Remote AI/ML Engineering Director

UnitedHealth Group; Minneapolis (MN); Hybrid; USD 203,000 - 348,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive benefits package

Equity stock purchase

401(k) contribution

Job summary

Optum Tech is seeking a senior AI leader to define and drive an enterprise AI strategy, turning proofs of concept into scalable systems. You will oversee AI engineering, deployment, and operations, shaping how AI is used across the team.

The role requires deep leadership, ML/AI expertise, and experience with healthcare or regulated environments. Remote work is allowed within the U.S., with onsite at Minneapolis/DC as needed.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience including 4+ years in software/systems engineering.
• 10+ years of progressive experience leading technical leadership or director-level responsibilities.
• 8+ years building and deploying enterprise-scale software or AI/ML SaaS in production.
• 5+ years hands-on programming with Python or Bash and ML libraries/frameworks.
• 3+ years with public cloud platforms (AWS/Azure/GCP) for AI deployment and infra management.
• 3+ years applying statistical methods, data pipelines, and ML algorithms.
• Experience defining system performance KPIs and implementing model monitoring, fairness and bias mitigation.
• Masters or PhD preferred in CS/ML/AI.
• Experience with NLP/LLMs/retrieval-augmented generation/agentic workflows preferred.
• Experience deploying AI in healthcare or regulated environments preferred.
• Security and compliance standards for AI models handling PHI/HIPAA data preferred.

Responsibilities

• Define and drive an enterprise-wide AI strategy and roadmap aligned with business goals and growth priorities.
• Lead enterprise AI engineering, deployment, and operations, turning proofs of concept into production systems.
• Apply AI to solve problems, uncover opportunities, and generate value while guiding development across the team.
• Integrate enterprise AI tools, align hiring with AI capabilities, and remove obstacles to adoption.
• Promote ethical AI use with transparency, fairness and accountability, ensuring standards compliance.
• Lead design and rollout of AI models including statistical methods, DL/LLMs, agentic workflows, data pipelines.
• Collaborate with engineering and client teams to integrate AI into existing systems and provide guidance.
• Track AI system performance, scalability, reliability, and cost efficiency via KPIs and optimization.
• Mentor and retain top AI talent and share best practices through reusable playbooks.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Executive presence

Stakeholder management

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience

Master's degree or PhD in CS/ML/AI

Tools

Python

Bash

ML frameworks

Job description

Optum Tech is seeking a senior AI leader to define and drive an enterprise AI strategy, turning proofs of concept into scalable systems. You will oversee AI engineering, deployment, and operations, shaping how AI is used across the team.

The role requires deep leadership, ML/AI expertise, and experience with healthcare or regulated environments. Remote work is allowed within the U.S., with onsite at Minneapolis/DC as needed.