Principal AI Software Engineer

Harnham; Boston (MA); Hybrid; USD 225,000 - 250,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Leadership opportunity

Experienced teammates

Hybrid/remote options

Technical ownership

Cutting-edge AI tech

Competitive compensation

Job summary

Harnham is seeking a senior engineering leader to architect and guide an AI-powered enterprise BI platform in Boston. You will own technical direction, oversee a team of engineers and data scientists, and drive end-to-end delivery of cutting-edge generative AI solutions.

You will design scalable data models, ship production-grade services on GCP, and collaborate with business stakeholders to translate complex requirements into robust, scalable architectures.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of software engineering experience at Staff/Principal/Technical Lead level.
• Strong Python development experience with production-grade apps.
• Hands-on with GCP data platforms and scalable compute services.
• Strong SQL and data modeling for analytical workloads.
• Experience delivering end-to-end complex projects in fast-paced environments.
• Experience building production LLM apps using LangChain or LangGraph.
• Experience with multiple AI model providers and prompt engineering.
• Outstanding communication with technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Responsibilities

• Lead the technical direction and architecture of a next-gen AI-powered BI platform.
• Mentor and develop a team of engineers, data scientists, and data engineers.
• Design, build, and experiment with generative AI solutions for enterprise challenges.
• Architect and develop production-grade services using Python and LLM orchestration frameworks.
• Partner with data teams to design scalable data models and optimize workloads.
• Build and maintain cloud-native infra, pipelines, and observability tooling.
• Collaborate with stakeholders to translate requirements into scalable solutions.
• Drive engineering excellence through testing, documentation, and code quality standards.

Skills

Leadership at Staff/Principal level

Python

Cloud platforms (GCP)

SQL & Data modeling

LLM apps / LangChain

Stakeholder communication

Prompt engineering

Tools

LangChain

LangGraph

Docker

CI/CD pipelines

Infrastructure as Code

Job description

$225,000-250,000 Base salary + Bonus + Equity

THE COMPANY

Harnham is partnering with a high-growth AI and technology startup operating at the intersection of artificial intelligence, private equity, and digital transformation. The company helps investors and leadership teams unlock value through advanced analytics, AI-driven insights, and enterprise-scale technology solutions.

Following a period of rapid growth and expansion, the organization is building a world-class engineering function focused on developing innovative AI-powered platforms that help businesses better understand, optimize, and transform their operations.

This is a unique opportunity to join a highly experienced team with backgrounds from leading technology, consulting, and analytics organizations, while helping shape the future of enterprise AI adoption.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Lead the technical direction and architecture of a next-generation AI-powered business intelligence platform, partnering closely with senior technology leadership.
• Mentor and develop a high-performing team of software engineers, data scientists, and data engineers through code reviews, design reviews, and hands-on collaboration.
• Design, build, and experiment with cutting-edge generative AI and LLM solutions to solve complex enterprise challenges.
• Architect and develop production-grade services using Python and modern LLM orchestration frameworks, integrating multiple AI providers.
• Partner with engineering and data teams to design scalable data models and optimize analytical workloads across cloud-based data platforms.
• Build and maintain cloud-native infrastructure, deployment pipelines, observability tooling, and operational best practices.
• Collaborate closely with business stakeholders to translate complex commercial requirements into scalable technical solutions.
• Drive engineering excellence through testing, documentation, code quality standards, monitoring, and continuous improvement initiatives.

SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

Required

• 8+ years of software engineering experience, including experience operating at Staff, Principal, or Technical Lead level.
• Strong Python development expertise, with experience building production-grade applications, data platforms, and analytical systems.
• Hands-on experience with cloud technologies, ideally GCP, including data platforms, storage services, access management, and scalable compute services.
• Strong SQL, data modeling, and data architecture experience supporting analytical workloads.
• Proven success delivering complex projects end-to-end in fast-paced and ambiguous environments.
• Experience building and deploying production LLM applications using frameworks such as LangChain, LangGraph, or similar technologies.
• Experience working with multiple AI model providers and applying best practices for prompt engineering, context management, and AI application design.
• Outstanding communication skills with the ability to engage both technical and non-technical stakeholders.

Preferred

• Experience with CI/CD pipelines, Docker, and Infrastructure-as-Code tooling.
• Familiarity with observability and LLM monitoring tools.
• Experience designing evaluation frameworks for AI applications and machine learning systems.
• Exposure to consulting, private equity, strategy, or enterprise transformation environments.

BENEFITS

• Opportunity to play a key leadership role within a rapidly growing AI business.
• Work alongside highly experienced technology, analytics, and transformation professionals.
• Flexible hybrid or remote working arrangements.
• Significant technical ownership and influence over product and architectural direction.
• Exposure to cutting-edge AI technologies and enterprise transformation initiatives.
• Competitive compensation package and long-term career growth opportunities.

KEY TERMS