Principal Software Engineer (AI-Enabled Platforms & Tools)Leidos
Description
This is not a maintenance role. This is a reinvention role.
Leidos is seeking a Principal Software Engineer to provide technical leadership for the design and delivery of AI-enabled software platforms and developer tools that support modernization of mission-critical systems.
This Principal Software Engineer role is responsible for system-level technical leadership and defines architectural direction within their domain, resolves complex cross-cutting technical challenges, and shapes how teams design, build, and operate software. The Principal Engineer is a hands-on technical leader who influences outcomes through technical excellence, architectural clarity, and mentorship, not through formal management authority.
This is a role for builders who bias toward action, who believe disruption can coexist with rigor, and who want to apply cutting-edge AI to the problems that matter most.
Mission Context
Our teams modernize software systems that support critical national missions across regulated and safety-critical domains. These systems require:
- High reliability, security, and resilience
- Scalable and maintainable architectures
- Responsible, governed use of AI technologies
As a Principal Software Engineer, you will shape the technical foundations that enable these systems to evolve safely and efficiently over time.
Why Join Us?
- Shape the technical foundations of mission-critical systems
- Lead real production engineering—not slideware architecture
- Apply AI responsibly to complex, high-stakes problems
- Operate at the highest technical level without moving into management
Key Responsibilities
Technical Leadership & Architecture
- Serve as the technical owner for major systems or platforms within an established strategic direction
- Define and evolve architectural patterns, design standards, and reference implementations
- Lead design reviews and guide teams toward sound technical decisions
- Identify and resolve complex technical risks spanning multiple components or teams
Hands-On Engineering
- Design and implement critical or high-risk components
- Review and elevate code quality across teams through deep technical feedback
- Prototype and validate new approaches before broader adoption
- Ensure systems meet requirements for scalability, reliability, security, and maintainability
AI-Enabled Systems Leadership
- Lead the technical design of AI-enabled capabilities using approved models, frameworks, and platforms
- Establish patterns for:
- AI integration and orchestration
- Evaluation, testing, and validation
- Safety, governance, and human-in-the-loop controls
- Guide teams in applying AI responsibly within production systems
Cross-Team Influence & Mentorship
- Act as a technical authority and escalation point across multiple teams
- Mentor Senior and mid-level engineers by setting a high technical bar
- Influence engineering practices, tooling, and standards through example and guidance
- Collaborate with product, security, and platform leaders to align technical solutions with mission needs
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical field
- 12+ years of relevant software engineering experience
- Demonstrated experience leading the design of complex, distributed systems
- Expert proficiency in two or more modern programming languages (e.g., Python, Java, Go, TypeScript)
- Deep understanding of:
- Service-based or microservice architectures
- Cloud-native systems and deployment models
- Software quality, security, and operational best practices
- Deep understanding of Kubernetes and container orchestration:
- GitOps deployments
- Service Mesh
- Role of tools like Helm and Kustomize
- Proven ability to influence technical direction without formal authority
- Strong communication skills across technical and non-technical audiences
- Must be authorized to work in the U.S.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience designing or integrating AI-enabled or data-driven systems in production
- Experience of working with agentic solutions in Kubernetes:
- E.g. KServe, KAgent
- Agent Gateways
- Agent Registries
- GPU enabled nodes
- Working in secure or regulated environments
- Background in developer tools, platform modernization, or large-scale system evolution
If you're looking for comfort, keep scrolling. At Leidos, we outthink, outbuild, and outpace the status quo — because the mission demands it. We're not hiring followers. We're recruiting the ones who disrupt, provoke, and refuse to fail. Step 10 is ancient history. We're already at step 30 — and moving faster than anyone else dares.
Original Posting:
January 29, 2026For U.S. Positions: While subject to change based on business needs, Leidos reasonably anticipates that this job requisition will remain open for at least 3 days with an anticipated close date of no earlier than 3 days after the original posting date as listed above.
