AI Engineer

Data Analytics Practice | Office of Information Technology

Be You.

The Office of Information Technology is looking for an AI Engineer to join our Data Analytics Practice and help advance how Duke uses artificial intelligence across academic, research, and administrative communities. In this role, you’ll design and build AI-powered applications and services—leveraging modern technologies such as large language models—to unlock new capabilities and improve access to institutional knowledge.

You’ll collaborate closely with data engineering, analytics, and domain teams to integrate AI into Duke’s broader data ecosystem, delivering scalable, production-ready solutions. This role is ideal if you enjoy building real-world applications, learning rapidly evolving AI technologies, and applying them thoughtfully in complex, mission-driven environments.

Minimum Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in computer science, engineering, data science, or a related technical field, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
Strong software engineering skills, including proficiency in Python or a similar programming language.
Experience building and deploying enterprise applications, services, and APIs.
Hands-on experience working with large language models (LLMs) and modern AI frameworks or platforms.
Understanding of cloud environments and experience deploying scalable, production-ready solutions.
Strong problem-solving skills and ability to work effectively in collaborative, evolving environments.

Preferred Qualifications

Experience with retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), embeddings, vector databases, and semantic search techniques.
Familiarity with tools and frameworks such as OpenAI APIs, Hugging Face, LangChain, LlamaIndex, or similar technologies.
Experience integrating AI solutions with institutional data sources, including APIs, data warehouses, and document repositories.
Knowledge of modern development practices such as CI/CD, containerization, and version control.
Familiarity with data engineering concepts (data pipelines, data modeling, workflow orchestration tools).
Master’s degree with a focus on artificial intelligence, machine learning, or software engineering.

Other Requirements

Experience working with sensitive or regulated data and an understanding of data governance principles is a plus.
This position is hybrid eligible. The employee must be available to attend weekly meetings on-site in Durham, NC.

Be Bold.

In this role, you will:

Design, develop, and deploy AI-powered applications and services that leverage LLMs and modern AI techniques to support Duke’s academic, research, and administrative needs.
Collaborate with data engineering, analytics, and domain teams to integrate institutional data while ensuring appropriate governance, privacy, and security.
Build scalable APIs, microservices, and user-facing applications that enable capabilities such as semantic search, summarization, conversational interfaces, and retrieval-augmented generation.
Implement data pipelines and retrieval layers using embeddings, vector databases, and indexing strategies to support efficient access to structured and unstructured data.
Establish and promote best practices for responsible AI, including model evaluation, bias mitigation, privacy protection, and compliance with institutional policies.

Choose Duke.

Duke University is committed to leveraging data and artificial intelligence to advance teaching, research, and institutional effectiveness. As part of the Office of Information Technology’s Data Analytics Practice, you’ll work with a collaborative team dedicated to innovation, inclusion, and measurable impact across the university.

You’ll have the opportunity to work on highly visible initiatives, influence how AI is responsibly adopted in higher education, and grow your skills alongside experienced technologists. Duke offers a collegial environment, meaningful work, and a competitive benefits package that supports both your professional development and personal well-being.
Learn more about Duke University’s benefits: https://hr.duke.edu/benefits/.

Duke is an Equal Opportunity Employer committed to providing employment opportunity without regard to an individual's age, color, disability, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, national origin, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy and pregnancy related conditions), sexual orientation or military status.

Duke aspires to create a community built on collaboration, innovation, creativity, and belonging. Our collective success depends on the robust exchange of ideas—an exchange that is best when the rich diversity of our perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences flourishes. To achieve this exchange, it is essential that all members of the community feel secure and welcome, that the contributions of all individuals are respected, and that all voices are heard. All members of our community have a responsibility to uphold these values.

Essential Physical Job Functions:

Certain jobs at Duke University and Duke University Health System may include essential job functions that require specific physical and/or mental abilities. Additional information and provision for requests for reasonable accommodation will be provided by each hiring department.

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