open-source AI projects or developer tools

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

• Must be willing to work extended hours and weekends as needed
• 20% travel may be required to government sites
• This position requires successfully obtaining and maintaining a Top Secret Security Clearance as a condition of employment. While the clearance may not be immediately necessary upon hire, we encourage you to initiate the application process promptly upon accepting this offer. Your ability to secure the necessary clearance is essential for fulfilling key responsibilities of the role. Should you be unable to obtain it, SpaceX reserves the right to modify or terminate your employment to align with operational needs.

COMPENSATION AND BENEF