Principal Research Programmer, Epic Developer Assistant

Epic Games; Vancouver (WA); On-site; USD 196,000 - 288,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Employee health benefits

Retirement plan with employer match

Mental health program through Modern |

Job summary

Epic Games in British Columbia is seeking a Principal AI Programmer to design and ship end-to-end AI systems inside Unreal Engine. You will build LLM-driven agents, tooling, and cloud backend to enhance engine capabilities.

You will collaborate with engine, tools, and backend teams, mentor others, and help set direction for reliability, safety, and evaluation of AI-driven automation.

Qualifications

• Design and ship end-to-end AI features inside Unreal Engine.
• Build or integrate LLM-driven agents and tools with engine tooling.
• Experience with cloud-native services and backend architectures.
• Strong C++ and Python programming skills; game engine experience preferred.
• Experience in games or interactive entertainment development.

Responsibilities

• Design and build LLM-driven agents and tools inside Unreal Engine, including engine-side C++/Python tooling and editor scripting.
• Extend the cloud-hosted agent harness, services, and databases mediating between LLMs and the engine.
• Work across engine tooling, cloud backend, and the web UI to ship end-to-end features.
• Evaluate and integrate emerging LLM capabilities into Epic's engine and pipeline tooling.
• Define technical direction for reliability, safety, and evaluation of LLM-driven engine automation.
• Mentor engine and backend engineers on game engine internals and LLM system design.

Skills

Unreal Engine

LLM integration

C++

Python

Web backend

Cloud services

Engine tooling

Editor scripting

Education

BS/MS in Computer Science or related field

Tools

Editor scripting

Web APIs

Databases

Job description

WHAT MAKES US EPIC?

At the core of Epic’s success are talented, passionate people. Epic prides itself on creating a collaborative, welcoming, and creative environment. Whether it’s building award-winning games or crafting engine technology that enables others to make visually stunning interactive experiences, we’re always innovating.

Being Epic means being a part of a team that continually strives to do right by our community and users. We’re constantly innovating to raise the bar of engine and game development.

PROGRAMMING - UNREAL ENGINE

What We Do

Unreal-powered projects have been on the bleeding edge of real-time entertainment for over 20 years. Our team of programming experts are always innovating to improve the tools and technology that empower content developers worldwide.

What You'll Do

We're looking for a Principal Al Programmer who builds products that integrate AI into Unreal Engine. You'll design and ship the full stack of systems that let LLMs act inside the engine (from end to end, not just a single layer), bringing depth in game engine architecture, cloud services, and how LLMs actually work.

In this role, you will

• Design and build LLM-driven agents and tools that operate directly inside Unreal Engine, including engine-side C++/Python tooling and editor scripting
• Design and extend the cloud-hosted agent harness, services, and database that mediate between LLMs and the engine
• Work across the full stack (engine tooling, cloud backend, and the web UI used to drive and monitor agents) to ship end-to-end features
• Evaluate and integrate emerging LLM capabilities (tool use, multi-agent orchestration, context management) into Epic's engine and pipeline tooling
• Define technical direction for the reliability, safety, and evaluation of LLM-driven engine automation
• Partner closely with engine, tools, and backend programmers, and mentor others on both game engine internals and LLM system design

What we're looking for

• Strong programming background with hands-on experience in a game engine (Unreal Engine strongly preferred), including engine architecture and tooling/editor scripting
• Practical experience building or shipping products powered by LLMs (agents, tool-calling, RAG, prompt/context engineering), or a strong conceptual understanding of how LLMs work
• Experience with cloud-native services and infrastructure: web APIs, databases, and service architecture and deployment
• Excellent programming skills across C++ (engine-side) and Python and/or a web backend language
• Experience in the games industry or equivalent, developing interactive entertainment products
• Ability to work full-stack and reason about tradeoffs across engine code, backend services, and a web front end
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with a BS/MS in Computer Science or a related field

EPIC JOB + EPIC BENEFITS = EPIC LIFE

We pay 100% for benefits for both employees and dependents and offer coverage for supplemental medical, dental, vision, critical illness, telemedicine, Life and AD&D, long term disability insurance as well as weekly indemnity (short term disability) and a retirement savings plan with a competitive employer match. In addition to the EAP (employee assistance program), we also offer a robust mental well‑being program through Modern Health, which provides free therapy and coaching for employees & dependents.

Pay Transparency Information

The expected annual base pay range(s) for this position are detailed below. Each base pay range is relevant only for individuals who are residents of or will be expected to work within the specified locale. Compensation varies based on a variety of factors, which include (but aren’t limited to) things such as skills and competencies, qualifications, knowledge, and experience. In addition to base pay, most employees are eligible to participate in Epic’s generous benefit plans and discretionary incentive programs (subject to the terms of those plans or programs).

British Columbia Base Pay Range

$274,049—$401,939 CAD

ABOUT US

Epic Games is a leading interactive entertainment company. For over 30 years we've been making award-winning games and engine technology that empowers others to make visually stunning games and 3D content that bring environments to life like never before. Epic's award-winning Unreal Engine technology not only provides game developers the ability to build high-fidelity, interactive experiences for PC, console, mobile, and VR, it is also a tool being embraced by content creators across a variety of industries such as media and entertainment, automotive, and architectural design. As we continue to build our Engine technology and develop remarkable games, we strive to build teams of world-class talent.

Like what you hear? Come be a part of something Epic!

Epic Games deeply values diverse teams and an inclusive work culture, and we are proud to be an Equal Opportunity employer. Learn more about our Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Policy here.

Note to Recruitment Agencies: Epic does not accept any unsolicited resumes or approaches from any unauthorized third party (including recruitment or placement agencies) (i.e., a third party with whom we do not have a negotiated and validly executed agreement). We will not pay any fees to any unauthorized third party. Further details on these matters can be found here.