{"id":4049471,"url":"https://alion.io/job/defense-unicorns-data-ai-engineer-agentic-systems","title":"Data & AI Engineer (Agentic Systems)","company":{"id":8737,"name":"Defense Unicorns","domain":"defenseunicorns.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/defense-unicorns","size_band":"51-200","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Greenhouse","truth_index":{"grade":"B","score":74,"open_postings":12,"ghost_share":0,"stale_share":0.833,"repost_share":0,"time_to_fill_p50_days":69,"computed_at":"2026-11-10T06:52:35Z"}},"role":"AI/ML","role_family":"AI/ML","seniority":"middle","employment_type":null,"work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Springfield, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":{"min":148750,"max":201250,"currency":"USD","period":"year","gross":null,"usd_annual":201250},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":3,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":true,"technologies":[{"name":"AI Agents","optional":false},{"name":"CI/CD","optional":false},{"name":"Embeddings","optional":false},{"name":"Function Calling","optional":false},{"name":"Git","optional":false},{"name":"Kubernetes","optional":false},{"name":"LLM","optional":false},{"name":"OpenShift","optional":false},{"name":"Python","optional":false},{"name":"RAG","optional":false},{"name":"Rest API","optional":false},{"name":"Semantic Search","optional":false},{"name":"AutoGen","optional":true},{"name":"AWS","optional":true},{"name":"Azure","optional":true},{"name":"CrewAI","optional":true},{"name":"GCP","optional":true},{"name":"GitOps","optional":true},{"name":"Helm","optional":true},{"name":"Knowledge Graph","optional":true},{"name":"Kustomize","optional":true},{"name":"LangChain","optional":true},{"name":"LangGraph","optional":true},{"name":"Model Context Protocol","optional":true},{"name":"Multi-Agent Systems","optional":true},{"name":"Pulumi","optional":true},{"name":"Terraform","optional":true}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-11-10T21:01:57Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-11-10","last_verified_at":"2026-11-11T01:18:56Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":0,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":0},"description":"Role Description\nDefense Unicorns is seeking an Applied AI Engineer to embed with a government team and its technology partners building an emerging AI-powered engineering ecosystem.\nThis role will focus on designing, building, and integrating agentic AI capabilities that allow AI models to interact with tools, access enterprise data, execute multi-step workflows, and support mission applications. The engineer will work across LLM integration, agent orchestration, APIs, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), and the interfaces between AI applications and existing software platforms.\nThe ideal candidate is a hands-on software engineer with demonstrated experience building agentic AI applications. They should be comfortable entering an evolving architecture, learning unfamiliar systems quickly, working directly with commercial technology partners, and solving difficult problems involving integration, reliability, performance, and security.\nThis is not a traditional AI research or model development role. The focus is on building reliable, repeatable agentic capabilities that move beyond experimentation into working software in secure and classified environments.\nResponsibilities\nDesign, build, and maintain agentic AI applications that integrate LLMs, tools, APIs, and enterprise data to support mission workflows.\nDevelop AI agents capable of executing multi-step tasks, interacting with external services, and coordinating actions across existing systems.\nImplement agent orchestration, tool calling, workflow state management, error handling, and appropriate human oversight.\nBuild and integrate RAG pipelines, semantic search, embeddings, and vector-based retrieval to provide relevant context for AI applications.\nDevelop backend services and APIs using Python and modern software engineering practices.\nIntegrate agentic AI capabilities into existing applications, software delivery workflows, and enterprise platforms.\nEstablish testing, evaluation, monitoring, and reliability practices for AI agents and LLM-powered applications.\nCollaborate with data engineers to ensure agents can access reliable, relevant, and appropriately governed enterprise data.\nWork with platform engineers to deploy and operate AI applications within Kubernetes/OpenShift environments and integrate them into CI/CD workflows.\nTroubleshoot end-to-end issues involving agent behavior, tool execution, APIs, data access, application services, and infrastructure.\nWork directly with government engineers and commercial technology partners to resolve integration challenges and remove blockers to mission delivery.\nDevelop documentation, reusable components, and operational standards that make successful AI implementation patterns repeatable.\nOperate effectively in a fast-moving, ambiguous environment where technologies, security requirements, and mission priorities continue to evolve.\nLocal to the National Capital Region and able to support onsite work at a government facility in Springfield, VA as mission needs increase.\nClearance & Travel\nActive Top Secret clearance with SCI eligibility required\nAbility to support approximately 2-3 days per week onsite in Springfield, VA, with additional onsite presence as mission needs increase.\nMinimum Experience and Qualifications\nApproximately 3-5 years of software engineering experience, or equivalent demonstrated technical capability.\nHands-on experience building agentic AI applications, including AI agents, LLM tool calling, multi-step workflows, or agent orchestration.\nStrong proficiency with Python and backend software development.\nExperience integrating LLMs into applications using APIs, SDKs, or comparable technologies.\nExperience building and integrating REST APIs and connecting applications with external services or data sources.\nUnderstanding of agent workflows, tool execution, state management, and error handling.\nExperience with Git, testing, debugging, and modern software development practices.\nExperience working in cloud-native or containerized environments and collaborating with platform engineering teams.\nAbility to troubleshoot application and integration issues across APIs, data services, infrastructure, and AI components.\nAbility to work independently, rapidly learn new technologies, and translate ambiguous mission needs into working software.\n GEOINT experience is preferred, not required.\nRelevant agentic AI experience may be demonstrated through professional work, internships, research, open-source contributions, or independent projects.\nPreferred Experience and Qualifications\nExperience with agentic AI frameworks such as LangGraph, LangChain, CrewAI, AutoGen, or comparable technologies.\nExperience developing multi-agent systems, autonomous workflows, or AI-enabled software development tools.\nExperience with Model Context Protocol (MCP), function calling, or other tool integration patterns.\nExperience with RAG, embeddings, vector databases, semantic search, or knowledge graphs.\nMission Focus\nMake trusted data available where AI needs it, while establishing the repeatable, secure data patterns required to move from experimentation to operational capability.\nFull compensation packages are based on candidate experience. Compensation ranges are established using national benchmarking data and apply across all geographic locations within the United States. \nRemote - USA\n$148,750—$201,250 USD\nWho We Are\nDefense Unicorns delivers mission value by streamlining software delivery so our customers can focus on the most important challenges. We share a vision of freedom and security for the advancement of progress and innovation. Our commitment to this vision, and to our mission-driven customers, means a commitment to speed, user experience and optionality, without compromising security. Our team is composed of innovators, software engineers, and veterans with decades of experience delivering technology programs across the federal market.\nWhat We Do\nWe create and deliver secure solutions for continuous software integration and delivery. Defense Unicorns consolidates the best practices for security pipelines, testing, and deployment automation in order to meet the high security requirements valued by mission owners. Our solutions are agnostic by design and we believe that growing a robust ecosystem of secure, cloud-native software solutions can help enterprise customers inside and outside the federal market buy and integrate software more easily.\nWho We Serve\nDefense Unicorns’ customers are mission-focused leaders across public and private enterprises. We proudly support defense and civil agencies across the U.S. government and we work closely with the creators of leading-edge software solutions to deliver value to the mission-owner by improving the security and consumability of commercial software products.\nWhat We Work On\nKubernetes\nCloud Environments (AWS/GCP and Azure)\nInfrastructure-as-code (like Terraform/Pulumi)\nContinuous Delivery and automation tooling\nGitOps\nContainers\nCNCF projects and open source products and packages\nHelm/Kustomize-Value Stream Mapping\nBuilding and improving security delivery\nBuilding Kubernetes and cloud native applications\nBenefits Our Unicorns Enjoy\nHealth:\nMedical/Dental/Vision\nPremiums are 100% Company Paid\nHealth Savings Account\nLife Insurance\nDisability Insurance\nFinancial:\n401k Retirement Plan\nCompany Stock Options\nHome Office Budget\nLeave:\nWe offer all full-time Unicorns Flexible Time Off (FTO) plus all Federal Holidays, one week for Thanksgiving, and two weeks for Christmas and New Year’s\nPaid Parental Leave\nLearning:\nReimbursement for approved trainings/subscriptions\nConferences (travel, lodging, and fees)\nDon’t have all the preferred experience or qualifications? Studies show that underrepresented groups like women and people of color are less likely to apply to jobs if they don't meet every requirement listed. \nAt Defense Unicorns, we're committed to diversity. If you're enthusiastic about the role but don't match every criteria, we encourage you to apply. You could be the perfect fit for this or another role! Defense Unicorns is an equal opportunity employer. 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