Lead AI or ML Engineer

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.

Primary Responsibilities:

Fine-tunes a large language model on proprietary data to improve its performance

Develops new machine learning models from scratch

Experiments with novel model architectures or algorithms

Conducts and publishes research on AI models

Research and develop cutting-edge AI models, including deep learning, reinforcement learning, and generative

architectures

Advance agentic capabilities by designing autonomous systems that can reason, plan, and interact with complex environments

Prototype and refine novel algorithms to improve model performance, scalability, and interpretability

Collaborate with cross-functional teams to translate theoretical advancements into practical enterprise applications

Conduct rigorous experimentation and benchmarking to evaluate model efficacy and robustness

Publish findings, contribute to open-source initiatives, and stay abreast of emerging trends in AI research

Ensure ethical AI development by incorporating fairness, transparency, and accountability into model design

Optimize training pipelines and infrastructure for large-scale model deployment and continuous learning

Mentor junior researchers and contribute to the development of internal AI knowledge bases and best practices

Partner with data engineering and product teams to integrate AI solutions into production systems

Comply with the terms and conditions of the employment contract, company policies and procedures, and any and all directives (such as, but not limited to, transfer and/or re-assignment to different work locations, change in teams and/or work shifts, policies in regards to flexibility of work benefits and/or work environment, alternative work arrangements, and other decisions that may arise due to the changing business environment). The Company may adopt, vary or rescind these policies and directives in its absolute discretion and without any limitation (implied or otherwise) on its ability to do so

Required Qualifications:

Bachelor's or master's degree in computer science, Engineering, or a related field

10+ years of experience in software development

3+ years of experience delivering solutions with a focus on AI/ML

Hands-on experience with Azure Functions, Azure Monitor, and App Insights

Experience with Cloud-based AI and data services

Experience in GitHub & M365 Copilot,Deep learning frameworks such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, Scikit Learn

Experience with frontend development using React or Angular, and backend services using Java or .NET

Extensive experience implementing generative AI solutions using OpenAI compatible APIs

Knowledge of Python, Databricks, RAG, Agentic, AI Foundary, LangFuse

Knowledge of enterprise search, NLP, Speech AI, Vision AI, Supervised & unsupervised ML

Solid understanding of RAG architecture including knowledge of vector databases and semantic search

Expertise in Azure Document Intelligence, OCR, and Databricks

Advanced proficiency in Python for AI/ML and automation

Proven ability to lead the design and implementation of intelligent applications using Azure OpenAI, LLM Gateway, and Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) techniques

Proven ability to drive end-to-end delivery of AI-powered solutions across cross-functional teams

Proven excellent communication and stakeholder management skills

Preferred Qualifications:

Azure certifications (e.g., Azure AI Engineer Associate, Azure Developer Associate)

Experience with prompt engineering and fine-tuning LLMs

Experience working in agile development environments

Knowledge of Agentic AI concepts & Implementation

At UnitedHealth Group, our mission is to help people live healthier lives and make the health system work better for everyone. We believe everyone-of every race, gender, sexuality, age, location and income-deserves the opportunity to live their healthiest life. Today, however, there are still far too many barriers to good health which are disproportionately experienced by people of color, historically marginalized groups and those with lower incomes. We are committed to mitigating our impact on the environment and enabling and delivering equitable care that addresses health disparities and improves health outcomes - an enterprise priority reflected in our mission.