Principal Machine Learning Engineer - AI in Healthcare

Placements24; Bellville; Hybrid; ZAR 1,800,000 - 2,400,000; Full time

Job summary

Placements24 is seeking a highly experienced Principal Machine Learning Engineer to join our R&D division, working remotely with occasional travel to Centurion, Gauteng. You will lead ML projects from conception to production in healthcare, focusing on predictive modeling, medical imaging, and NLP.

Mentoring teams and defining technical strategy are key. This role offers cutting-edge AI work, extensive resources, and a culture of innovation.

Qualifications

• Master's or Ph.D. in computer science, AI, ML, or related field.
• 10+ years hands-on ML engineering, with production deployment experience.
• Healthcare AI experience, including medical imaging (CNNs) and NLP/time-series.
• Strong Python and ML framework skills (TensorFlow, PyTorch, scikit-learn).
• Experience with cloud platforms and MLOps practices.
• Proven leadership, communication, and cross-functional collaboration.

Responsibilities

• Lead design and deployment of ML models for healthcare apps.
• Develop AI solutions for medical imaging and predictive diagnostics.
• Collaborate with data scientists, clinicians, and software engineers.
• Architect scalable ML systems with reliability and performance.
• Mentor engineers and drive ML strategy.

Skills

ML Engineering

Healthcare AI

Production deployment

Python

Deep learning

Leadership

NLP

Cloud platforms

MLOps

Education

Master's or PhD in CS/AI/ML

Tools

TensorFlow

PyTorch

scikit-learn

AWS

Azure

GCP

Job description

About the Role

Our client is a visionary technology company dedicated to transforming healthcare through artificial intelligence. We are seeking a highly experienced Principal Machine Learning Engineer to join our R&D division, based remotely with potential for occasional travel to our hub in Centurion, Gauteng . This role is crucial for developing and deploying advanced AI models that will revolutionize diagnostic processes and patient care. You will lead complex machine learning projects from conception to production, focusing on areas such as predictive modeling, image recognition, and natural language processing within the healthcare domain. As a Principal Engineer, you will mentor other engineers, define technical strategy, and drive innovation across the organization. This is an exceptional opportunity to work on impactful AI solutions that directly improve health outcomes, leveraging cutting‑edge technologies and working within a world‑class team.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the design, development, and implementation of sophisticated machine learning models for healthcare applications.
• Develop and deploy AI solutions for medical image analysis, predictive diagnostics, and clinical decision support systems.
• Collaborate with data scientists, medical professionals, and software engineers to define project requirements and deliverables.
• Architect robust and scalable ML systems, ensuring their reliability and performance.
• Stay at the forefront of AI research and advocate for the adoption of new technologies and methodologies.
• Mentor junior and mid-level machine learning engineers, fostering a culture of technical excellence.
• Contribute to the development of intellectual property and publications in leading AI and medical informatics journals.
• Define and drive the long-term ML strategy for healthcare initiatives.

Requirements

• Master's or Ph.D. in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, or a related quantitative field.
• 10+ years of hands‑on experience in machine learning engineering, with a significant focus on deploying models in production environments.
• Proven experience in healthcare AI, including medical imaging (e.g., CNNs) and/or clinical data analysis (e.g., NLP, time-series).
• Expertise in Python and popular ML frameworks such as TensorFlow, PyTorch, and scikit-learn.
• Strong understanding of deep learning architectures, statistical modeling, and data mining techniques.
• Experience with cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP) and MLOps practices.
• Excellent leadership, communication, and problem-solving skills.
• Demonstrated ability to lead complex technical projects and influence cross‑functional teams.
• A strong portfolio of successful ML projects.

Benefits

• This is a fully remote position offering maximum flexibility, with the option for occasional site visits to our Centurion, Gauteng office for strategic meetings and team building.
• Our client provides a highly competitive salary, comprehensive health benefits, generous stock options, and a significant budget for professional development, including conference attendance and advanced training.
• You’ll have access to extensive computational resources and be part of a collaborative, forward‑thinking culture focused on making a tangible difference in global healthcare.
• Enjoy the benefits of remote work while contributing to groundbreaking AI advancements.