AI Engineer

Driven by Innovation and built on Trust, rockITdata is a unique SDVOSB services company that partners with leading commercial healthcare/life sciences organizations on cutting edge innovations - think AI, automation and data transformation. We then bring those commercially tested solutions to government entities to deliver predictable, measurable impact for the American taxpayer and consumer.

Job Description
We are seeking a highly skilled Senior Developer to lead the development of a Python-based platform that ingests internal data sources (e.g., Hadoop, REST APIs) and applies Llama-based language models (LLMs) for text analysis, including issue classification and summarization. This role requires strong engineering expertise in building scalable data systems and working with cutting-edge LLM frameworks.

This role is onsite in New York City for local candidates. A hybrid schedule will be considered for candidates in the surrounding area.

Key Responsibilities
Design & Development

• Architect and implement a robust data ingestion pipeline using Python.
• Integrate with Hadoop and/or internal APIs for sourcing structured and unstructured data.
• Design modular components for data transformation, enrichment, and routing to downstream NLP models.

LLM Integration

• Incorporate Llama models for classification and summarization tasks.
• Use prompt orchestration, chaining, and context-aware techniques to improve NLP accuracy and consistency.
• Ensure performance and stability of LLM-based components in production environments.

Collaboration & Engineering Practices

• Work closely with data engineers, product owners, and ML researchers to refine use cases and deliver high-quality solutions.
• Follow modern software engineering best practices including testing, CI/CD, and code documentation.
• Participate in design reviews and knowledge-sharing sessions.
  
  

Required Qualifications

• 2+ years of professional experience in Python software development.
• Proven experience working with big data systems, particularly Hadoop, PySpark, or related technologies.
• Practical experience using LLMs, especially Llama or similar open-source models.
• Familiarity with NLP tasks such as classification, summarization, and information extraction.
• Experience building or maintaining APIs and microservices.
  
  

Preferred Qualifications

• Preferred Qualifications
• Experience with Model Context Protocol (MCP) for managing prompts and contextual data across LLM applications.
• Proficiency with vector databases, embedding pipelines, and retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) architectures.
• Familiarity with LLMOps tools and scalable inference strategies.
• Prior work with LangChain, Hugging Face Transformers, or vLLM runtime environments.
• Data scientist–related experience, such as collaborating on model training and evaluation, aligning data processing logic to ML objectives, or working on feature engineering and experimentation pipelines.
• Background in financial services, enterprise software, or regulated environments.

The estimated annual salary range for this position is $135,000 - $175,000. Total compensation for this position will be determined by each individual’s relevant qualifications, work experience, skills, and other factors.

Here at rockITdata, we are committed to following our 10 Guiding Principles.
Our Guiding Principles define our culture. They’re who we are, how we work, and what inspires us to be the best. We empower our people to be themselves and encourage an entrepreneurial way of thinking. In our challenging, fast-paced environment, no day is the same.

Know the Why.

Value People Above All Else.

Transparency to a Fault.

Progress, Not Perfection.

Be Good by Doing Good.

Smart People Can Disagree.

Bend but Don’t Break.

Represent Your Brand.

Think Differently.

Be Amazing, Be Fearless, Smile, Have Fun!

Interested in joining something unique? Join us on our rockIT ship as we begin to blast off to the next chapter in our organization!

rockITdata has become aware of a recruitment scam where unauthorized individuals are impersonating rockITdata recruiters, issuing fake job offers, and attempting to setup payment for the job seeker’s new hire costs. No one is ever required to complete any monetary transactions before starting employment with rockITdata. Legitimate rockITdata communications only come from @rockitdata.com email addresses and our official Applicant Tracking system, JazzHR (@applytojob.com email addresses). Please refer to our official Careers page at to accurately submit your application with us. You may also verify any suspicious communication by contacting our recruitment team directly through our official email, [email protected].

rockITdata is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to non-discrimination in all employment practices and decisions. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to disability status, veteran status or any characteristic protected by Federal, state, or local law.

rockITdata wants all interested and qualified candidates to be able to use our career site to review and apply for employment opportunities. If you have a disability and need an accommodation to access the application process, please contact us for assistance at [email protected].