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

We are sharing a full-time opportunity for an experienced Forward Deployed Engineer with strong expertise in Python, LLM systems, agentic AI, data pipelines, distributed systems, and production infrastructure to build and deploy mission-critical AI systems supporting U.S. Government environments.

The role spans applied AI research, production engineering, infrastructure, and forward-deployed implementation. The successful candidate will work directly with government partners to translate operational requirements into secure, reliable AI systems, taking ownership from discovery and architecture through deployment, reliability, security, and iteration.

Key Responsibilities

Forward-Deployed AI Engineering

• Build and deploy advanced AI systems supporting high-impact U.S. Government missions
• Work directly with government partners in forward-deployed environments
• Translate mission requirements into practical technical systems
• Take projects from prototype and experimentation through production deployment
• Maintain strong technical and operational ownership in ambiguous partner-facing environments

LLM & Agentic Systems

• Design and integrate production-grade LLM applications
• Build multi-agent and tool-using AI systems
• Develop retrieval-augmented generation workflows
• Implement human-in-the-loop autonomy where appropriate
• Convert mission data, models, and tools into operational AI capabilities

Data & ML Infrastructure

• Build and maintain large-scale data-curation pipelines
• Develop evaluation infrastructure for model training and improvement
• Create systems supporting inference, experimentation, evaluation, and deployment
• Maintain scalable ML and data workflows across advanced AI platforms
• Support reliable operation as mission and model requirements evolve

Distributed Systems & Production Deployment

• Design and operate distributed systems in high-reliability environments
• Own architecture, implementation, deployment, and production iteration
• Build systems with security, resilience, and operational continuity in mind
• Diagnose system failures and improve reliability and performance
• Apply sound engineering judgement to infrastructure and deployment trade-offs

Mission-Critical Technical Ownership

• Operate independently in high-security and high-assurance environments
• Collaborate with technical, operational, and government stakeholders
• Maintain ownership throughout the full system lifecycle
• Adapt rapidly as mission requirements and partner needs evolve
• Balance development speed with security, reliability, and operational effectiveness

Ideal Profile

• Strong Python engineering skills with demonstrated end-to-end ownership
• Experience building production applications using LLMs
• Hands-on experience with agentic or multi-agent AI systems
• Experience building or maintaining data pipelines or ML infrastructure
• Strong understanding of distributed systems
• Familiarity with reinforcement-learning workflows or simulation environments
• Comfortable operating in high-security, high-reliability, or mission-critical environments
• Strong ability to work independently in ambiguous, partner-facing situations
• Active U.S. security clearance is highly advantageous
• Candidates eligible and willing to obtain a U.S. security clearance may also be considered
• Experience supporting U.S. Government, defence, intelligence, or national-security missions is preferred
• Experience in startups, defence organisations, government-focused technology companies, or comparable fast-moving environments is beneficial

Engagement Details

• Full-time engagement
• Hybrid — Washington, D.C. area
• Relocation to the Washington, D.C. area is required
• Base compensation: $300,000–$500,000/year
• Role involves forward-deployed work with U.S. Government partners
• Work will span applied AI, LLM systems, agentic workflows, distributed systems, data pipelines, infrastructure, and production deployment
• Security, reliability, and operational ownership are central to the role
• Active security clearance or eligibility and willingness to obtain one is preferred
• Responsibilities may span both research-oriented experimentation and production systems
• Technical priorities may evolve based on mission requirements and partner needs

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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