Principal Generative AI Engineering Lead - Senior Vice President

Citi; Irving (TX); On-site; USD 156,000 - 234,000; Full time

Job summary

The Citi USCC Architecture and AI Engineering group seeks a seasoned principal Generative AI/AI Lead to guide our team and architect the next generation of intelligent systems in Irving, TX. You will mentor engineers, drive project execution from concept to production, and shape the technical direction for GenAI and agentic AI initiatives.

Lead design of robust, scalable AI solutions, partner with business stakeholders, and enforce governance and MLOps practices to ensure secure, compliant

Qualifications

• 6+ years of Gen AI application development experience.
• Leadership and team mentorship in a technical setting.
• Ability to design and architect scalable, high-availability AI systems.
• Experience with governance, risk, and ethical guidelines for enterprise AI.
• Expert Python proficiency and core AI/ML libraries.

Responsibilities

• Architect and design end-to-end AI systems at scale.
• Collaborate with business leaders to translate needs into a technical vision.
• Mentor and develop a team of AI engineers.
• Establish AI governance and MLOps best practices.
• Hands-on leadership in ML/GenAI development.
• Lead MLOps strategy and production deployment in containerized environments like OpenShift.

Skills

Gen AI application development

Leadership & Management

Architectural Expertise

Business Acumen

AI Governance

Python Proficiency

Deep AI/ML Expertise

MLOps

Data handling pipelines

OpenShift/Kubernetes

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent

Tools

Docker

OpenShift

Kubernetes

FastAPI

PyTorch

TensorFlow

NumPy

Pandas

Transformers

LangChain

Job description

The USCC Architecture and AI Engineering group is seeking a seasoned and visionary principal Generative AI/AI Lead to guide our team and architect the next generation of intelligent systems. This is a pivotal role in driving our AI project execution, from conceptualization through to production. We are looking for an expert with a proven track record in designing and delivering robust, scalable, and well-governed AI solutions. The ideal candidate will be a technical leader who can mentor a talented team of engineers, collaborate effectively with business stakeholders, and steer our technical direction in the rapidly evolving landscape of Generative and Agentic AI.

Key Responsibilities

• Architect & Design: Lead the design and architecture of complex, end-to-end AI systems, ensuring they are scalable, resilient, maintainable, and secure.


• Strategize & Collaborate: Partner directly with business leaders and product managers to identify high-impact AI opportunities, define project roadmaps, and translate strategic business needs into a coherent technical vision.


• Lead & Mentor: Manage, mentor, and develop a team of AI engineers, fostering a culture of innovation, technical excellence, and rapid, continuous learning. Provide technical guidance and oversight on all projects.


• Govern & Standardize: Establish, implement, and enforce AI governance frameworks and MLOps best practices to ensure ethical, responsible, and compliant AI implementations across the organization.


• Hands-On Leadership: Remain hands-on in development, guiding the implementation of advanced machine learning, deep learning, and Generative AI models and setting the standard for code quality.


• Drive Innovation: Champion research into emerging AI technologies, tools, and methodologies. Drive proof-of-concept initiatives and make strategic recommendations for integrating cutting-edge solutions.


• Oversee MLOps: Define and lead the strategy for MLOps, including the robust deployment, monitoring, and full lifecycle management of AI applications in containerized environments like OpenShift.

Required Skills And Qualifications

• 6+ years of experience in Gen AI application development, building and deploying solutions with large language models such as GPT, Gemini, Claude, and Llama.


• Leadership & Management: Proven experience in a technical leadership or team management role, with a strong ability to mentor engineers, manage project priorities, and drive team performance.


• Architectural Expertise: Demonstrated ability to design and architect scalable, high-availability, end-to-end AI and machine learning systems.


• Business Acumen: Significant experience collaborating with non-technical business stakeholders to identify opportunities, define requirements, and articulate a clear AI strategy.


• AI Governance: Strong understanding and practical experience in implementing governance, risk, and ethical guidelines for enterprise-grade AI solutions.


• Expert Python Proficiency: Expert-level programming skills in Python and its core AI/ML ecosystem (e.g., NumPy, Pandas, Scikit-learn).


• Deep AI/ML Expertise: Extensive, hands-on implementation experience with Machine Learning, Deep Learning, Generative AI, and Agentic AI systems.


• Advanced Data Expertise: Proven expertise in designing and managing complex data handling, preprocessing, and validation pipelines for mission-critical AI applications.


• Advanced MLOps: Deep, practical experience in MLOps, including containerization (Docker), orchestration (OpenShift/Kubernetes), CI/CD, and production deployment of AI models.


• Bachelor's degree or equivalent practical experience.

Core Technical Stack & Expertise

• LLMs: Gemini, OpenAI models (GPT series), Copilot, Claude, Llama, and experience with Local Models.


• Frameworks: LangChain, LlamaIndex, and the Hugging Face ecosystem (Transformers, Datasets, Tokenizers).


• Orchestration: LangGraph and designing and building complex Multi-Agent Systems.


• Development: Building production-grade, scalable services using Python, FastAPI, and asynchronous programming patterns.


• RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation): Designing and implementing advanced retrieval techniques using Vector DBs (e.g., Pinecone, Chroma) and PostgreSQL (with pgvector).


• ML/DL Platforms: PyTorch and/or TensorFlow for building and fine-tuning models at scale.


• Deployment & Monitoring: Containerization with Docker, deploying resilient production APIs, and implementing comprehensive monitoring, logging, and alerting strategies.


• Applied AI Skills: Mastery of Advanced Prompt Engineering, AI Workflow Design, and GenAI application optimization for cost, latency, and performance.

The Ideal Candidate

• You are a strategic thinker and a master builder, capable of seeing the long-term vision and diving deep into the technical details to make it a reality.


• You are an experienced and empathetic leader who empowers your team to do their best work.


• You excel at bridging the gap between business and technology, translating complex problems into actionable and impactful AI strategies.


• You have a deep-stated commitment to building responsible AI and establishing robust governance.


• You are a thought leader and lifelong learner, staying at the absolute cutting edge of the AI industry and inspiring others to do the same.


• You have a proven track record of delivering high-impact AI solutions from initial concept to full-scale production.

Job Family Group

Technology

Job Family

Applications Development

Time Type

Full time

Primary Location

Irving Texas United States

Primary Location Full Time Salary Range

$156,160.00 - $234,240.00

In addition to salary, Citi’s offerings may also include, for eligible employees, discretionary and formulaic incentive and retention awards. Citi offers competitive employee benefits, including: medical, dental & vision coverage; 401(k); life, accident, and disability insurance; and wellness programs. Citi also offers paid time off packages, including planned time off (vacation), unplanned time off (sick leave), and paid holidays. For additional information regarding Citi employee benefits, please visit citibenefits.com. Available offerings may vary by jurisdiction, job level, and date of hire.

Most Relevant Skills

Please see the requirements listed above.

Other Relevant Skills

For complementary skills, please see above and/or contact the recruiter.

Anticipated Posting Close Date

Nov 06, 2026

Automated Processing and AI

We use automated processing, including artificial intelligence, for our legitimate business interests (or our reasonable and appropriate business purposes) to identify and align the candidate's skills and abilities with a specific job opening. Additionally, if you so choose, or consent, we can match your skills and abilities to other suitable roles at Citi.

Importantly, all our hiring processes and decisions, including determining your suitability for a role, are conducted, checked, and decided by individuals. Our automated processing and AI do not involve relying on automatic or autonomous decision-making. Please refer to any Jurisdictional Considerations, with specific provisions for your country (where relevant) for further details.

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