Principal Engineer - AI Join a dynamic Australian scale-up transforming how consumers save on household expenses. We are building the next generation of AI-powered products that enable smarter financial decisions-simply and effortlessly. Salary: $180K - $200K super Location: Sydney (Hybrid / Flexible) Reporting to: Head of Engineering Team Size: 500 employees | Consumer Tech / AI Products Direct Reports: 1 Engineer Work Arrangements: 2 days in office; flexible remote work (e.g., one week remote if travelling abroad for a month). About the Role We're looking for a Principal Software Engineer - AI to act as a hands-on technical leader and architect for our intelligent product ecosystem. In this pivotal role, you won't just work with AI-you'll design, build, and drive the architecture behind it. You will: Lead the end-to-end design of AI-powered applications. Mentor engineers and elevate team capabilities. Introduce and implement modern AI tools and frameworks. Set the strategic technical direction for agentic, data-driven, and LLM-powered products. If you enjoy solving complex problems, navigating ambiguity, and taking ideas from concept → prototype → production, this is the role for you. Key Skills & Responsibilities Technical Leadership & Strategy Own the architecture and technical vision for scalable, high-performance AI systems. Drive innovation through adoption and evaluation of new AI frameworks, tools, and approaches. Hands-On Development Build core product features with Python/JavaScript, RESTful APIs, and Generative AI capabilities (LLMs, RAG, vector databases). Integrate modern AI SDKs to deliver intelligent, responsive applications. Ensure high-quality, reliable systems with strong testing, CI/CD practices, and maintainable code. Mentorship & Collaboration Provide technical leadership and mentorship to engineers through coaching, design reviews, and knowledge sharing. Communicate complex technical concepts clearly to both technical teams and executive stakeholders. Lead projects from concept to delivery, navigating technical ambiguity with confidence. What You Bring Proven senior technical leadership with ownership of large-scale, distributed systems and architectural decision-making. Deep expertise in Python/JavaScript and modern web frameworks, with strong knowledge of distributed system patterns. Hands-on experience building AI applications, including LLMs, Generative AI, RAG pipelines, vector databases, and familiarity with AI ecosystems (OpenAI, Vertex AI, LangChain, ElevenLabs). Strong communicator, autonomous problem-solver, and passionate about experimentation, continuous learning, and driving impact.
