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About This Role
Req ID: 392207
NTT DATA strives to hire exceptional, innovative and passionate individuals who want to grow with us. If you want to be part of an inclusive, adaptable, and forward-thinking organization, apply now.
We are currently seeking a AI Architect Lead Advisor to join our team in Plano, Texas (US-TX), United States (US).
Principal AI Domain Technical Leader
Role Summary
As a Principal AI Domain Technical Leader, you will serve as the senior technical delivery leader for one of North America AI Delivery's vertical portfolios: Products, Insurance, Banking Financial Services, Healthcare/Pharma/Life Sciences, or SLED. Reporting to the AI Delivery Executive for the vertical, with a dotted-line relationship to the North America AI Delivery Technical Lead, you will be responsible for technical delivery excellence, architecture quality, engineering standards, technical risk management, and technical leadership across the portfolio.
This is a hands-on leadership role for a practitioner who combines deep technical expertise with enterprise delivery experience. You will support strategic pursuits, guide complex AI transformations, mentor architects and engineers, provide technical oversight across active engagements, and help resolve delivery challenges before they become client escalations.
You will work closely with AI Delivery Executives, Engagement Leaders, Solution Architects, Engineering teams, Global Centers of Excellence, and client technology stakeholders to ensure AI solutions are delivered with the quality, security, governance, scalability, and operational readiness expected of enterprise-grade platforms.
Success in this role requires someone who remains close to the technology, understands modern AI delivery practices, and is willing to engage directly with teams to solve complex technical and delivery challenges.
Key Responsibilities
- Provide technical leadership across the vertical portfolio, ensuring delivery teams adhere to architecture, engineering, security, responsible AI, governance, and SDLC standards.
- Lead technical oversight on strategic AI transformation programs, helping teams identify and resolve technical, architectural, delivery, and operational risks.
- Partner with AI Delivery Executives and Engagement Leaders to assess delivery health, support recovery efforts, and provide technical leadership for escalations and complex client situations.
- Support strategic pursuits by validating technical approaches, delivery models, staffing assumptions, solution feasibility, and implementation risks before client commitments are made.
- Establish and maintain reusable reference architectures, engineering patterns, delivery accelerators, and best practices that improve quality, consistency, and delivery speed across the portfolio.
- Conduct technical reviews, delivery audits, and quality assessments to ensure active programs meet AI Studio standards and client expectations.
- Partner with architects, engineers, data scientists, and platform teams to address technical challenges and improve delivery outcomes across active engagements.
- Build trusted relationships with client technology stakeholders, including CTOs, Chief Architects, Engineering Leaders, Data Leaders, and AI leaders.
- Serve as a technical advisor during executive client discussions, translating complex technical concepts into business-relevant outcomes and risks.
- Mentor and coach architects, engineers, and technical leads while helping identify capability gaps, development needs, and technical succession opportunities.
- Partner with the North America AI Delivery Technical Lead to continuously improve technical standards, delivery methodologies, governance practices, and capability development.
- Contribute to thought leadership, innovation, and continuous improvement efforts related to AI engineering, agentic AI, cloud platforms, delivery excellence, and emerging technologies.
Basic Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree or equivalent professional experience, and 12+ years of experience in enterprise technology delivery, architecture, engineering, consulting, or large-scale transformation programs.
- 8+ years of experience leading architecture, engineering, technical delivery, or solution design activities for complex cloud, data, AI, digital, or enterprise transformation initiatives.
- Demonstrated experience delivering enterprise technology solutions in production environments, including responsibility for technical quality, governance, architecture decisions, risk management, and delivery outcomes.
- Strong technical expertise in at least one major cloud ecosystem (Azure, AWS, or Google Cloud) and current experience with modern AI technologies, including machine learning, generative AI, agentic AI, data platforms, MLOps/LLMOps, security, and responsible AI practices.
- Proven ability to lead and influence multidisciplinary teams while engaging effectively with client technology leaders, architects, engineers, and executive stakeholders.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience leading enterprise AI, Generative AI, agentic AI, cloud modernization, data platform, or digital transformation initiatives.
- Experience within one or more target industries including Insurance, Banking Financial Services, Products/Manufacturing, Healthcare, Pharma, Life Sciences, or SLED.
- Background with global systems integrators, consulting organizations, or large-scale technology services environments.
- Experience supporting major pursuits, solution shaping, technical due diligence, architecture reviews, or executive technology advisory engagements.
- Experience leading technical recovery efforts, transformation programs, or delivery remediation initiatives.
- Demonstrated success building reusable frameworks, reference architectures, accelerators, standards, or engineering best practices adopted across multiple teams.
- Relevant certifications such as Azure, AWS, Google Cloud, TOGAF, SAFe, PMP, or equivalent.
NTT DATA provides a reasonable range of compensation for U.S.-based positions. The starting pay range for this remote role is $185,015.00-$284,250.00. This range reflects the minimum and maximum target compensation for the position across all US locations. Actual compensation will depend on a number of factors, including the candidate’s actual work location, relevant experience, technical skills, and other qualifications. This position may also be eligible for incentive compensation based on individual and/or company performance.This position is eligible for company benefits including medical, dental, and vision insurance with an employer contribution, flexible spending or health savings account, life and ADD insurance, short and long term disability coverage, paid time off, employee assistance, participation in a 401k program with company match, and additional voluntary or legally-required benefits.
About NTT DATA
NTT DATA is a $30 billion business and technology services leader, serving 75% of the Fortune Global 100. We are committed to accelerating client success and positively impacting society through responsible innovation. We are one of the world's leading AI and digital infrastructure providers, with unmatched capabilities in enterprise-scale AI, cloud, security, connectivity, data centers and application services. our consulting and Industry solutions help organizations and society move confidently and sustainably into the digital future. As a Global Top Employer, we have experts in more than 50 countries. We also offer clients access to a robust ecosystem of innovation centers as well as established and start-up partners. NTT DATA is a part of NTT Group, which invests over $3 billion each year in RD.
Whenever possible, we hire locally to NTT DATA offices or client sites. This ensures we can provide timely and effective support tailored to each client’s needs. While many positions offer remote or hybrid work options, these arrangements are subject to change based on client requirements. For employees near an NTT DATA office or client site, in-office attendance may be required for meetings or events, depending on business needs. At NTT DATA, we are committed to staying flexible and meeting the evolving needs of both our clients and employees. NTT DATA recruiters will never ask for payment or banking information and will only use @nttdata.com, @nttdatafed.com and @talent.nttdataservices.com email addresses. If you are requested to provide payment or disclose banking information, please submit a contact us form, https://us.nttdata.com/en/contact-us.
NTT DATA endeavors to make https://us.nttdata.com accessible to any and all users. If you would like to contact us regarding the accessibility of our website or need assistance completing the application process, please contact us at https://us.nttdata.com/en/contact-us. This contact information is for accommodation requests only and cannot be used to inquire about the status of applications. NTT DATA is an equal opportunity employer. Qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or protected veteran status. For our EEO Policy Statement, please click here. If you'd like more information on your EEO rights under the law, please click here. For Pay Transparency information, please click here.
Salary Context
This $185K-$284K range is above the 75th percentile for AI Architect roles in our dataset (median: $175K across 37 roles with salary data).
Role Details
About This Role
This role sits at the intersection of AI and engineering, building systems that bring machine learning capabilities into production environments. The scope varies by company, but the common thread is applying AI technology to solve real business problems at scale. Most AI roles today require a combination of software engineering fundamentals and domain-specific ML knowledge, with the exact mix depending on the team's maturity and the product they're building.
The AI job market is evolving fast. New role categories emerge as companies figure out what they need to ship AI-powered products. What matters most is the ability to learn quickly, build working systems, and iterate based on real-world performance data. The specific title matters less than the skills you bring and the problems you can solve. Companies are past the experimentation phase and want engineers who can deliver production-quality systems that work reliably at scale.
Across the 9,079 AI roles we're tracking, AI Architect positions make up 1% of the market. At NTT DATA, this role fits into their broader AI and engineering organization.
AI hiring keeps growing across industries. Companies in tech, finance, healthcare, and retail are all building AI teams. The strongest demand is for people who can bridge the gap between AI research and production engineering. The shift toward generative AI has created new role types (LLM Engineer, Prompt Engineer, AI Agent Developer) that didn't exist three years ago, while traditional roles (Data Scientist, ML Engineer) have evolved to incorporate LLM capabilities.
What the Work Looks Like
Day-to-day work involves a mix of building, debugging, and collaborating. You'll write code, review pull requests, participate in design discussions, and work with cross-functional teams (product, design, data) to define what AI features should do and how they should behave. Expect to spend time on both technical implementation and communication. Most AI teams operate in two-week sprint cycles, with regular demos and retrospectives. The ratio of heads-down coding to meetings and reviews varies by seniority, with senior roles spending more time on architecture decisions and mentorship.
AI hiring keeps growing across industries. Companies in tech, finance, healthcare, and retail are all building AI teams. The strongest demand is for people who can bridge the gap between AI research and production engineering. The shift toward generative AI has created new role types (LLM Engineer, Prompt Engineer, AI Agent Developer) that didn't exist three years ago, while traditional roles (Data Scientist, ML Engineer) have evolved to incorporate LLM capabilities.
Skills Required
Python and cloud platform experience are common requirements. Specific skill needs vary by company and focus area, but familiarity with ML frameworks, data pipelines, and API design covers the basics for most roles. RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation), vector databases, and LLM API integration are increasingly standard requirements across role types.
Beyond the core stack, communication skills matter more than many technical candidates realize. The ability to explain AI capabilities and limitations to non-technical stakeholders is a differentiator at every level. Technical writing, documentation, and clear thinking about tradeoffs are underrated skills in AI roles. Experience with evaluation methodology (how to measure whether an AI system is working well) is becoming a core requirement, especially for roles that involve LLM integration.
Look for job postings that specify the problems you'll work on, the tech stack, and the team structure. Vague postings that list every AI buzzword are often a sign the company hasn't figured out what they need. Strong postings describe the product context, the team you'd join, and the specific challenges you'd tackle.
Compensation Benchmarks
AI Architect roles pay a median of $224,070 based on 236 positions with disclosed compensation. Senior-level AI roles across all categories have a median of $229,300. This role's midpoint ($234K) sits 5% above the category median. Disclosed range: $185K to $284K.
Across all AI roles, the market median is $213,000. Top-quartile compensation starts at $263,911. The 90th percentile reaches $318,400. For comparison, the highest-paying categories include AI Safety ($256,000) and Research Engineer ($252,000). By seniority level: Entry: $111,000; Mid: $193,200; Senior: $229,300; Director: $272,300; VP: $235,830.
NTT DATA AI Hiring
NTT DATA has 14 open AI roles right now. They're hiring across AI/ML Engineer, AI Architect. Positions span Plano, TX, US, TX, US, Charlotte, NC, US. Compensation range: $125K - $372K.
Location Context
Across all AI roles, 6% (531 positions) offer remote work, while 8,478 require on-site attendance. Top AI hiring metros: New York (3,078 roles, $221,000 median); San Francisco (2,646 roles, $261,000 median); Los Angeles (1,486 roles, $210,000 median).
Career Path
Common paths into AI Architect roles include Software Engineer, Data Scientist, Data Analyst.
From here, career progression typically leads toward Senior Engineer, AI Architect, Engineering Manager, Principal Engineer.
Focus on building things that work. A deployed project that solves a real problem is worth more than any certification. Contribute to open-source, build portfolio projects, and invest in fundamentals (software engineering, statistics, systems design) rather than chasing the latest framework. The AI field moves fast, but the engineers who succeed long-term are the ones with strong fundamentals who can adapt to new tools and paradigms as they emerge.
What to Expect in Interviews
AI interviews typically combine coding challenges (Python-focused), system design questions tailored to the role, and discussions about your experience with relevant tools and frameworks. Strong candidates demonstrate both technical depth and the ability to make pragmatic engineering tradeoffs. Prepare portfolio projects that demonstrate end-to-end capability rather than isolated skills.
When evaluating opportunities: Look for job postings that specify the problems you'll work on, the tech stack, and the team structure. Vague postings that list every AI buzzword are often a sign the company hasn't figured out what they need. Strong postings describe the product context, the team you'd join, and the specific challenges you'd tackle.
AI Hiring Overview
The AI job market has 9,079 open positions tracked in our dataset. By seniority: 106 entry-level, 4,384 mid-level, 3,343 senior, and 1,246 leadership roles (Director, VP, C-Level). Remote roles make up 6% of the market (531 positions). The remaining 8,478 roles require on-site or hybrid attendance.
The market median for AI roles is $213,000. Top-quartile compensation starts at $263,911. The 90th percentile reaches $318,400. Highest-paying categories: AI Safety ($256,000 median, 66 roles); Research Engineer ($252,000 median, 457 roles); AI Engineering Manager ($251,622 median, 55 roles).
AI hiring keeps growing across industries. Companies in tech, finance, healthcare, and retail are all building AI teams. The strongest demand is for people who can bridge the gap between AI research and production engineering. The shift toward generative AI has created new role types (LLM Engineer, Prompt Engineer, AI Agent Developer) that didn't exist three years ago, while traditional roles (Data Scientist, ML Engineer) have evolved to incorporate LLM capabilities.
The AI Job Market Today
The AI job market spans 9,079 open positions across 16 role categories. The largest categories by volume: AI/ML Engineer (6,862), AI Product Manager (453), AI Software Engineer (451). These three account for the majority of open positions, though smaller categories often have higher per-role compensation because of specialized skill requirements.
The seniority mix tells a story about where AI teams are in their maturity. Entry-level roles (106) are outnumbered by mid-level (4,384) and senior (3,343) positions, reflecting that most companies are past the 'build a team from scratch' phase and need experienced engineers who can ship production systems. Leadership roles (Director, VP, C-Level) total 1,246 positions, representing the bottleneck between technical execution and organizational strategy.
Remote work availability sits at 6% of all AI roles (531 positions), with 8,478 requiring on-site or hybrid attendance. The remote share has stabilized after the post-pandemic correction. Senior and specialized roles (Research Scientist, ML Architect) are more likely to be remote-eligible than entry-level positions, partly because experienced hires have more negotiating power and partly because these roles require less hands-on mentorship.
AI compensation is structured in clear tiers. The market median sits at $213,000. Top-quartile roles start at $263,911, and the 90th percentile reaches $318,400. These figures include base salary with disclosed compensation. Total compensation (including equity, bonuses, and sign-on) runs 20-40% higher at companies that offer those components.
Category matters for compensation. AI Safety roles lead at $256,000 median, while Prompt Engineer roles sit at $141,440. The spread between highest and lowest-paying categories reflects the premium on specialized technical skills versus broader analytical roles.
The most in-demand skills across all AI postings: Python (1,649 postings), Aws (898 postings), Azure (723 postings), Rag (671 postings), Gcp (536 postings), Pytorch (434 postings), Claude (410 postings), Kubernetes (406 postings). Python dominates, appearing in the vast majority of role descriptions regardless of category. Cloud platform experience (AWS, GCP, Azure) is the second most common requirement. The newer entrants to the top skills list (RAG, vector databases, LLM APIs) reflect the shift from traditional ML toward generative AI applications.
Frequently Asked Questions
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