Principal Machine Learning Engineer (AI)

Location: Palo Alto, United States; hybrid work pattern

Salary: USD 198,200–420,000 yearly

Company

SAP develops enterprise applications and business AI solutions for organizations across finance, procurement, HR, supply chain, and customer experience.

What you will do

• Architect and optimize large-scale ML systems, including LLM capabilities and infrastructure.
• Lead ML solution deployment at scale and ensure production readiness, performance, scalability, security, and governance.
• Design enterprise architectures and define architectural and operational standards across products.
• Bridge customer requirements and product capabilities by gathering requirements, clarifying ambiguity, and proposing solutions.
• Enable safe experimentation and adoption of modern ML techniques across teams.
• Mentor engineers and influence technical direction beyond the immediate team.

Requirements

• 10+ years of software engineering experience delivering complex systems.
• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics, or a related field.
• Production experience with AI/ML, including large language models, retrieval-augmented generation, prompt engineering, vector search, agent workflows, and model evaluation.
• Expertise in distributed systems design and large-scale enterprise product architecture.
• Strong programming skills, proficiency with ML frameworks, and solid knowledge of MLOps practices.
• Excellent English communication skills and ability to collaborate in global, multicultural teams.

Culture & Benefits

• Flexible working models and a focus on inclusion, health, and well-being.
• Opportunities to influence global AI initiatives and mentor talent.
• Employee benefits and variable incentive opportunities may be available according to applicable plans and eligibility requirements.
• Accessibility accommodations are available for applicants with disabilities.