Sr. AI Engineer

The Senior AI Engineer will help advance CalPrivate Bank’s data analytics and artificial intelligence capabilities by turning business priorities and emerging technologies into production-ready AI and analytics solutions. This role focuses on Snowflake-centered pipelines, generative AI capabilities, and responsible AI governance within a highly regulated banking environment.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, test, deploy, and maintain AI, generative AI, machine learning, data engineering, and advanced analytics solutions aligned to meaningful business needs across the Bank.
• Collaborate with data and technology leadership to convert strategic AI and analytics objectives into technical requirements, development priorities, and executable solutions.
• Build and enhance Snowflake-centered data pipelines, integrations, APIs, and overall architecture supporting analytics, AI applications, and data products.
• Develop generative AI and large language model solutions using capabilities such as Snowflake Cortex AI, Cortex Search, Cortex Agents, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), enterprise search, intelligent document processing, workflow automation, and internal knowledge tools where appropriate.
• Create flexible, modular AI architectures that support evaluating, integrating, and substituting AI models and providers where appropriate, aiming to reduce unnecessary vendor dependency while balancing performance, security, cost, and operational complexity.
• Evaluate emerging AI technologies, platforms, models, and vendors, and recommend options based on business value, scalability, security, cost, and regulatory considerations.
• Produce prototypes and proofs of concept and transition viable solutions into stable, production-ready applications, with ownership across testing, deployment, monitoring, and ongoing support.
• Partner with business teams to identify opportunities where AI, automation, or advanced analytics can improve efficiency, reduce manual work, strengthen decision-making, or improve client and employee experience.
• Support the continued development of the Bank’s enterprise data environment, including data quality, accessibility, lineage, integration, and governance.
• Create reusable frameworks, tools, and engineering standards to scale AI capability without isolated one-off implementations.
• Establish testing, evaluation, monitoring, and observability for AI solutions, including quality, accuracy, reliability, performance, security, cost, model or data drift where applicable, and ongoing effectiveness.
• Develop and maintain technical documentation and inventory records for AI solutions, including models, prompts, agents, data sources, integrations, dependencies, and controls, ensuring traceability across development, testing, deployment, monitoring, and retirement.
• Work with Information Security, Risk, Compliance, Legal, and other control functions to support responsible development and implementation in line with Bank policies and regulatory expectations.
• Act as a senior technical resource for the broader data and analytics team by providing guidance, troubleshooting complex technical issues, sharing best practices, and increasing team capability.
• Help create repeatable development and deployment processes to enable efficient execution and scaling as the Bank grows.
• Communicate complex technical concepts clearly to technical and non-technical stakeholders, including senior leadership.

Required Qualifications

• Advanced experience in AI engineering, machine learning engineering, data engineering, applied data science, or a closely related discipline.
• Strong proficiency in Python and SQL, with experience applying modern software and data engineering practices.
• Demonstrated experience building and deploying production AI, generative AI, data, and analytics applications.
• Hands-on experience with generative AI technologies, large language models, prompt engineering, embeddings, vector databases, RAG architectures, AI agents, or workflow orchestration, including model/API integration.
• Strong hands-on experience with Snowflake, including data engineering, data pipelines, security and access patterns, integrations, and building production workloads on the platform.
• Ability to assess business problems and determine when AI is, and when it is not, the appropriate solution.
• Strong analytical, problem-solving, and communication skills, able to operate independently while collaborating effectively across teams.
• Experience working with sensitive or highly regulated data is strongly preferred, with banking, financial services, fintech, or another regulated industry desirable.
• Lead with accountability, integrity, and consistency.
• Work in a collaborative environment that values transparency and follow-through.
• Model professionalism, calm under pressure, and a solutions-oriented mindset.
• Embrace data-driven decision-making with a client-first perspective.
• Embody CalPrivate culture, heart for clients, excellence in service, and commitment to the Bank and its people.

Highly Desirable Experience

• Hands-on experience with Snowpark, Cortex AI, Cortex Search, Cortex Agents, external stages, streams/tasks, dynamic tables, or related Snowflake capabilities.
• Hands-on experience integrating data and AI solutions with Microsoft Azure, particularly Azure Functions and Azure Storage/Blob Storage.

Technologies

• Python, SQL
• Snowflake, Snowpark, Cortex AI, Cortex Search, Cortex Agents
• Retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), large language models, prompt engineering, embeddings, vector databases
• Enterprise search, intelligent document processing, workflow automation, AI agents, workflow orchestration, model/API integration
• Microsoft Azure, Azure Functions, Azure Storage/Blob Storage
• ETL/ELT pipelines, APIs, relational databases, data warehouses/lakehouses
• Git, GitHub, CI/CD
• External stages, streams/tasks, dynamic tables

Responsible AI and Banking Environment

• Approach development with an understanding of data privacy, cybersecurity, model risk, third-party risk, explainability, access controls, human oversight, and regulatory compliance.
• Understand that innovation and responsible governance must develop together.
• Build sustainable capabilities that employees and leadership can trust and that support the Bank’s long-term strategy.

AML/CFT / Compliance Responsibilities

• Includes responsibilities relating to BSA/AML due to direct or indirect interaction with customers and other employees.
• Opportunity to examine and view information and documents produced by other employees of the Bank relating to BSA.
• Obligation to report suspicious activity to the BSA Officer as appropriate.
• Understand and follow the Bank’s BSA/AML policies, including elevating suspicious activity to the BSA Officer.
• Follow the Bank’s compliance program BSA/AML policies, including elevating suspicious activity to the BSA Officer.
• Understand and follow the Bank’s compliance program.

Location

• San Diego, CA (onsite)
• Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego

Salary

USD 145,000 - 172,000 per year.

Physical Demands

• May require some travel to support team, department, and initiatives.
• Ability to sit or stand for extended periods of time.
• Ability to use a keyboard and mouse.
• Ability to walk to and from workstations.
• Ability to frequently lift and/or move up to 10 lbs, and occasionally lift and/or move 50 lbs.
• Specific vision abilities required, including close vision and ability to adjust focus.