Senior AI Foundation Model Engineer - Autonomous Flight

Merlinlabs

Boston, San Francisco (MA, CA)

On-site

USD 180,000 - 240,000

Full time

14 days+
Application generator

An application made for this job — a tailored resume and cover letter that speak straight to the posting.

Get past ATS filters

Benefits offered by this job

Catered lunches
Snacks and beverages on-site
401k with match
On-site perks and amenities

Job summary

Merlin Labs, based in Boston, MA, is seeking a senior software engineer to lead the AI Foundation and large-scale ML infrastructure. You will architect data pipelines, govern model evaluation, and align cross-functional teams across AI, Simulation, and Flight Software.

You will mentor engineers, define project scoping, and drive adoption of open-source tooling while ensuring safety and reliability in production systems.

Qualifications

  • 8+ years of software engineering experience with AI model development and ML infrastructure.
  • Experience in AI-first autonomy stack including Perception, Behavior Planning, Prediction and Actuation.
  • Proven ability to design and deliver large-scale production systems independently.
  • Deep proficiency in PyTorch and TensorFlow, with systems language experience (C++, Rust, Go).
  • Hands-on with distributed training frameworks and scalable infrastructure.
  • Experience deploying models to edge HPC environments.
  • Strong data pipeline design background with streaming and batch processing.

Responsibilities

  • Technically strategize Foundation model selection, refactor and maintain core AI models and training infra.
  • Define benchmarks for model evaluation, safety, and performance thresholds pre-deployment.
  • Architect and own data pipelines ingesting, labeling, versions of flight data.
  • Identify bottlenecks slowing AI development and improve velocity across teams.
  • Collaborate with AI infra, Simulation, and Flight Software teams to align interfaces.
  • Mentor junior/mid engineers, conduct design reviews, and raise code quality.
  • Lead scoping and estimation for large AI projects, turning requirements into plans.
  • Evaluate open-source tooling and research; contribute back where appropriate.
  • Document architecture decisions and runbooks for safety review and maintenance.

Skills

AI infrastructure design
Distributed training
Model registry systems
MLOps
Python
C++
Pytorch
TensorFlow
Data pipelines
System architecture
Mentoring engineers

Tools

Weights & Biases
MLFlow
NVIDIA tooling

Job description

Merlin Labs, based in Boston, MA, is seeking a senior software engineer to lead the AI Foundation and large-scale ML infrastructure. You will architect data pipelines, govern model evaluation, and align cross-functional teams across AI, Simulation, and Flight Software.

You will mentor engineers, define project scoping, and drive adoption of open-source tooling while ensuring safety and reliability in production systems.

Get your free, confidential resume review.

or drag and drop your file here.

Similar jobs

Similar jobs worth comparing

Senior AI Foundation Engineer - Production ML & Infra
Senior AI Foundation Engineer - Production ML & Infra

Merlin • Boston (MA)

On-site
USD 180,000 - 260,000
Catered lunches
Snacks and beverages
Health, dental, life insurance
+2
Director, AI Foundation Models & Safe Autonomy
Director, AI Foundation Models & Safe Autonomy

Lever, Inc. • Boston (MA)

Hybrid
USD 230,000 - 330,000
Health insurance
Dental
Life insurance
+2
Head of AI Foundation & World-Model Systems
Head of AI Foundation & World-Model Systems

Merlin Labs • Boston (MA)

On-site
USD 180,000 - 250,000
Health insurance
Dental insurance
Life insurance
+4
Head of AI Foundation Models & World-Model Systems
Head of AI Foundation Models & World-Model Systems

Merlinlabs • Boston (MA)

Hybrid
USD 180,000 - 260,000
Health insurance
401(k) with match
Unlimited vacation
+1
Head of AI Foundation Models (Remote)
Head of AI Foundation Models (Remote)

Quiet Capital • San Francisco (CA)

Remote
USD 230,000 - 330,000
Health insurance
Dental
Life insurance
+2
Director, Foundational AI & World Models
Director, Foundational AI & World Models

Merlin • Boston (MA)

Hybrid
USD 180,000 - 280,000
Remote work possible
Hybrid schedule in Boston HQ
Staff Engineer - Autonomous Flight Modeling & Planning
Staff Engineer - Autonomous Flight Modeling & Planning

Merlin • Boston (MA)

On-site
USD 150,000 - 230,000
Catered lunches
Snacks and beverages
On-site perks
Director, AI Core Autonomy for Flight Systems
Director, AI Core Autonomy for Flight Systems

Quiet Capital • San Francisco (CA)

On-site
USD 252,000 - 360,000
Catered lunches
Snacks and beverages
401k with company match
+2
Staff Software Engineer, AI Foundation Model
Staff Software Engineer, AI Foundation Model

Merlinlabs • Boston (MA), San Francisco (CA)

On-site
USD 180,000 - 240,000
Catered lunches
Snacks and beverages on-site
401k with match
+1
Staff Engineer, Learned Dynamics for Autonomy
Staff Engineer, Learned Dynamics for Autonomy

Quiet Capital • Boston (MA)

On-site
USD 185,000 - 325,000
Catered lunches
Snacks provided
Beverages on site