Principal AI Engineer

The Impact You Will Have

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota is hiring a Principal AI Engineer. In this role, you will serve as a technical lead driving the development, deployment, and evolution of enterprisegrade AI and machine learning solutions. You will partner closely with data science, engineering, cloud, product, and business teams to deliver scalable, productionready AI capabilities that solve complex business problems, streamline operations, and elevate customer and clinician experiences. This role requires deep handson engineering expertise, and the ability to guide the full lifecycle of AI solutions-from concept through operationalization.

The ideal candidate is a handson Principallevel AI Engineer with extensive experience building, deploying, and operating enterprisegrade AI and machine learning solutions in production. They bring deep expertise in generative AI, large language models, NLP, and multimodal systems, along with strong proficiency in Python or similar languages and modern ML frameworks such as PyTorch or TensorFlow. This individual has a proven ability to architect and operationalize AI solutions in cloud environments like AWS, Azure, or GCP using modern MLOps, CI/CD, containerization, and monitoring practices. They think holistically about AI systems, ensuring seamless integration with enterprise platforms while maintaining high standards for security, governance, and quality. Strong communication skills, crossfunctional collaboration, and a passion for mentoring other engineers are essential, with experience in regulated environments such as healthcare strongly preferred.

Your Responsibilities

Advanced Solution Development

• Build, deploy, and optimize LLMbased, multimodal, and predictive AI models.
• Develop intelligent automation to streamline workflows and reduce operational friction.
• Implement NLP, conversational AI, and realtime generative systems across modalities.

AI System Integration & FullStack Engineering

• Oversee AI system integration with enterprise platforms, cloud services, APIs, and data pipelines.
• Architect and maintain productiongrade ML infrastructure, including CI/CD and monitoring.
• Operationalize AI/ML models in cloud environments such as AWS, Azure, or GCP.

Governance, Quality & Compliance

• Ensure AI solutions meet regulatory and internal governance requirements.
• Implement comprehensive testing frameworks across all system layers.

Collaboration & Mentorship

• Partner with crossfunctional teams to deliver robust, productionready AI solutions.
• Mentor engineers in AI architecture, cloud engineering, and advanced model integration.
• Provide technical mentorship in prompt engineering, finetuning, and responsible AI practices.

Required Skills and Experience

• 8+ years of professional experience in data engineering, machine learning engineering, software engineering, or related fields. All relevant experience including work, education, transferable skills, and military experience will be considered.
• 5+ years of experience deploying and maintaining ML/AI models in production at enterprise scale.
• Advanced proficiency in Python, Scala, or comparable languages.
• Expertise with cloud architectures (AWS, Azure, GCP), including MLfocused services (e.g., SageMaker, AzureML).
• Strong experience with orchestration and containerization tools such as Kubernetes, Docker, Airflow, etc.
• Deep understanding of machine learning algorithms, deep learning frameworks (PyTorch, TensorFlow), and NLP technologies.
• Demonstrated experience with generative AI, multimodal systems, LLM finetuning, and prompt engineering.
• Strong SQL and experience with cloudnative data ecosystems.
• Proven ability to architect, deploy, and monitor complex AI/ML solutions in production.
• Excellent communication, collaboration, and technical leadership skills.
• High school diploma (or equivalency) and legal authorization to work in the U.S.

Preferred Skills and Experience

• Advanced degree in Computer Science, AI, Data Science, Engineering, or a related field.
• Experience in healthcare, health services, or insurance.
• Expertise in RAG pipelines, vector databases, and enterprise knowledge systems.
• Experience with realtime streaming systems, edge AI, or highperformance model serving.
• Background in fullstack engineering incorporating AIdriven user experiences.
• Professional certifications in cloud architectures or ML/AI technologies.

Compensation and Benefits:

Pay Range: $152,900.00 - $210,300.00 - $267,700.00 Annual

Pay is based on several factors which vary based on position, including skills, ability, and knowledge the selected individual is bringing to the specific job.

We offer a comprehensive benefits package which may include:

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Life insurance
• 401k
• Paid Time Off (PTO)
• Volunteer Paid Time Off (VPTO)
• And more

To discover more about what we have to offer, please review our benefits page.

Role Designation

Hybrid

Anchored in Connection

Our hybrid approach is designed to balance flexibility with meaningful in-person connection and collaboration. We come together in the office two days each week - most teams designate at least one anchor day to ensure team interaction. These in-person moments foster relationships, creativity, and alignment. The rest of the week you are empowered to work remote.