AI Specialist (m/f/d)

About the Role

As AI Specialist - Integration & Coordination, you will be a key member of the congatec AI Team, working in close collaboration with the Senior AI Architect to design, implement, and continuously evolve the company's AI platform. Based in Deggendorf, you serve as the technical bridge between the Senior AI Architect and the distributed AI Specialists in Malaysia, ensuring architectural decisions are translated into consistent, high-quality implementation across the team. Your physical proximity to congatec's core R&D and IT teams in Germany is essential to ensure that AI platform integration meets the regulatory requirements of a German enterprise environment - including DSGVO compliance, BSI baseline security, and the data residency constraints that apply to congatec's engineering knowledge assets.

Your primary technical focus is the integration of enterprise systems into the AI platform - connecting a wide range of business and engineering tools via standardized API and tool integration layers, and ensuring secure, role-based access through established identity and access management standards. Beyond implementation, you serve as the technical focal point across the team: coordinating tasks, reviewing technical work, and contributing architectural proposals that directly inform the platform roadmap.

You also play an active role in the design and establishment of fine-tuning and training pipelines for large language models and deep neural networks, working in close coordination with the Senior AI Architect and the Malaysia-based team to translate these concepts into scalable, production-ready infrastructure.

This role is ideal for an experienced AI or backend engineer who combines strong hands-on integration and machine learning skills with the communication and coordination capabilities to act as a technical anchor in a distributed team.

Your Responsibilities

Integration Engineering

• Design, develop, and maintain connectors between enterprise systems and the AI platform's tool integration layer, covering a broad range of business and engineering applications
• Implement and maintain role-based access control policies via established identity and access management standards (OIDC, OAuth2) across all AI platform components
• Ensure data sensitivity classification is correctly enforced at the integration and inference routing layers
• Collaborate with IT and security stakeholders to implement zero-trust integration patterns and maintain full audit logging
• Contribute to the development and operation of the model routing and abstraction layer

Architecture & Platform Development

• Work in close alignment with the Senior AI Architect to refine and extend the AI platform architecture
• Proactively identify integration gaps, security risks, and scalability limitations - and bring concrete proposals to architectural discussions
• Contribute to the definition of integration standards, API design guidelines, and security baselines for the platform
• Participate in the evaluation of new tools, frameworks, and open-source technologies
• Own the design and architecture of fine-tuning and training pipelines for large language models and deep neural networks, in close alignment with the Senior AI Architect; coordinate and oversee the implementation of these pipelines with the Malaysia-based AI Specialists

Coordination & Technical Leadership

• Serve as the technical focal point for the AI Specialist team in Malaysia, coordinating task allocation, fostering knowledge sharing, and ensuring consistent implementation across locations.
• Serve as the primary point of escalation for technical integration questions from the Malaysia team
• Bridge communication between the Senior AI Architect's architectural direction and the day-to-day implementation work of the team
• Conduct technical reviews of integration work delivered by AI Specialists
• Support onboarding of new AI Team members on platform standards and integration patterns

Governance & Documentation

• Contribute to AI governance deliverables: integration standards, security documentation, and operational runbooks
• Maintain technical documentation for all platform connectors and integration components
• Participate in AI Steering Committee preparation by providing technical input and status reporting

Your Profile

Required

• Degree in Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, Computer Science, or a related field
• Solid hands-on experience in software development and system integration
• Strong proficiency in Python
• Good understanding of identity and access management: OIDC, OAuth2, RBAC; hands-on experience with Keycloak or comparable identity providers is a strong advantage
• Solid understanding of LLMs, RAG architectures, vector databases, and AI platform concepts
• Hands-on experience with **fine-tuning of LLMs** and/or **training of deep neural networks**; proficiency with relevant frameworks such as **PyTorch** and/or **Hugging Face Transformers**
• Experience working with enterprise systems and their integration into software platforms via APIs and middleware
• Strong communication skills and the ability to coordinate across a distributed, international team
• Structured, detail-oriented working style with a strong security-first mindset
• Fluent in English; German is a plus
• Familiarity with DSGVO, BSI IT-Grundschutz, and enterprise data governance requirements in a German or European context

Nice to Have

• Experience with the Model Context Protocol (MCP) or comparable tool/API abstraction frameworks
• Familiarity with model routing layers, open-source chat interfaces, or comparable AI platform components
• Experience with PEFT, LoRA, or other parameter-efficient fine-tuning techniques
• Experience with Docker, Kubernetes, or containerized deployment of AI services
• Knowledge of ISO 27001, IEC 62443, or GDPR in the context of enterprise software systems
• Experience in technical coordination or informal leadership roles in distributed teams
• Background in or exposure to embedded systems, hardware development, or engineering-driven organizations

What We Offer

• A central and highly visible role at the heart of congatec's AI platform
• Close collaboration with the Senior AI Architect and direct influence on platform architecture
• The opportunity to shape integration standards and technical practices across the entire AI Team
• A hybrid work model based in Deggendorf with flexible arrangements
• A modern, innovation-driven environment with strong engineering culture
• Collaboration with experienced R&D, IT, and product teams across international locations