AI Technical Lead

Job Title: AI Technical Lead

Job Location: St. Louis, MO

Work Type: On-site

Employment Type: Contract to hire

Rate: $70/hr to $80/hr on C2H

Key Responsibilities

Technical Leadership

· Lead the architecture, design, development, and deployment of AI/ML, Generative AI, and Agentic AI solutions.

· Define AI architecture standards, coding guidelines, and engineering best practices.

· Drive technical decision-making and solution architecture discussions across projects.

· Mentor and guide AI engineers, data scientists, and developers.

· Conduct design reviews and code reviews to ensure scalability, performance, security, and maintainability.

· Remain highly hands-on (60–75%) by building critical solution components and supporting implementation teams.

AI/ML & Generative AI Development

· Design, develop, and deploy machine learning models for predictive analytics, classification, clustering, recommendation systems, Natural Language Processing (NLP), and Computer Vision use cases.

· Build and implement Generative AI applications using Large Language Models (LLMs).

· Implement Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG), prompt engineering, semantic search, and AI orchestration frameworks.

· Develop scalable APIs and microservices for AI solution integration.

· Optimize model performance, reliability, scalability, and operational efficiency.

· Develop, fine-tune, evaluate, and deploy machine learning and foundation models as required.

Agentic AI Architecture

· Define and lead end-to-end architecture for Agentic AI systems, including multi-agent workflows, planning and reasoning loops, memory management, and tool orchestration.

· Design scalable and production-ready AI solutions that address complex business challenges.

· Lead technical discovery, solution design, and early-stage project definition activities.

· Translate ambiguous business requirements into clear technical architectures and implementation roadmaps.

· Guide clients in evolving AI solutions from Proof of Concepts (POCs) to enterprise-scale production deployments while ensuring governance, reliability, and performance.

Stakeholder Management

· Collaborate with business analysts, product owners, architects, and stakeholders to understand business objectives and requirements.

· Translate business challenges into AI-driven solutions and actionable technical strategies.

· Present technical recommendations, solution approaches, and implementation roadmaps to leadership teams and clients.

· Act as a trusted advisor for AI adoption, architecture, and implementation best practices.

Project Delivery

· Lead AI project planning, estimation, and execution activities.

· Ensure timely delivery of AI initiatives while maintaining high quality standards.

· Manage project risks, technical dependencies, and implementation challenges throughout the project lifecycle.

· Drive continuous improvement in AI engineering processes, delivery methodologies, and development practices.

Required Skills

AI & Machine Learning

· Strong experience in Machine Learning, Deep Learning, Generative AI, and Agentic AI systems.

· Hands-on experience with Large Language Models (LLMs) such as OpenAI GPT, Anthropic Claude, Meta Llama, and other open-source foundation models.

· Experience in NLP, Computer Vision, predictive analytics, and recommendation systems.

· Strong understanding of model training, fine-tuning, evaluation, deployment, and monitoring.

· Experience implementing RAG architectures, prompt engineering techniques, and AI agent frameworks.

Programming & Frameworks

· Expert-level proficiency in Python.

· Strong experience with TensorFlow, PyTorch, Scikit-learn, LangChain, and LlamaIndex.

· Experience building REST APIs, microservices, and distributed applications.

· Strong software engineering fundamentals, including design patterns, testing, and performance optimization.

Cloud & Data Platforms

· Hands-on experience with cloud platforms such as AWS, Microsoft Azure, or Google Cloud Platform (Google Cloud Platform).

· Experience with vector databases such as Pinecone, Weaviate, Chroma, FAISS, or similar technologies.

· Experience with data pipelines, knowledge management platforms, and enterprise data architectures.

· Familiarity with cloud-native AI services and model deployment platforms.

DevOps & MLOps

· Experience with CI/CD pipelines and DevOps practices.

· Hands-on experience with Docker, Kubernetes, and containerized deployments.

· Experience with MLOps tools and frameworks for model lifecycle management.

· Understanding of AI governance, security, compliance, and Responsible AI practices.

· Experience monitoring, maintaining, and optimizing AI models in production environments.

Experience & Qualifications

· Bachelor''s or Master''s degree in Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, Engineering, or a related field.

· 10+ years of overall software engineering experience.

· 5+ years of hands-on experience delivering AI/ML solutions in enterprise environments.

· 2+ years of experience building and deploying Generative AI and LLM-based applications.

· Proven experience leading technical teams and delivering large-scale AI transformation initiatives.

· Strong communication, stakeholder management, and client-facing consulting skills.

Preferred Qualifications

· Experience with Agentic AI frameworks and multi-agent architectures.

· Experience in enterprise AI adoption, AI governance, and responsible AI initiatives.

· Relevant cloud certifications (AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud Platform) and AI/ML certifications.

· Experience working in consulting, product engineering, or digital transformation environments.

The salary range for this position takes into consideration a variety of factors, including but not limited to skill sets, level of experience, applicable office location, training, licensure and certifications, and other business and organizational needs.

The salary range displays the minimum and maximum salary targets for this position across all U.S. locations, and the range has not been adjusted for any specific state differentials. It is not typical for a candidate to be hired at or near the top of the range for their role. Final compensation decisions will depend on the unique facts and circumstances of each candidate.

About Aspire Systems

Aspire Systems is a $180+ million global technology services firm with over 4,900 employees worldwide, partnering with 275+ active customers. Founded in 1996, Aspire has grown steadily at a 19% CAGR since 2020.

Headquartered in Singapore, we operate across the US, UK, LATAM, Europe, the Middle East, India, and Asia Pacific regions, with strong nearshore delivery centers in Poland and Mexico. Aspire has been consistently recognized among India’s 100 Best Companies to Work For for 12 consecutive years by the Great Place to Work Institute.

Who We Are

Aspire is built on deep expertise in Software Engineering, Digital Services, Testing, and Infrastructure & Application Support. We serve diverse industries including Independent Software Vendors, Retail, Banking & Financial Services, and Insurance.

Our proven frameworks and accelerators enable us to create future-ready, scalable, and business-focused systems, helping customers across the globe embrace digital transformation at speed and scale.

What We Believe

At the heart of Aspire is our philosophy of “Attention. Always.”—a commitment to investing care and focus on our customers, employees, and society

Our Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion

At Aspire Systems, we foster a work culture that appreciates diversity and inclusiveness. We understand that our multigenerational workforce represents different regions, cultures, economic backgrounds, races, genders, ethnicities, education levels, personalities, and religions. We believe these differences make us stronger and are committed to building an inclusive workplace where everyone feels respected and valued.

Privacy Notice

Aspire Systems values your privacy. Candidate information collected through this recruitment process will be used solely for hiring purposes, handled securely, and retained only as long as necessary in compliance with applicable privacy laws.

Disclaimer

The above statements are not intended to be a complete statement of job content, but rather to serve as a guide to the essential functions performed by the employee in this role. Organization retains the discretion to add or change the duties of the position at any time.