Senior AI/ML Engineer

• Practice Development & Integration

• Technologies Development Skills

• Location Herndon, United States

• Type Contract

Senior AI/ML Engineer

Next Ventures  Herndon, Virginia, United States (Hybrid)
SaveApply

Senior Data Engineer (AI/ML & NLP)

Clearance: Secret

Location: Herndon, VA

About the Role

We’re seeking an experienced Senior Data Engineer / Machine Learning Engineer with a strong background in Natural Language Processing (NLP) and AI/ML systems to design, build, and deploy scalable solutions supporting Department of Defense (DoD) data missions.

This role involves applying cutting-edge techniques in large language models (LLMs), retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), semantic search, and distributed data processing to deliver secure, production-grade AI capabilities. You’ll collaborate closely with cross-functional teams to operationalize advanced ML systems that transform how large-scale data is processed, analyzed, and understood.

Key Responsibilities

• Design, develop, test, and maintain scalable AI/ML pipelines using Python and Databricks to support diverse DoD technical missions.
• Build and deploy NLP solutions leveraging context extraction, topic modeling, and embedding-based methods (e.g., RAKE, TF-IDF, word/sentence embeddings).
• Develop and operationalize GPU-accelerated ML models across distributed environments (Spark, Databricks, Kubernetes).
• Utilize libraries and frameworks such as Spark NLP, Hugging Face, and TensorFlow to build and refine production-ready models.
• Implement MLOps practices with MLflow for model lifecycle management, versioning, and reproducibility.
• Integrate AI and ML solutions with Elasticsearch and Neo4j to enable semantic search, graph analytics, and knowledge discovery.
• Collaborate with software engineers, data scientists, and mission stakeholders to deliver robust, scalable AI capabilities.
• Drive innovation by contributing to shared ML tools, frameworks, and best practices across teams.
• Ensure compliance, traceability, and data security in all AI/ML workflows in alignment with federal standards.
• Support strategic planning and R&D for emerging AI/ML capabilities and infrastructure design.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related field.
• 5+ years of experience in data engineering, ML engineering, or AI-focused roles.
• Proven expertise in NLP, LLMs, semantic search, text embeddings, and generative AI.
• Strong proficiency in Python, including experience with Flask APIs and reusable ML utilities.
• Hands-on experience with Databricks, Apache Spark, and distributed data processing.
• Deep familiarity with MLOps, including MLflow for tracking, deployment, and automation.
• Experience developing and optimizing GPU-based models in production environments.
• Working knowledge of Elasticsearch and Neo4j (preferred).
• Solid understanding of data preprocessing, feature engineering, and model evaluation at scale.
• Proficiency with Git and collaborative development workflows.
• Experience working with large-scale datasets and strong command of SQL and data visualization tools.

Nice to Have

• Exposure to federal data environments or defense-related missions.
• Knowledge of additional ML subfields such as computer vision, reinforcement learning, or advanced statistical modeling.
• Experience architecting secure, cloud-native ML systems using AWS, Azure, or GCP.

• share
• 
• 
• 
•