Principal Solution Architect

DDN • Santa Clara, CA

1d • $300,000 - $330,000

About The Position

The Principal AI Solutions Architect at DataDirect Networks (DDN) combines technical mastery with outcome driven strategic selling/consulting delivering high-performance AI, ML, and HPC solutions. This role is pivotal in aligning DDN’s cutting-edge AI solutions and data management technologies with clients’ business needs, driving measurable outcomes to include efficiencies, optimizations, utilization, reduced latency, and accelerated time-to-insight. The ideal candidate will bring pre-sales engineering experience, AI technical expertise and intelligence, and a passion for delivering tailored solutions that enable customer success.

Requirements

• 8+ years of experience in AI/ML infrastructure, data engineering, or consulting for AI projects and/or AI/ML and/or Data Science application development practices and architectures.
• Demonstratable expertise in generative AI technologies, including LLMs, neural networks, and recommendation systems.
• Familiarity with AI frameworks such as TensorFlow, PyTorch, NVIDIA Enterprise Suite, NeMO, NIMs etc.
• Proven track record of delivering technical wins in complex sales or consulting environments.
• Exceptional communication and presentation skills, with the ability to engage technical and executive audiences.
• Subject matter expert in AI frameworks, Data Science and Data Engineering concepts, Predictive Analytics, and/or Generative AI development practices
• Working knowledge of full stack AI training, inference, development and deployment tools, including LLM, Feature Stores, Vector Databases, Embedding Models, ETL tooling, and modern programming languages/frameworks
• Executive presence with public speaking skills
• Entrepreneurial mindset

Nice To Haves

• Certifications in AI and cloud architectures (e.g. NVIDIA, AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, or similar) are a plus.
• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, AI, Data Engineering, or a related technical field or equivalent experience.
• Experience working with alliances, OEM, partner ecosystems, hyperscalers, and joint solution delivery.
• Previous experience as a sales engineer, technical sales, consultant or similar role, highlighting expertise in driving sales and technical conversations in the Data Science AI/ML and Generative AI space.
• Knowledge of ROI and AI - data center optimization metrics, including energy efficiency, space utilization, and performance tuning.
• Experience working with cloud providers and other 3rd parties for joint GTM, leveraging relationships to drive indirect sales and co-selling opportunities.
• Demonstrates a deep understanding of customer challenges and the ability to propose credible solutions.

Responsibilities

• Demonstrate expertise in AI technologies, including architecture, deployment, optimization, and integration, with a focus on delivering measurable outcomes
• Engage deeply with clients to understand their AI and data challenges & performance goals, recommending DDN’s AI & high-performance solutions to achieve desired business outcomes, whether it’s accelerated time-to-insight or operational efficiency.
• Partner with clients to architect and deliver AI-driven data solutions that prioritize long-term value, scalability, and performance optimization. Leverage DDN’s expertise in AI, HPC, and cloud storage to address current requirements while enabling future growth and innovation.
• As a proactive part of the sales process, the AI Solutions Consultant is a Sales Engineering role which actively engages in client discussions, delivers compelling product demonstrations, and contributes to closing deals by demonstrating the business value and ROI of DDN’s solutions.
• Providing hands-on technical presentations, demonstrations, proof-of-concept support and management, and ongoing client management and support to ensure successful adoption, usage, and maximized business impact from DDN technologies.
• Leverage experience in AI, Data & Analytics to engage deeply with clients, understanding their challenges and delivering value-driven solutions.
• Design scalable solutions and implement strategies for effective data models and management to support AI/ML workflows.
• Apply knowledge & expertise in AI technologies, including Large Language Models (LLMs), neural networks, RAG, Inference, and recommendation systems, to drive innovation and client success.
• Utilize frameworks like NeMO, NIMs, TensorFlow, PyTorch, and Nvidia Enterprise Suite to craft and demonstrate DDNs advanced AI solutions tailored to client needs.
• You are a partner with between Sales, Product, Marketing and Engineering teams, ensuring customer insights inform messaging, collateral, product development, support/services and technical strategies.
• Build and maintain relationships across our ecosystem of Alliances, OEMs, CSPs, hyper-scalers, channel and integrators to create joint go-to-market strategies and expand DDN’s market reach.
• Deliver technical development for internal teams and partners, ensuring a deep understanding of DDN’s AI solutions.
• Stay abreast of trends in AI, data management, and competitive landscapes to position DDN’s solutions effectively.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Principal
• Education Level: Associate degree