AI Platform Lead Engineer
The Senior Associate, AI Platform Lead Engineer (Foundation Engineering) will design, build, and optimize the core infrastructure and tooling powering AI agent systems and LLM/SLM applications within the AI Center of Excellence. This individual works at the intersection of AI engineering and backend systems design, building scalable, production-grade foundations for enterprise AI initiatives.

Key Responsibilities and Duties

• Design and develop AI agent frameworks and orchestration layers supporting enterprise use cases
• Apply LLM optimization techniques (quantization, distillation, prompt/context optimization, caching) to improve latency, cost, and performance
• Lead fine-tuning efforts for small language models (SLMs) tailored to domain-specific use cases
• Architect and implement backend services and APIs supporting AI model integration and deployment
• Design and deploy AI infrastructure and services on AWS/cloud platforms
• Implement Model Context Protocol (MCP) integrations to enable standardized tool and data access for AI agents
• Partner with cross-functional stakeholders to translate business requirements into scalable technical solutions
• Mentor Associate-level engineers and review code/design for quality
• Evaluate emerging agentic AI and LLM engineering tools/research and recommend adoption
• Contribute to engineering standards and documentation for the Foundation Engineering practice

Required Qualifications

• Strong proficiency in Python with production-grade backend development experience
• Demonstrated experience with agent development frameworks (e.g., LangChain, LangGraph, AutoGen)
• Proven experience designing and deploying enterprise-scale LLM solutions, multi-agent workflows, and advanced Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) architectures with robust context and memory management systems
• Hands-on experience with LLM optimization techniques (prompt engineering, RAG, quantization, distillation, fine-tuning)
• Practical experience fine-tuning SLMs
• Solid backend development experience including API design, microservices, and system architecture
• Required expertise in AWS and cloud infrastructure (compute, storage, networking, security, deployment/CI-CD)
• Mandatory hands-on experience with Model Context Protocol (MCP) for building standardized agent-to-tool and agent-to-data integrations
• Background in machine learning fundamentals preferred
• Strong communication skills
• Demonstrated stakeholder management skills engaging business leaders, product owners, and cross-functional partners
• Prior experience mentoring junior engineers preferred

Educational Requirements

Bachelor's degree required; Master's degree or equivalent postgraduate qualification preferred

Work Experience

5+ Years Required; 7+ Years Preferred

Physical Requirements

Physical Requirements: Sedentary Work

Career Level
8IC

NA

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Company Overview

TIAA Global Capabilities was established in 2016 with a mission to tap into a vast pool of talent, reduce risk by insourcing key platforms and processes, as well as contribute to innovation with a focus on enhancing our technology stack. TIAA Global Capabilities is focused on building a scalable and sustainable organization , with a focus on technology , operations and expanding into the shared services business space.

 
Working closely with our U.S. colleagues and other partners, our goal is to reduce risk, improve the efficiency of our technology and processes and develop innovative ideas to increase throughput and productivity.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer. TIAA does not discriminate against any candidate or employee on the basis of age, race, color, national origin, sex, religion, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other legally protected status.

Our Culture of Impact

At TIAA, we're on a mission to build on our 100+ year legacy of delivering for our clients while evolving to meet tomorrow's challenges. We equip our associates with future-focused skills and AI tools that enable us to advance our mission. Together, we are fighting to ensure a more secure financial future for all and for generations to come. We are guided by our values: Champion Our People, Be Client Obsessed, Lead with Integrity, Own It, and Win As One. They influence every decision we make and how we work together to serve our clients every day. We thrive in a collaborative in-office environment where teams work across organizational boundaries with shared purpose, accelerating innovation and delivering meaningful results. Our workplace brings together TIAA and Nuveen's entrepreneurial spirit, where we work hard and work together to create lasting impact. Here, every associate can grow through meaningful learning experiences and development pathways—because when our people succeed, our impact on clients' lives grows stronger.

Accessibility Support

TIAA offers support for those who need assistance with our online application process to provide an equal employment opportunity to all job seekers, including individuals with disabilities.

If you are a U.S. applicant and desire a reasonable accommodation to complete a job application please use one of the below options to contact our accessibility support team: 

Phone: (800) 842-2755

Email: [email protected]

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