Senior Principal AI Engineer

Johnson & Johnson Innovative Medicine

Titusville, NJ; Horsham, PAHybridPosted 1 day ago$137,000 - $237,500

Full TimeSenior LevelTech & Data (Health IT)Pharmaceutical

Summary

This role will provide hands-on technical leadership at the intersection of AI Engineering, Forward Deployed Engineering, Data Science, and Enterprise AI delivery. The successful candidate will help translate complex business and Data Science opportunities into scalable AI solutions and accelerate the integration of emerging AI capabilities across Marketing, Commercial Ops, Field Engagement, Advanced AI capabilities, and future AI initiatives. The leader will build and manage a multidisciplinary team of Data Scientists and Forward Deployed Engineers who translate commercial opportunities into scalable AI products.

Job description

Purpose

Technical Leadership

Provide hands-on technical leadership for the design, engineering, integration, and delivery of scalable AI and agentic solutions.
Serve as a technical bridge across Data Science, business stakeholders, architecture, engineering/platform teams, AI platform teams, and external partners.
Translate business and Data Science requirements into scalable, enterprise-ready technical solutions.
Lead AI solutions from prototype through integration, deployment, and ongoing enhancement.
Advance reusable engineering approaches that enable AI capabilities to scale across brands, Therapeutic Areas, and commercial use cases.
Support the integration and evolution of AI capabilities across Marketing, Commercial Ops, Field Engagement, and Advanced AI capabilities.
Drive engineering rigor and operational excellence across AI development and deployment.
Provide technical guidance, coaching, and leadership to AI engineering and Data Science contributors.
Help strengthen J&J's internal AI Engineering and Forward Deployed Engineering capabilities.

People Leadership

Build, manage, and develop a high-performing team of Data Scientists and Forward Deployed Engineers.
Define clear roles, career paths, technical expectations, and operating models across both disciplines.
Recruit and develop Data Scientists who can broaden into production AI engineering.
Set team priorities, allocate capacity, and maintain accountability for delivery and measurable business outcomes.
Create a culture of engineering rigor, experimentation, reuse, responsible AI, and continuous learning.
Balance direct technical involvement with delegation, coaching, and organizational leadership.

Requirements

Advanced technical education (Ph.D. with 5+ years of experience, or M.S. with 10+ years of commercial pharma experience) in Computer Sciences, Statistics, Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence, Physics, Molecular Biology, Bioinformatics, Computational Informatics, Medical Informatics, Computational Biology or a related quantitative field
Demonstrated career progression from Data Science or machine learning into AI/ML engineering and production delivery
Demonstrated experience designing and delivering production AI/ML solutions in enterprise environments, from problem framing and experimentation through deployment, monitoring, adoption, and enhancement
Experience directly managing multidisciplinary technical teams, ideally including Data Scientists and software, ML, AI, or Forward Deployed Engineers
Strong software-engineering fundamentals, including APIs, testing, version control, CI/CD, observability, and cloud deployment
Experience in cross-functional product delivery, translating complex business problems into scalable technical solutions and collaborating across Data Science, engineering, architecture, platform, AI Platform Engineering, and business teams
Technical coaching and talent development experience, including technical leadership and people leadership
Experience establishing technical standards and delivery practices for AI teams
Ability to assess when a solution requires predictive ML, generative AI, agents, deterministic software, or a combination
Strong communication and stakeholder-management skills, with the ability to translate complex methods and results to diverse audiences
Commercial pharmaceutical domain experience
Experience with Generative AI, agentic AI, or AI-agent solutions
Experience with enterprise AI platforms, cloud architectures, APIs, orchestration frameworks, and AI/ML DevOps
Experience in a Forward Deployed Engineering, AI Engineering Lead, ML Engineering Lead, AI Architect, or similar hands-on technical leadership role
Experience building reusable AI capabilities and platforms at enterprise scale
Experience within healthcare, pharmaceutical, or another highly regulated environment
Vendor management experience

Benefits

Medical, Dental & Vision
Life Insurance
Short- & Long-Term Disability
Business Accident Insurance
Group Legal Insurance
Pension Plan
401(k) Savings Plan
Long-Term Incentive Program
Vacation
Sick Time
Holiday Pay
Parental Leave
Condolence Leave
Caregiver Leave
Volunteer Leave
Military Spouse Time-Off

Company overview

Johnson & Johnson Innovative Medicine is the pharmaceutical division of Johnson & Johnson, leading the way in medical innovation with a relentless focus on bringing transformational treatments to patients worldwide. The company applies rigorous science and compassion to address the most complex diseases of our time, developing groundbreaking medicines across key therapeutic areas including oncology, immunology, neuroscience, and cardiopulmonary medicine. With deep expertise and global reach, Johnson & Johnson Innovative Medicine reimagines how devastating diseases are treated and cured, delivering hope and better care for millions of patients and their families. The organization pioneers the path from laboratory research to clinical application, championing patients every step of the way while maintaining an unwavering commitment to scientific excellence and patient-centered innovation.