Sr. Lead AI Engineer (GenAI Platform)

At Capital One, we are creating responsible and reliable AI systems, changing banking for good. For years, Capital One has been an industry leader in using machine learning to create real-time, personalized customer experiences. Our investments in technology infrastructure and world-class talent — along with our deep experience in machine learning — position us to be at the forefront of enterprises leveraging AI.

About the role

The Intelligent Foundations and Experiences (IFX) team is at the center of bringing our vision for AI at Capital One to life. We work hand-in-hand with partners across the company to advance the state of the art in science and AI engineering, building and deploying proprietary solutions that deliver value to millions of customers. Our AI models and platforms empower teams across Capital One to enhance their products with the transformative power of AI in responsible and scalable ways.

Responsibilities

• Partner with a cross-functional team of engineers, research scientists, technical program managers, and product managers to deliver AI-powered products that change how associates work and how customers interact with Capital One.
• Design, develop, test, deploy, and support AI software components including foundation model training, large language model inference, similarity search, guardrails, model evaluation, experimentation, governance, and observability.
• Leverage a broad stack of Open Source and SaaS AI technologies such as AWS Ultraclusters, Huggingface, VectorDBs, Nemo Guardrails, PyTorch, and more.
• Invent and introduce state-of-the-art LLM optimization techniques to improve the performance — scalability, cost, latency, throughput — of large-scale production AI systems.
• Contribute to the technical vision and long-term roadmap of foundational AI systems at Capital One.

Qualifications

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, AI, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or related fields plus at least 6 years of experience developing AI and ML algorithms or technologies, or a Master's degree in the same fields plus at least 4 years of experience developing AI and ML algorithms or technologies.
• At least 6 years of experience programming with Python, Go, Scala, or Java.

Preferred Qualifications:

• 7 years of experience deploying scalable and responsible AI solutions on cloud platforms (e.g., AWS, Google Cloud, Azure, or equivalent private cloud).
• Experience designing, developing, integrating, delivering, and supporting complex AI systems.
• Demonstrated ability to lead and mentor an engineering team and influence cross-functional stakeholders.
• Experience developing AI and ML algorithms or technologies (e.g., LLM Inference, Similarity Search and VectorDBs, Guardrails, Memory) using Python, C++, C#, Java, or Golang.
• Experience developing and applying state-of-the-art techniques for optimizing training and inference software to improve hardware utilization, latency, throughput, and cost.
• Passion for staying abreast of the latest AI research and AI systems, and judiciously applying novel techniques in production.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to articulate complex AI concepts to peers.

The Ideal Candidate

• Loves to build systems, takes pride in the quality of work, and shares our passion for doing the right thing.
• Wants to work on problems that will help change banking for good.
• Adapts quickly and thrives on bringing clarity to big, undefined problems.
• Asks questions and digs deep to uncover the root of problems, articulating findings concisely with clarity.
• Has the courage to share new ideas even when unproven.
• Possesses a strong foundation in engineering and mathematics, with expertise in hardware, software, and AI to exploit optimization opportunities others miss.
• Is a resilient trailblazer who can forge new paths to achieve business goals when the route is unknown.

Capital One will consider sponsoring a new qualified applicant for employment authorization for this position.

Pay

The minimum and maximum full-time annual salaries for this role are listed below, by location. Salaries for part-time roles will be prorated based on agreed-upon hours. This role is also eligible for performance-based incentive compensation, which may include cash bonuses and/or long-term incentives (LTI).

• Cambridge, MA: $229,900 - $262,400 for Sr. Lead AI Engineer
• McLean, VA: $229,900 - $262,400 for Sr. Lead AI Engineer
• New York, NY: $250,800 - $286,200 for Sr. Lead AI Engineer
• San Francisco, CA: $250,800 - $286,200 for Sr. Lead AI Engineer
• San Jose, CA: $250,800 - $286,200 for Sr. Lead AI Engineer

Candidates hired to work in other locations will be subject to the pay range associated with that location.

Benefits

Capital One offers a comprehensive, competitive, and inclusive set of health, financial, and other benefits that support total well-being. Eligibility varies based on full or part-time status, exempt or non-exempt status, and management level. Learn more at the Capital One Careers website.