Director, AI & Automation

About the role

TEGNA Inc. (NYSE: TGNA) seeks an enterprise-focused technology leader to drive the development and implementation of advanced AI solutions. The role involves leading the "innovation lab" for AI, designing modular AI architectures, and overseeing scalable AI pipelines and shared services.

Responsibilities

• Lead the "innovation lab" for AI. Design modular AI architectures and execute rapid POCs and pilots to validate technical feasibility.
• Lead, mentor, and grow a specialized team of AI engineers. Provide technical guidance, and champion best practices in a matrixed onshore-offshore model.
• Partner with business stakeholders to translate business needs into technical specifications. Evaluate and recommend new technologies—such as LLMs, orchestration frameworks, and vector databases—ensuring alignment with TEGNA’s enterprise architecture and security policies.
• Oversee the design and maintenance of scalable AI pipelines and shared services (prompt libraries, RAG pipelines). Drive automation in AI ops. Oversee the building of efficient, reusable code and APIs for AI model integration and user interfaces for AI-powered features.

Requirements

• 12-15 years in technology leadership, with 2 years specifically focused on AI/automation strategy, architecture, or platform enablement. Proven track record of delivering impactful AI solutions and managing high-performing engineering teams.
• Deep understanding of Generative AI (LLMs, RAG) and Agentic AI (multi-agent systems, autonomous workflows). Proficiency in AI/ML frameworks such as TensorFlow, PyTorch, or scikit-learn.
• Expertise in cloud-native AI platforms (Azure OpenAI, AWS Bedrock, or Google Vertex AI). Advanced SQL and strong Python skills (Pandas, PySpark) for data manipulation and pipeline development.
• Experience with API Development (RESTful, GraphQL) and modern JavaScript frameworks (React, Vue.js, or Angular). Proficiency in MLOps, containerization (Docker, Kubernetes), and Infrastructure as Code (Terraform, CloudFormation).
• Strong understanding of Agile methodologies, Jira, and version control (Git). Experience managing the end-to-end lifecycle of multiple AI projects from planning to monitoring.
• Exceptional communication and "storytelling" skills to articulate complex AI concepts to both technical and non-technical audiences.

Education

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Data Science, Mathematics, or a related quantitative field.

Pay Range

$175,000 - $200,000 USD

Benefits

• Comprehensive benefits including medical, dental, vision, and disability insurance.
• 401(k) program offering full, part-time, and temporary employees the opportunity to contribute up to 80% of their pay on a pre-tax basis, with a 100% company match on the first 4%.
• Free virtual doctor’s appointments and therapy sessions through Teladoc and Spring Health.
• Generous Paid Time Off (PTO) and nine paid holidays per year.

EEO Statement

TEGNA Inc. is an equal opportunity employer. We consider applications from all qualified candidates without regard to actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, sex, gender, age, marital status, personal appearance, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, family responsibilities, disability, medical condition, enrollment in college or vocational school, political affiliation, military or veteran status, citizenship status, genetic information, or any other basis protected by federal, state or local law.

Recruiting Fraud Alert

To all candidates: your personal information and online safety are important to us. Only TEGNA Recruiters or Hiring Managers will reach out to you regarding consideration of your application or background. Communications with TEGNA employees will either come from a TEGNA email address with a domain of tegna.com or one of our affiliate station domains.