Principal Software Engineer (AI Platform & Full Stack Engineering) - Hybrid in MN

Optum; Minnetonka (MN); Hybrid; USD 134,600 - 230,800; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive benefits package

Equity stock purchase

401(k) contribution

Job summary

Optum is seeking a Principal Software Engineer to drive the design and delivery of AI-driven, full stack platform capabilities. This role will combine hands-on engineering with architectural leadership, focusing on creating scalable, secure applications. You will work in a hybrid environment, collaborating with teams to enhance engineering excellence and lead projects that leverage AI technologies.

Requirements include a Bachelor's degree in a related field, 10+ years of software engineering experience, and expertise in full stack development, microservices, and DevOps practices.

Qualifications

• 10+ years of experience in software engineering with solid full stack development expertise.
• 6+ years of experience designing microservices and distributed systems.
• 5+ years of experience with CI/CD, containerization (Docker), and DevOps practices.

Responsibilities

• Define scalable architecture and engineering patterns for AI‑powered applications.
• Design and integrate AI/ML capabilities into production applications.
• Drive engineering excellence through CI/CD pipelines, containerization, and automation.

Skills

Full stack development expertise

Microservices design

CI/CD practices

Containerization

Java

Python

Node.js

Frontend frameworks (React/Angular, TypeScript)

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field

Tools

Docker

AWS

Job description

Optum Tech is a global leader in health care innovation. Our teams develop cutting-edge solutions that help people live healthier lives and help make the health system work better for everyone. From advanced data analytics and AI to cybersecurity, we use innovative approaches to solve some of health care's most complex challenges. Your contributions here have the potential to change lives. Ready to build the next breakthrough? Join us to start Caring. Connecting. Growing together.

As a Principal Software Engineer, you will serve as a senior individual contributor responsible for designing and delivering AI-driven, full stack platform capabilities that enable enterprise-scale intelligence, optimization, and decisioning.

You will combine deep hands‑on engineering with architectural leadership, defining standards for AI/ML systems, platform design, and modern software development while enabling scalable, secure, and high‑performing applications.

This position follows a hybrid schedule with four in‑office days per week.

Primary Responsibilities

• Define scalable architecture and engineering patterns for AI‑powered applications, APIs, and platform services
• Establish guardrails for open‑source usage, AI models, and data governance
• Lead design decisions across frontend, backend, and cloud layers ensuring performance, scalability, and reliability

AI/ML Enablement & Governance

• Design and integrate AI/ML and Generative AI capabilities into production applications
• Review and guide usage of AI models and datasets ensuring compliance with licensing, regulatory, and enterprise standards
• Enable responsible AI practices across application development

Full Stack Engineering

• Design and build end‑to‑end applications (UI, APIs, services, data layers)
• Develop scalable microservices, domain APIs, and distributed systems using modern frameworks
• Implement cloud‑native and event‑driven architectures

Platform Engineering & DevOps

• Drive engineering excellence through CI/CD pipelines, containerization, and automation
• Build reusable platform components, services, and developer tooling to improve scalability and speed
• Ensure system reliability including observability, performance tuning, and resiliency

AI-Enabled Engineering & Productivity

• Leverage AI‑assisted development tools (coding agents, LLMs) to improve engineering productivity
• Build intelligent tooling and workflows to streamline development and governance processes

Technical Influence & Mentorship

• Provide technical leadership, code reviews, and design guidance across teams
• Collaborate with product, architecture, and data science teams to deliver integrated solutions
• Drive adoption of best practices, reusable patterns, and modern engineering standards

You’ll be rewarded and recognized for your performance in an environment that will challenge you and give you clear direction on what it takes to succeed in your role as well as provide development for other roles you may be interested in.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or related field
• 10+ years of experience in software engineering with solid full stack development expertise
• 6+ years of experience designing microservices and distributed systems
• 5+ years of experience with CI/CD, containerization (Docker), and DevOps practices
• 4+ years of experience with cloud platforms (AWS preferred)
• Solid experience with Java, Python, Node.js, and modern frontend frameworks (React/Angular, TypeScript, REST, GraphQL)
• Experience building AI‑enabled applications and platform services
• Experience integrating AI/ML or Generative AI capabilities (e.g., APIs, embeddings, decisioning features)
• Experience delivering complex, multi‑team engineering initiatives
• Experience using AI‑assisted development tools to accelerate delivery

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with AI/ML platforms, LLM-based applications, or agentic systems
• Experience building enterprise‑scale platforms for analytics, optimization, or decision intelligence
• Proven knowledge of responsible AI, model lifecycle, and governance frameworks
• Experience in regulated industries (healthcare, financial services, etc.)

Pay is based on several factors including but not limited to local labor markets, education, work experience, certifications, etc. In addition to your salary, we offer benefits such as a comprehensive benefits package, incentive and recognition programs, equity stock purchase and 401(k) contribution (all benefits are subject to eligibility requirements). No matter where or when you begin a career with us, you’ll find a far‑reaching choice of benefits and incentives. The salary for this role will range from $134,600 to $230,800 annually based on full‑time employment. We comply with all minimum wage laws as applicable.

At UnitedHealth Group, our mission is to help people live healthier lives and make the health system work better for everyone. We believe everyone—of every race, gender, sexuality, age, location, and income—deserves the opportunity to live their healthiest life. Today, however, there are still far too many barriers to good health which are disproportionately experienced by people of color, historically marginalized groups and those with lower incomes. We are committed to mitigating our impact on the environment and enabling and delivering equitable care that addresses health disparities and improves health outcomes - an enterprise priority reflected in our mission.

UnitedHealth Group is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer under applicable law and qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, national origin, religion, age, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by local, state, or federal laws, rules, or regulations.

UnitedHealth Group is a drug‑free workplace. Candidates are required to pass a drug test before beginning employment.