Lead AI/ML Engineer - Remote Nationwide or Hybrid in Eden Prairie, MN

UnitedHealth Group•Eden Prairie, MN

1d•$145,500 - $249,500•Hybrid

About The Position

Optum Tech is a global leader in health care innovation. Our teams develop cutting-edge solutions that help people live healthier lives and help make the health system work better for everyone. From advanced data analytics and AI to cybersecurity, we use innovative approaches to solve some of health care’s most complex challenges. Your contributions here have the potential to change lives. Ready to build the next breakthrough? Join us to start Caring. Connecting. Growing together. We are seeking a highly experienced and innovative Lead AI/ML Engineer to lead the design, development, and evolution of next-generation AI, Machine Learning, and Intelligent Automation platforms across the enterprise. This role will be responsible for defining architecture strategy, establishing technology standards, and driving the adoption of scalable, secure, and resilient solutions that enable business transformation. The Lead AI/ML Engineer will partner closely with engineering leaders, product teams, business stakeholders, data scientists, and enterprise architecture groups to define long-term technology roadmaps and ensure alignment with organizational objectives. This individual will provide technical leadership across multiple programs, guide solution architecture decisions, mentor engineering teams, and champion best practices for cloud-native, data-driven, and AI-powered applications. This role requires deep expertise in enterprise architecture, distributed systems, AI/ML platforms, cloud technologies, integration patterns, and software engineering practices, along with the ability to influence senior leadership and drive strategic initiatives. 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

Bachelor's degree or Master's degree in Computer Science, or 4+ years of equivalent software engineering experience in addition to the required experience (in lieu of a degree)
10+ years of progressive professional software engineering experience, including hands-on experience building backend APIs and high-scale systems
10+ years of professional experience designing, building, and developing backend applications using Java and Spring Boot
5+ years of professional experience building event-driven streaming solutions using Apache Kafka
Experience delivering and deploying scalable software applications in a production cloud environment
Professional experience developing frontend web applications with Next.js or React
Professional experience designing, querying, and managing relational databases with PostgreSQL
Professional experience with Python and implementing AI/ML or agentic AI frameworks (such as LangGraph, Agno, or modern AI SDKs)

Nice To Haves

Experience with Generative AI, LLMs, Agentic Frameworks, MLOps, and enterprise AI governance
Experience leading technical design sessions, establishing coding guidelines, and driving architectural planning across teams
Solid knowledge of enterprise integration patterns, data architecture, security, and platform engineering
Proven expertise in cloud platforms, with Azure
Demonstrated ability to influence executive stakeholders and lead cross-functional teams
Demonstrated exceptional communication, strategic thinking, and problem-solving skills

Responsibilities

Define and execute architecture and engineering strategy for AI/ML, intelligent automation, and digital transformation initiatives across the enterprise
Lead end-to-end hands-on solution architecture and development across multiple products and enterprise platforms, utilizing Python, Java, and Spring Boot
Design, develop, and deploy AI-powered solutions to address complex business challenges with a solid emphasis on the responsible use of AI
Build and drive the adoption of advanced generative and agentic AI architectures using frameworks such as LangGraph, Agno, or modern AI SDKs (such as Vercel AI SDK)
Architect responsive, high-performance web frontends in Next.js integrated with real-time AI endpoints and streaming APIs
Define and implement robust, event-driven data pipelines and streaming services utilizing Apache Kafka
Establish architectural standards, governance frameworks, and database schema strategies using PostgreSQL
Drive adoption of emerging technologies including Generative AI, Agentic AI, MLOps, Knowledge Graphs, and Cloud-native architectures
Use enterprise-approved AI tools to streamline development workflows, automate engineering tasks, and drive continuous team improvement
Evaluate technology investments, evaluate emerging trends, and create reference architectures to accelerate solution delivery
Ensure architectures meet security, compliance, scalability, reliability, and performance requirements
Mentor engineering leads and development teams, establishing a culture of high engineering standards and code excellence