Lead ML Engineer - Advance AI (applied ML, LLM's, ML Ops)

Target • Brooklyn Park, NC

8d • Hybrid

About The Position

The Lead AI Engineer for Advanced AI designs, builds, deploys, and maintains AI/ML applications that support automation, insight, and action across core business workflows. The role works with Data Scientists, engineers, product partners, platform and security teams, and business stakeholders to turn ambiguous business problems into practical, scalable technical solutions.

The position provides hands-on technical leadership for AI engineering initiatives, contributing to architecture and design decisions, evaluating models, frameworks, and tools, writing maintainable production-quality code, and establishing engineering practices across development, testing, deployment, observability, documentation, and ongoing support. It helps ensure applications are secure, reliable, maintainable, and aligned with Target’s enterprise standards for infrastructure, platform architecture, data handling, and operational readiness.

The Lead AI Engineer partners with senior engineers and engineering leaders to shape technical approaches, identify implementation risks, resolve roadblocks, and evolve reusable AI engineering patterns. The role calls for ongoing learning about AI, machine learning, LLMs, agentic systems, and modern software engineering. Its goal is to deliver production-grade AI applications that create measurable business value and strengthen the broader team’s technical capabilities.

The position is described as Hybrid/Flex for Your Day, with work performed onsite at the assigned Target HQ Minnesota location and virtually according to role, team, and task needs. The description also says the position may be considered for a remote or hybrid arrangement based on Target’s needs. Work duties cannot be performed outside the country of the primary work location unless otherwise prescribed by Target.

Requirements

• A four-year degree in a quantitative discipline (Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics) or equivalent industry experience.
• At least 5 years of hands-on software engineering experience, including building and operating production systems.
• Strong experience developing AI/ML applications, such as LLM-powered applications, agentic systems, applied machine learning solutions, data-intensive applications, or intelligent automation capabilities.
• Strong proficiency with Python.
• Experience with modern AI/ML or deep learning frameworks, such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, LangChain, LlamaIndex, or Semantic Kernel, or similar tools.
• Experience with model APIs, prompt orchestration, agent development patterns, retrieval-augmented generation, evaluation frameworks, observability tools, cloud ML platforms, containers, or orchestration technologies.
• Strong understanding of system design, application architecture, model and framework tradeoffs, experimentation, evaluation strategy, performance optimization, and production deployment considerations for AI systems.
• Experience building scalable, maintainable, and well-tested services, APIs, data pipelines, applications, or platforms.
• Experience with version control, CI/CD, code review practices, documentation, operational monitoring, and production support.
• Ability to translate ambiguous business problems into clear technical approaches and collaborate with cross-functional partners to deliver practical solutions.
• Strong communication skills, including the ability to explain technical concepts clearly to engineers, Data Scientists, product partners, business stakeholders, and leaders.
• Ability to mentor engineers, contribute to technical direction, and improve engineering practices within a team.
• Self-driven and results-oriented, with strong ownership, sound judgment, and the ability to move quickly while maintaining high technical standards.
• Collaborative approach, commitment to continuous learning and knowledge sharing, and focus on building reliable AI systems that create business value.

Nice To Haves

• A master’s degree in Computer Science, Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, Applied Mathematics, or a related technical field.

Responsibilities

• Design, build, deploy, and maintain AI/ML applications supporting automation, insight, and action across core business workflows.
• Translate ambiguous business problems into practical, scalable technical solutions in collaboration with cross-functional partners.
• Provide hands-on technical leadership for AI engineering initiatives.
• Contribute to architecture and design decisions and evaluate appropriate models, frameworks, and tools.
• Write maintainable, production-quality code.
• Help establish engineering practices for development, testing, deployment, observability, documentation, and ongoing support.
• Help ensure AI applications are secure, reliable, maintainable, and aligned with Target’s enterprise standards for infrastructure, platform architecture, data handling, and operational readiness.
• Partner with senior engineers and engineering leaders to shape technical approaches, identify implementation risks, resolve roadblocks, and develop reusable AI engineering patterns.
• Mentor engineers, contribute to technical direction, and raise the quality of engineering practices within the team.
• Continue learning about AI, machine learning, LLMs, agentic systems, and modern software engineering practices.
• Deliver production-grade AI applications that create measurable business value and improve the broader team’s technical capability.

Benefits

• Eligible team members and dependents may receive comprehensive health benefits and programs, including medical, vision, dental, and life insurance.
• 401(k).
• Employee discount.
• Short-term disability and long-term disability.
• Paid sick leave.
• Paid national holidays.
• Paid vacation.
• Other benefits are described as including financial, education, and well-being offerings; eligibility details are provided through Target’s benefits information.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior