Hybrid | Forward Deployed Engineer, U.S. Government — $300,000–$500,000/year

We are sharing a specialised full-time opportunity for experienced Forward Deployed Engineers and AI Systems Engineers with strong expertise in Python, large language models, agentic AI architectures, data pipelines, and distributed systems to develop and deploy advanced AI solutions within U.S. Government and mission-critical technology environments.

Selected professionals will work across AI research, applied engineering, infrastructure, and production deployment, collaborating directly with government partners to translate operational requirements into reliable technical systems. The role combines hands-on software engineering with LLM applications, autonomous agents, machine learning infrastructure, and forward-deployed solution development to support advanced AI capabilities in secure and high-assurance environments.

Key Responsibilities

Agentic AI Systems & LLM Engineering

• Design, develop, and deploy agentic AI systems supporting complex operational and government mission requirements.
• Build LLM-powered applications incorporating multi-agent architectures, tool-using agents, and autonomous workflows.
• Develop retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) systems and integrate relevant knowledge retrieval capabilities.
• Implement human-in-the-loop mechanisms and controlled autonomous decision-making workflows.
• Evaluate and improve AI application reliability, performance, and operational effectiveness.

Forward Deployment & Government Partner Collaboration

• Work directly with government partners to understand operational objectives and technical requirements.
• Translate mission-specific challenges into practical AI engineering solutions.
• Support forward-deployed engineering activities from initial discovery through implementation and production adoption.
• Collaborate with operational stakeholders to integrate AI capabilities into existing workflows and technical environments.
• Provide hands-on engineering support to improve system functionality, usability, and mission alignment.

Machine Learning Infrastructure & Data Pipelines

• Build and maintain scalable data curation pipelines supporting AI model development and evaluation.
• Develop infrastructure for model experimentation, inference, testing, and deployment.
• Integrate data processing systems, model services, and supporting distributed infrastructure.
• Support AI training and evaluation workflows through reliable engineering and infrastructure development.
• Improve the performance, scalability, and maintainability of production AI systems.

AI Research, Simulation & Technical Integration

• Contribute to applied AI experimentation and the transition of research capabilities into production systems.
• Develop technical workflows supporting model evaluation, reinforcement learning, and simulation-based experimentation.
• Integrate models, data sources, external tools, and operational services into cohesive AI applications.
• Evaluate emerging AI capabilities and identify opportunities for practical deployment.
• Apply rigorous engineering methods to assess system behaviour, reliability, and technical effectiveness.

System Architecture, Security & Production Reliability

• Own technical solutions throughout discovery, architecture, implementation, deployment, and ongoing iteration.
• Design software architectures suitable for secure, high-reliability, and mission-critical environments.
• Implement robust engineering practices covering testing, debugging, monitoring, and operational reliability.
• Address system integration challenges involving distributed services, AI infrastructure, and production workloads.
• Collaborate with engineering and operational stakeholders to maintain system quality, security, and performance.

Ideal Profile

• Strong professional software engineering background with demonstrated expertise in Python.
• Proven experience independently designing, developing, and deploying complex technical systems.
• Hands-on experience building applications using large language models and related AI technologies.
• Practical expertise developing agentic AI systems, autonomous workflows, or tool-using AI applications.
• Familiarity with multi-agent architectures and retrieval-augmented generation (RAG).
• Experience building or maintaining data pipelines, machine learning infrastructure, or AI evaluation systems.
• Strong understanding of distributed systems, software architecture, and production engineering.
• Ability to take ownership of technical projects from initial requirements through deployment and iteration.
• Experience working directly with external partners, clients, or operational stakeholders on technical implementations.
• Strong ability to translate complex operational requirements into practical engineering solutions.
• Familiarity with reinforcement learning workflows, simulation environments, or model experimentation is advantageous.
• Experience developing reliable AI applications in production environments.
• Understanding of software security, system reliability, and engineering considerations in high-assurance environments.
• Ability to work independently in technically complex, evolving project environments.
• Experience supporting U.S. Government, defense, intelligence, or national security missions is preferred.
• Active U.S. security clearance, or eligibility and willingness to obtain one, is advantageous.
• Experience with defense technology organisations, government-focused technology companies, or early-stage startups is highly valued.
• Familiarity with mission-critical government technology deployments and relevant operational requirements.
• Strong technical problem-solving, debugging, and analytical reasoning capabilities.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to collaborate with technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Demonstrated adaptability and ability to manage engineering priorities in fast-moving environments.
• Willingness to relocate to the Washington, DC area is required.

Engagement Details

• Engagement Type: Full-time
• Work Arrangement: Hybrid — Washington, DC area
• Location Requirement: Relocation to the Washington, DC area is required
• Compensation: $300,000–$500,000/year
• 1 available opening
• Professional Focus: Forward-deployed AI engineering, government technology, and mission-critical AI systems.
• Technical Focus: Python, LLM systems, agentic AI, RAG, distributed systems, and machine learning infrastructure.
• Deployment Focus: U.S. Government and defense-related operational environments.
• Responsibilities will span applied AI research, software architecture, infrastructure development, and production deployment.
• The role involves direct collaboration with government partners to align AI capabilities with operational requirements.
• Assignments may include developing autonomous agent systems, integrating enterprise data, building evaluation pipelines, and implementing production AI applications.
• Familiarity with reinforcement learning, simulation environments, and AI model experimentation is valuable.
• Experience working in secure or high-reliability technical environments is particularly relevant.
• Preferred Background: Government, defense, intelligence, national security, or defense technology experience.
• Security Clearance: Active U.S. clearance or eligibility and willingness to obtain clearance is preferred.
• This is a hands-on individual contributor position requiring substantial technical ownership across the engineering lifecycle.
• Strong independent execution, cross-functional collaboration, and production engineering capabilities are central to the role.

About the Platform

This opportunity is available through 24-MAG LLC. We connect experienced professionals with remote consulting opportunities across technical, evaluation, and project-based workstreams.

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