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About This Role
LOCATION
Worcester DEPARTMENT NAME
Biology & Biotechnology - NFR JM DIVISION NAME
Worcester Polytechnic Institute - WPI JOB DESCRIPTION SUMMARY
We are seeking a talented Research Associate in Software Engineer with experience in AI-powered applications, workflow automation, cloud technologies, and full-stack development to join our research team of neuroscientists, clinicians, and data scientists working on clinical decision-making support app development.
The ideal candidate enjoys solving complex technical problems and using modern software and AI technologies to automate processes, build scalable applications, and transform clinical requirements into reliable production systems.
This position is particularly well suited for an engineer who has experience working across multiple areas of the software stack, including Python development, TypeScript/JavaScript applications, cloud infrastructure, databases, data pipelines, and emerging generative AI technologies. JOB DESCRIPTION
Responsibilities:
- Design, develop, test, and maintain production-quality software applications using Python, JavaScript, and TypeScript.
- Develop AI-enabled applications and automated workflows incorporating large language models (LLMs), AI agents, and generative AI services.
- Build automation pipelines that reduce manual processes and improve operational efficiency.
- Integrate third-party APIs and AI platforms into production applications.
- Use Docker, Git, and modern development practices to support reliable deployment and version control.
- Analyze application and operational data to identify opportunities for automation and performance improvement.
- Collaborate with product, design, analytics, and engineering teams to translate clinical requirements into technical solutions.
Evaluate emerging AI development tools and technologies and determine how they can be incorporated into existing products and workflows.
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Required Qualifications :
- Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, or a closely related discipline.
- 2+ years of professional software development, data engineering, automation, or related technical experience.
- Strong programming ability in Python.
- Experience with JavaScript and/or TypeScript.
- Experience building web applications using frameworks such as React, Angular, Node.js, Vite, or similar technologies.
- Experience developing or consuming REST APIs.
- Working knowledge of Git-based version control.
- Strong analytical and troubleshooting skills.
Ability to work independently and take ownership of projects from initial concept through implementation.
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Preferred Qualifications:
- Master's degree in Computer Science or a related field.
- Experience developing applications using LLMs or generative AI platforms.
- Experience designing agentic or multi-agent AI workflows.
- Experience with AI-assisted development environments or coding agents.
Familiarity with AI-based video, audio, or multimodal content-generation technologies.
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What We're Looking For:
We're looking for someone who is both an engineer and a problem solver. You should be comfortable learning unfamiliar technologies, rapidly prototyping solutions, and then turning successful prototypes into maintainable software.
The successful candidate will have demonstrated an ability to:
- Use automation to dramatically reduce manual work.
- Work across frontend, backend, cloud, AI, and data technologies.
- Apply emerging AI technologies to practical business problems.
- Develop software in environments where requirements evolve quickly.
- Communicate effectively with both technical and nontechnical stakeholders.
Independently investigate problems and develop creative technical solutions.
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To Apply:
Please include a CV. Questions should be directed to Dr. Ben Nephew at [email protected]. Please use the subject line: Software Engineer – AI App Development
Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until the position is filled.
Salary: $58,000 - $65,000. per year. Salary is based on related experience, expertise, and internal equity. WPI’s benefits package includes a robust retirement match, wellness perks, tuition assistance and more!
FLSA STATUS
United States of America (Exempt) WPI is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified candidates will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran status, or disability. It seeks individuals from all backgrounds and experiences who will contribute to a culture of creativity, collaboration, inclusion, problem solving, innovation, high performance, and change making. It is committed to maintaining a campus environment free of harassment and discrimination.
Salary Context
This $58K-$65K range is in the lower quartile for AI Software Engineer roles in our dataset (median: $192K across 198 roles with salary data).
Role Details
About This Role
AI Software Engineers build the applications and systems that AI models run inside. They own the API layers, data pipelines, frontend integrations, and infrastructure that turn a model into a product users interact with. Every AI company needs engineers who can build the software around the AI.
The challenge is building reliable systems around inherently unreliable components. Models are probabilistic. They'll give different answers to the same question. They hallucinate. They're slow. They're expensive. Your job is to build an application layer that handles all of this gracefully while delivering a product that users trust and enjoy.
Across the 9,079 AI roles we're tracking, AI Software Engineer positions make up 5% of the market. At Worcester Polytechnic Institute, this role fits into their broader AI and engineering organization.
AI Software Engineer roles are among the most numerous in the AI job market. Every company deploying AI needs software engineers who understand AI integration patterns. The demand is broad, spanning startups to enterprises, across every industry adopting AI capabilities.
What the Work Looks Like
A typical week includes: building API endpoints that serve model inference with caching and fallback logic, designing the data pipeline that feeds context to a RAG system, implementing streaming responses in the frontend, debugging a race condition in the async inference pipeline, and optimizing database queries for the vector search layer. It's full-stack engineering with AI at the center.
AI Software Engineer roles are among the most numerous in the AI job market. Every company deploying AI needs software engineers who understand AI integration patterns. The demand is broad, spanning startups to enterprises, across every industry adopting AI capabilities.
Skills Required
Full-stack engineering skills with AI integration experience. Python and TypeScript are the most common requirements. You'll need to understand API design, database architecture, and how to build reliable systems around probabilistic outputs. Experience with streaming, async processing, and caching patterns is increasingly important as real-time AI applications proliferate.
Knowledge of vector databases, embedding APIs, and LLM integration patterns (function calling, structured outputs, retry logic) differentiates AI software engineers from general software engineers. Understanding cost optimization (caching strategies, model routing, batched inference) is valuable since inference costs can dominate application economics.
Strong postings describe the product you'll be building, the AI integration patterns you'll work with, and the scale requirements. Look for companies that have existing AI features and need engineers to improve and expand them, not companies that are 'planning to add AI' someday.
Compensation Benchmarks
AI Software Engineer roles pay a median of $220,000 based on 1,601 positions with disclosed compensation. Entry-level AI roles across all categories have a median of $111,000. This role's midpoint ($61K) sits 72% below the category median. Disclosed range: $58K to $65K.
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.
Worcester Polytechnic Institute AI Hiring
Worcester Polytechnic Institute has 1 open AI role right now. They're hiring across AI Software Engineer. Based in Worcester, MA, US. Compensation range: $65K - $65K.
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 Software Engineer roles include Software Engineer, Full-Stack Developer, Backend Engineer.
From here, career progression typically leads toward Staff Engineer, AI Architect, Engineering Manager.
If you're a software engineer, you're already 80% there. Learn the AI integration patterns: RAG, streaming inference, function calling, structured outputs. Build a project that demonstrates you can wrap an AI model in a production-quality application with proper error handling, caching, and user experience. That's the portfolio piece that gets you hired.
What to Expect in Interviews
Technical screens look like standard software engineering interviews with an AI twist. Expect system design questions about building reliable applications around probabilistic models: handling streaming responses, implementing retry logic for API failures, and designing caching strategies for LLM outputs. Coding rounds test standard algorithms plus practical integration patterns like async processing and rate limiting.
When evaluating opportunities: Strong postings describe the product you'll be building, the AI integration patterns you'll work with, and the scale requirements. Look for companies that have existing AI features and need engineers to improve and expand them, not companies that are 'planning to add AI' someday.
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 Software Engineer roles are among the most numerous in the AI job market. Every company deploying AI needs software engineers who understand AI integration patterns. The demand is broad, spanning startups to enterprises, across every industry adopting AI 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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