Lead AI Engineer

When you join Accurate Background, you’re an integral part of making every hire the start of a success story. Your contributions will help us fulfill our mission of advancing the background screening experience through visibility and insights, empowering our clients to make smarter, unbiased decisions. Job Description Accurate Background is a fast-growing organization focused on providing employment background screening solutions and building trusted relationships with our clients. Accurate Background continues to exceed expectations by offering innovative background check and credentialing products. The Lead AI Engineer will play a key role in establishing and scaling Accurate Background’s emerging AI capabilities as part of a new team focused on building reusable AI platforms, AI engineering standards, experimentation practices, and production-ready AI solutions. This role will help define and operationalize an enterprise grade AI Center of Excellence, including AI governance practices, AI lab experimentation, reusable agent and tool patterns, and scalable AI solution architectures. The Lead AI Engineer will help transform the traditional SDLC into an AI Development Lifecycle (AI-DLC), materially changing how solutions are designed, built, evaluated, deployed, and continuously improved. This role focuses on delivering AI-powered solutions that drive operational efficiency, improve experiences, and generate measurable business and revenue value. We offer a fun, fast-paced environment with significant opportunities for growth. Responsibilities Design, build, test, deploy, and maintain AI-enabled solutions including AI agents, tools, and GenAI-powered applicationsEstablish foundational AI CoE standards, reusable patterns, and engineering guardrails.Contribute to development of an AI lab for experimentation, prototyping, evaluation, and rapid iterationDefine and implement AI-DLC practices including experimentation, evaluation, governance, deployment, and monitoringBuild reusable and scalable AI platforms, services, APIs, and orchestration patternsIdentify and deliver AI use cases that drive operational efficiencies and business valueApply GenAI patterns such as RAG, prompt engineering, agent orchestration, tool calling, and human-in-the-loop workflowsDevelop AI agents, tool integrations, and orchestration workflows across enterprise systemsWork with LLMs, SLMs, embeddings, vector search, and model APIsCreate technical designs, reusable frameworks, and implementation standardsImplement secure, observable, and maintainable Python-based AI servicesEstablish and follow AI governance practices including responsible AI, data protection, and complianceSupport build, deployment, monitoring, and troubleshooting of AI applicationsDevelop evaluation frameworks, quality benchmarks, and feedback loopsPartner with stakeholders to move AI ideas from concept through production and scaleMentor engineers on AI engineering practices and AI-native development Required Qualifications Bachelor's degree in computer science or equivalent experience8+ years of cloud software engineering and/or AI engineering experience8+ years of programming experience in PythonHands-on experience building AI-enabled applications, GenAI solutions, or AI agents.Experience with AWS and/or Azure, including AI-native PaaS cloud services (e.g., AWS Bedrock, AWS AgentCore, Azure AI Foundry, Azure OpenAI)Strong understanding of GenAI patterns:LLM/SLM model selectionRetrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG)Prompt engineering and evaluationAgentic workflowsTool/function callingEmbeddings and vector searchHuman-in-the-loop systemsAI observability and monitoringExperience with agent frameworks and orchestration tools (LangGraph, Semantic Kernel etc.)Experience with LLM ecosystems and providers (OpenAI, Anthropic, Llama, Mistral, etc.)Experience with vector databases and retrieval systems (Pinecone, Azure AI Search, etc.)Experience with tool/agent AG-UI, A2A, MCP interoperability protocols, registries, and reusable service layersExperience integrating APIs and enterprise systems into AI workflowsSolid understanding of modern architecture patterns (microservices, APIs, event-driven systems)Experience working in Agile/Scrum environmentsUnderstanding AI governance, responsible AI, and compliance considerationsAbility to translate business problems into AI solutionsStrong analytical and problem-solving skillsSelf-starter with strong collaboration and communication skills Preferred Qualifications Experience building or contributing to an AI Center of Excellence, AI platform, or AI innovation team.Experience defining or implementing an AI Development Lifecycle (AI-DLC).Experience implementing structured Context Engineering practices for improving model reliability and consistencyExperience with observability and evaluation tools (OpenTelemetry, Datadog, CloudWatch, LangSmith etc.)Experience with CI/CD, containerization, and infrastructure automationExperience in regulated, compliance-driven environmentsExperience delivering AI solutions for operational automation, customer experience, or revenue-generating productsFamiliarity with AI governance frameworks (e.g., ISO/IEC 42001, NIST AI RMF) AI Mindset Balance rapid experimentation with disciplined engineering practicesDesign for scalability, reusability, and governance from the startFocus on measurable business outcomes and value creationEmbrace ambiguity and help define standards for emerging AI capabilitiesBuild systems with continuous evaluation, monitoring, and improvementApply responsible AI principles across all solutions Working Conditions The company environment is dynamic and reflective of rapid growthFriendly, helpful, open, and all inclusiveFast paced with frequent changesSits and works at desk computer-keyboard for extended periods of timeWorks with others The annual base salary for this position ranges from $121,000 - $185,000. Pay will vary depending on job-related knowledge, skills, experience, and relevant education and training. This position may also be eligible for an annual performance-based bonus, commission, or other variable pay plan. The Company also offers a full range of benefits, including medical, dental, and 401k. Your recruiter can share more details about the specific compensation package during the hiring process. The Accurate Way We offer a fun, fast-paced environment, with lots of room for growth. We have an unwavering commitment to diversity, ensuring everyone has a complete sense of belonging here. To do this, we follow four guiding principles – Take Ownership, Be Open, Stay Curious, Work as One – core values that dictate what we stand for, and how we behave. Take ownership. Be accountable for your actions, your team, and the company. Accept responsibility willingly, especially when it’s what’s best for our customers. Give others every reason to trust you, believe in you, and count on you. Rise to every occasion with your personal best. Be open. Be open to new ideas. Be inclusive of people and ways of doing things. Make yourself accessible and approachable, and communicate with genuineness, transparency, honesty, and respect. Embrace differences. Stay curious. Stay curious even as you move forward. Tirelessly ask questions and challenge the status quo in your pursuit of new ideas, ways to solve problems, and to continually grow and improve. Work as one. Work together to create the best customer and workplace experience. Put our customers and employees first—before individual or departmental agendas. Make sure they get the help they need to succeed. Equal opportunities Accurate is an equal-opportunity employer and is committed to hiring talented and qualified individuals with diverse backgrounds. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, race, color, religion, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, age, or any other characteristic protected by law. Accurate will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws. This posting is open for U.S.-based candidates who currently reside in the following states: CA, CO, FL, GA, IL, MD, MN, NC, NY, OH, OK, PA, TN, TX, VA, WA, WV For Court Runner opportunities, candidates may also reside in: AZ, DE, KY, MI, NH, NV Special Notice Accurate is aware of schemes involving fraudulent job postings/offers and/or individuals or entities claiming to be employees of Accurate. Those involved are offering fabricated employment opportunities to applicants, often asking for sensitive personal and financial information. If you believe you have been contacted by anyone misrepresenting themselves as an employee of Accurate, please contact humanresources@accurate.com. Please be advised that all legitimate correspondence from an Accurate employee will come from "@accurate.com" email accounts. Accurate will not interview candidates via text or email. Our interviews are conducted by recruiters and leaders via the phone, Zoom/Teams or in an in-person format. Accurate will never ask candidates to make any type of personal financial investment related to gaining employment with the Company.