Staff/Sr. Staff AI Engineer Systems Architect

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: No relocation assistance available

CLEARANCE TYPE: None

TRAVEL: Yes, 10% of the Time

Description

At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work — and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they're making history.

Northrop Grumman is hiring a Chief AI Architect within the Insights & Intelligence (i2) organization to define and drive our enterprise-standard AI architecture and roadmap. This Chief AI Architect will report to the AI Platforms and i2 Operations Director and be remote and/or hybrid supporting the Falls Church, VA office. 

 

Insights & Intelligence (i2) is reimagining decision making at Northrop Grumman and driving our data, analytics & AI transformation. As part of our Chief Information & Digital Office (CIDO), i2 works with all enterprise domains and businesses. 

 

As the Chief AI Architect, you will define and drive the AI architectural roadmap to include evaluation of emerging generative and agentic AI technologies, selection of open source & proprietary models and frameworks, and contribution to the end-to-end design and deployment of AI solutions across the enterprise. You will bring your deep understanding of AI capabilities and limitations, hands-on software engineering expertise, and knowledge of the aerospace and defense industry together into a comprehensive AI architectural vision.

 

You will be curious, innovative, and proactive, looking ahead to address the technical challenges and business needs of tomorrow. You will champion the adoption of AI by example, leveraging AI in your everyday work to boost your own productivity.   

 

This role can be filled at the Staff (T05) or Senior Staff (T06) level depending on the qualifications below.

 

Responsibilities include (but are not limited to) the following: 

• Define the enterprise standard generative AI and agentic AI architecture through the analysis and selection of solutions and frameworks that are scalable, secure, adaptable and maintainable

• Enable a hybrid cloud/on-prem architecture that fulfills unclassified and classified AI needs balanced with affordability and flexibility

• Stay abreast of the latest research and technology in the AI market

• Advise technical teams on AI architecture and design within enterprise platforms

• Develop strong relationships with key CIDO and AI stakeholders to ensure that critical business needs are understood and addressed within the architectural roadmap

• Define standards and processes for AI architectural reviews, model evaluation, and solution testing

• Demonstrate thought leadership by advising senior executives and technical leadership on AI strategy, ROI, and risk

 

  Basic Qualifications: 

• Staff level: Must have at least 12 years of relevant experience with bachelor’s degree in computer science, Engineering, Data Science, or a related field; 10 years with Masters; or 8 years with PhD

• Senior Staff level: Must have at least 14 Years of relevant experience with bachelor’s degree in computer science, Engineering, Data Science, or a related field; 12 Years with Masters; or 10 Years with PhD

• Must have At least 3 years focused on generative and agentic AI

• Must have a proven track record of architecture, deployment, and operation of large‑scale AI systems

• Must have demonstrated experience with machine learning, NLP, RAG, and data platforms

• Must have demonstrated proficiency in relevant programming languages (e.g., Python, Java) and AI/ML frameworks

• Must have demonstrated ability to evaluate and integrate open‑source AI projects (e.g., LangChain, Llama‑Index, Hugging Face, Ray, OpenAI SDKs)

• Must have hands-on experience with cloud native AI services (e.g., AWS Sagemaker, Azure OpenAI Service, etc.)

• Must have proven ability to translate complex AI concepts into clear opportunities, risks, and outcomes for non-technical audiences

 

Preferred Qualifications:  

• Active Top Secret/SCI Security Clearance

• Recognized cloud certifications (e.g., AWS Certified Solutions Architect, Azure Solutions Architect, etc.)

• Demonstrated technical knowledge of MCP servers and applications within Agentic AI use cases

• Familiarity with model development or MLOps frameworks and tools

• Familiarity with the latest GPU hardware for model development and hosting

• Awareness of cybersecurity considerations for Generative and Agentic AI deployments

• Demonstrated experience transitioning AI prototypes/pilots into production

• Proven contributions to open-source AI projects

• Proven experience developing and/or deploying AI/ML solutions within classified and/or air-gapped environments

• Proven track record of setting process and technical standards and driving team adoption and accountability

Primary Level Salary Range: $194,700.00 - $292,100.00

Secondary Level Salary Range: $212,100.00 - $318,100.00

The above salary range represents a general guideline; however, Northrop Grumman considers a number of factors when determining base salary offers such as the scope and responsibilities of the position and the candidate's experience, education, skills and current market conditions.

Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business.

The application period for the job is estimated to be 20 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates.

Northrop Grumman is an Equal Opportunity Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. For our complete EEO and pay transparency statement, please visit http://www.northropgrumman.com/EEO. U.S. Citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.