Principal AI Software Engineer

Principal AI Software Engineer Remote – Boston or NYC based preferred $225,000-250,000 Base salary + Bonus + Equity THE COMPANY Harnham is partnering with a high-growth AI and technology startup operating at the intersection of artificial intelligence, private equity, and digital transformation. The company helps investors and leadership teams unlock value through advanced analytics, AI-driven insights, and enterprise-scale technology solutions. Following a period of rapid growth and expansion, the organization is building a world-class engineering function focused on developing innovative AI-powered platforms that help businesses better understand, optimize, and transform their operations. This is a unique opportunity to join a highly experienced team with backgrounds from leading technology, consulting, and analytics organizations, while helping shape the future of enterprise AI adoption. RESPONSIBILITIES Lead the technical direction and architecture of a next-generation AI-powered business intelligence platform, partnering closely with senior technology leadership. Mentor and develop a high-performing team of software engineers, data scientists, and data engineers through code reviews, design reviews, and hands-on collaboration. Design, build, and experiment with cutting-edge generative AI and LLM solutions to solve complex enterprise challenges. Architect and develop production-grade services using Python and modern LLM orchestration frameworks, integrating multiple AI providers. Partner with engineering and data teams to design scalable data models and optimize analytical workloads across cloud-based data platforms. Build and maintain cloud-native infrastructure, deployment pipelines, observability tooling, and operational best practices. Collaborate closely with business stakeholders to translate complex commercial requirements into scalable technical solutions. Drive engineering excellence through testing, documentation, code quality standards, monitoring, and continuous improvement initiatives. SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE Required 8+ years of software engineering experience, including experience operating at Staff, Principal, or Technical Lead level. Strong Python development expertise, with experience building production-grade applications, data platforms, and analytical systems. Hands-on experience with cloud technologies, ideally GCP, including data platforms, storage services, access management, and scalable compute services. Strong SQL, data modeling, and data architecture experience supporting analytical workloads. Proven success delivering complex projects end-to-end in fast-paced and ambiguous environments. Experience building and deploying production LLM applications using frameworks such as LangChain, LangGraph, or similar technologies. Experience working with multiple AI model providers and applying best practices for prompt engineering, context management, and AI application design. Outstanding communication skills with the ability to engage both technical and non-technical stakeholders. Preferred Experience with CI/CD pipelines, Docker, and Infrastructure-as-Code tooling. Familiarity with observability and LLM monitoring tools. Experience designing evaluation frameworks for AI applications and machine learning systems. Exposure to consulting, private equity, strategy, or enterprise transformation environments. BENEFITS Opportunity to play a key leadership role within a rapidly growing AI business. Work alongside highly experienced technology, analytics, and transformation professionals. Flexible hybrid or remote working arrangements. Significant technical ownership and influence over product and architectural direction. Exposure to cutting-edge AI technologies and enterprise transformation initiatives. Competitive compensation package and long-term career growth opportunities. HOW TO APPLY Please register your interest by sending your CV via the Apply link on this page. KEY TERMS Principal Software Engineer | Staff Engineer | Technical Lead | Python | Generative AI | LLMs | LangChain | LangGraph | OpenAI | Anthropic | Gemini | GCP | Google Cloud Platform | BigQuery | Cloud Run | PostgreSQL | Data Engineering | Cloud Architecture | AI Applications | CI/CD | Docker | Infrastructure as Code | Remote | Hybrid | Enterprise AI | Analytics Platform | Machine Learning Engineering | Principal Engineer Jobs | AI Transformation | Private Equity Technology | SaaS Engineering