AI/ML Engineer - Remote

UnitedHealth Group•Schaumburg, IL

2d•Remote

About The Position

Optum is a global organization that delivers care, aided by technology to help millions of people live healthier lives. The work you do with our team will directly improve health outcomes by connecting people with the care, pharmacy benefits, data and resources they need to feel their best. Here, you will find a culture guided by inclusion, talented peers, comprehensive benefits and career development opportunities. Come make an impact on the communities we serve as you help us advance health optimization on a global scale. Join us to start Caring. Connecting. Growing together. We are looking for an AI/ML Engineer to build and enhance conversational AI solutions for voice, IVR, and chatbot platforms. The role involves developing NLP pipelines, integrating LLMs (e.g., Amazon Bedrock or OpenAI), and applying effective prompt engineering and evaluation techniques to improve conversational quality. You will work with AWS-native services such as Lambda, API Gateway, DynamoDB, and event-driven architectures, and contribute to solutions using Amazon Connect and Amazon Lex (V2). The position requires close collaboration with engineering teams to deliver scalable, reliable, and secure production systems, while continuously monitoring performance and improving AI models based on real-world data. You’ll enjoy the flexibility to work remotely from anywhere within the U.S. as you take on some tough challenges. For all hires in the Minneapolis or Washington, D.C. area, you will be required to work in the office a minimum of four days per week.

Requirements

Undergraduate degree or 4+ years of equivalent software engineering experience
4+ years of experience in software engineering specifically focused on AI/ML systems
2+ years of experience with Amazon Connect, including Contact Flows, routing, and integrations
2+ years of experience with Amazon Lex (V2) for building conversational interfaces
2+ years of experience with Python or Java for backend and AI service development
2+ years of experience with AWS core services: Lambda, API Gateway, and DynamoDB
2+ years of experience building and deploying voice-based or IVR systems

Nice To Haves

Experience with event-driven and microservices architectures
Knowledge of CI/CD pipelines and automated testing for AI/ML applications
Solid understanding of Natural Language Processing (NLP) techniques and Large Language Models (LLMs)
Familiarity with AI system monitoring, observability, and real-time performance tuning
Proven expertise in prompt engineering and AI model evaluation frameworks

Responsibilities

Design, develop, and deploy AI-powered solutions, specifically voice-based IVR and conversational interfaces, to address complex business challenges
Integrate Large Language Models (LLMs) like Bedrock or OpenAI into production environments using prompt engineering and evaluation techniques
Build and maintain robust backend services and integrations using AWS Lambda, API Gateway, and DynamoDB
Develop real-time orchestration and event-processing systems within microservices and event-driven architectures
Use enterprise-approved AI tools to streamline workflows, automate tasks, and drive continuous improvement
Evaluate emerging trends in AI/ML and NLP to inform solution design and drive strategic innovation
Ensure all AI solutions are developed and deployed with an emphasis on the responsible use of AI and data privacy
Collaborate with cross-functional teams to monitor and optimize AI system performance and observability