Forward Deployed AI Engineer

Forward Deployed AI Engineer needed to build and ship production agent systems for Avenue Z brands and platform, owning problems from diagnosis through evaluation and deployment.

Responsibilities

• Embed with teams across performance media, creator and influencer, ecommerce, and analytics to find where throughput drops or money is left on the table, then build a production agent that owns the fix.
• Partner with business units to diagnose throughput and margin loss, and deliver a working agent within the first few weeks.
• Develop production-grade agent systems including tool use, planning loops, memory, retrieval (RAG), orchestration, and human-in-the-loop approval gates for scenarios involving money or brand safety.
• Integrate deeply with the revenue platforms and ecosystems: TikTok Shop, TikTok Ads, Meta, Instagram, Amazon, Shopify, Google, Snap, plus affiliate and creator APIs.
• Build data pipelines and analytics infrastructure that connect creator content, ad spend, and attributed GMV into a single view.
• Create an evaluation harness with the agent; ensure nothing ships without measurable correctness.
• Own key infrastructure components: APIs, queues, authentication, token refresh, observability, error handling, rate limits, and cost controls.
• Instrument every system with metrics tied to outcomes (examples listed in role): hours returned, cycle time reduction, spend efficiency, GMV, or revenue supported.
• Document solutions, drive adoption with the teams that use them, and iterate after launch.
• Own the full lifecycle end to end: discovery, architecture, build, deploy, evaluations, adoption, and production issues that arise at all hours.

Requirements

• Computer science or another technical background, or equivalent hands-on experience as a developer or self-taught AI-native builder.
• 3 to 5 years building and shipping software that other people depended on.
• Ability to read, write, and debug Python or TypeScript.
• Experience deploying and maintaining real services with an understanding of what happens underneath.
• Hands-on experience building LLM agent systems including function and tool calling, RAG, orchestration, prompt and context engineering, and agent evals.
• Experience integrating third-party marketing, ad, or commerce APIs.
• Comfort with cloud infrastructure (AWS or GCP), containers, CI/CD, and SQL.
• Fluency with AI coding tools such as Claude Code and Cursor.
• Understanding of performance marketing concepts: ROAS, CAC, attribution, creative testing, funnel mechanics, and affiliate or creator economics.
• Entrepreneurial mindset with high agency.
• Ability to communicate with senior executives or heads of ecommerce in their language and translate business problems into a system without a translator.

Technologies

• Python, TypeScript
• LLM agent systems; function and tool calling; RAG; orchestration; prompt and context engineering; agent evals
• AWS, GCP; containers; CI/CD; SQL
• Claude Code, Cursor
• TikTok Shop, TikTok Ads, Meta, Instagram, Amazon, Shopify, Google, Snap
• OAuth, webhook replay

Benefits

• Competitive salary + equity package
• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision plans
• 401(k) plan with employer match
• Unlimited paid time off policy to support work-life balance
• Professional development opportunities and budget

Nice to have

• Direct experience with TikTok Shop, Meta Ads, or Amazon Seller/Ads APIs
• Background at a DTC brand, an ecommerce platform, a creator or affiliate network, or a performance agency
• Prior forward deployed, applied AI, or founding engineer experience