SME AI Engineer

Assured Information Security (AIS); Columbia (MD); On-site; USD 225,000 - 247,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Employer-paid health insurance

7% contribution to 401(k)

Job summary

Assured Information Security (AIS) is looking for a SME AI Engineer in Columbia, MD. This role involves providing support for AI-enabled applications, advising on technical design, and evaluating various frameworks. Applicants must have extensive experience with AI/ML applications and a strong technical background. The position requires a TS/SCI clearance and offers a competitive salary between $225,000 and $247,000 along with comprehensive benefits.

The ideal candidate will have a relevant degree and significant experience in AI development or evaluation.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, engineering, or related field with 18 years of experience.
• Experience designing or evaluating AI/ML applications.
• Ability to assess technical tradeoffs and communicate clearly.

Responsibilities

• Provide SETA support for AI-enabled applications.
• Advise on AI application design and evaluation.
• Support test activities for AI tools.

Skills

Experience designing AI/ML applications

Familiarity with LLM-based applications

Working knowledge of agentic frameworks

Experience with Python or similar languages

Education

Bachelor’s degree in relevant field or equivalent experience

Tools

LangChain

Haystack

Job description

Position Overview

Assured Information Security (AIS) has an opening for a SME AI Engineer with our Mission Services team. This is an onsite position located in Columbia, MD and requires a TS/SCI with CI Poly*.

What You'll Do

• Provide SETA support to government teams developing or assessing AI-enabled applications and tools.
• Advise on technical approaches for AI application design, prototyping, integration, and evaluation.
• Assess solutions involving LLMs, retrieval‑augmented generation, tool use, agentic workflows, orchestration layers, prompt pipelines, and evaluation harnesses.
• Support the review of architecture, development approaches, model usage patterns, and technical risk areas.
• Advise on AI engineering considerations such as latency, reliability, observability, testability, guardrails, data flow, and system integration.
• Evaluate and compare modern AI frameworks, agentic libraries, and experimentation harnesses for suitability in mission use cases.
• Assist with the development of technical guidance, prototypes, engineering recommendations, and briefings for government stakeholders.
• Support test and evaluation activities for AI tools, including performance assessment, qualitative review, and workflow validation.
• Collaborate with platform engineers, product leads, mission users, and government leadership to ensure AI efforts remain technically grounded and operationally relevant.
• Stay current on rapid changes in the AI ecosystem and provide informed recommendations on emerging tools and practices.

Education, Experience, and Skillset Required

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, engineering, data science, or a related field with 18 years of relevant experience, or a Master’s degree with 15 years of relevant experience.
• Experience designing, building, integrating, or evaluating AI/ML‑enabled applications or software tools.
• Familiarity with modern AI application patterns, including LLM-based applications, RAG, prompt engineering, agentic systems, and AI‑assisted workflows.
• Working knowledge of one or more agentic or orchestration frameworks such as LangChain, LangGraph, Semantic Kernel, AutoGen, CrewAI, Haystack, Llamalndex, or similar ecosystems.
• Experience with software development fundamentals, APIs, data handling, and system integration.
• Ability to assess technical tradeoffs and communicate them clearly to both engineers and government stakeholders.

What Sets You Apart

• Experience with Python, JavaScript/TypeScript, or similar languages commonly used in AI application development.
• Familiarity with vector databases, embeddings, model APIs, evaluation frameworks, and agent testing harnesses.
• Exposure to model hosting, inference pipelines, or cloud-based AI development environments.
• Understanding of secure AI development practices, data protection, and operational constraints in government settings.
• Experience supporting defense, cyber, intelligence, or mission application development.
• Familiarity with human‑in‑the‑loop workflows, AI assurance, and evaluation methodologies.

Security Clearance Required

TS/SCI with CI Poly

EEO Statement

AA / Disability / Veteran

Compensation

US Salary Range: $225,000 - $247,000. The salary offered to a selected candidate will be based on several factors including location, skills, and experience. In addition to a comprehensive benefits package which includes employer‑paid health insurance and a 7% contribution to your 401(k), candidates may be eligible for other forms of compensation.