Presentation
Senior Software Engineer - Agentic AI
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Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
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Richland or Seattle, WA
SessionJob Postings
DescriptionWe are looking for an experienced Senior Software Engineer to lead the design, development, execution, and integration of groundbreaking agentic AI agents. You will work on creating AI systems capable of dynamic reasoning, and actionable decision-making. This role will require you to collaborate with cross-functional teams and mentor junior scientists and engineers.
The ideal candidate will have demonstrated expertise in developing, deploying, and scaling agentic AI systems—systems characterized by autonomy, adaptability, reasoning and collaboration—and successfully applying them to complex domains like national security, scientific discovery, energy sustainability, or climate analysis.
This position is onsite and requires onsite work in either Richland, WA or Seattle, WA.
The ideal candidate will have demonstrated expertise in developing, deploying, and scaling agentic AI systems—systems characterized by autonomy, adaptability, reasoning and collaboration—and successfully applying them to complex domains like national security, scientific discovery, energy sustainability, or climate analysis.
This position is onsite and requires onsite work in either Richland, WA or Seattle, WA.
RequirementsMinimum Qualifications:
PhD and 3 years of relevant experience -OR-
MS/MA or higher and 5 years of relevant experience -OR-
BS/BA and 7 years of relevant experience -OR-
AA and 16 years of relevant experience -OR-
HS/GED and 18 years of relevant experience.
Qualifying software development experience in designing, architecting, programming, deploying, and automating software solutions in support of scientific research or consumer digital product development may be counted.
Preferred Qualifications:
Demonstrated expertise in designing and deploying agentic AI systems in real-world applications.
Experience engaging with funding agencies such as the Department of Energy, National Nuclear Security Administration, Department of Defense, or Department of Homeland Security, and demonstrated ability to initiate substantial new R&D efforts and collaborations.
Demonstrated experience in applying AI to scientific challenges, such as solving problems in energy systems, climate modeling, materials design, or molecular science.
Expert-level software engineering: Git-based workflows, code reviews, automated testing, CI/CD pipelines, static analysis, thorough documentation, secure coding practices, performance profiling, and Agile/DevOps methodologies.
Cloud-native system design: API and microservice architecture, containerization and orchestration (Docker/Kubernetes), infrastructure as code, and full-stack observability (logging, metrics, tracing).
Mature MLOps capabilities: experiment tracking, model and data versioning, automated deployment/rollback, monitoring, and governance of production ML services.
Fluency in Python and proficiency in at least one additional language (e.g., C++ or Go).
Hands-on experience with leading deep-learning frameworks (PyTorch, TensorFlow, or JAX).
Deep, practical expertise with modern LLM-orchestration and agent frameworks (LangChain, LlamaIndex, etc.) and related open-source tooling.
Solid understanding of system design, microservice architecture, and distributed computing; experience scaling ML workloads with Kubernetes, Ray, Spark, or similar technologies.
Production experience on major cloud platforms (AWS, Azure, GCP) and/or secure edge deployments.
Experience integrating multi-modal data sources (text, vision, structured/sensor data) into cohesive reasoning or decision pipelines.
Familiarity with state-of-the-art generative AI techniques: LLM fine-tuning (LoRA/PEFT, QLoRA over SLM, data set preparation), retrieval-augmented generation, prompt engineering, and evaluation.
Contributions to open-source AI ecosystems (e.g., Hugging Face, LangChain, Llama) or peer-reviewed publications.
Collaborative, self-directed problem solver who can translate ambiguous requirements into actionable technical roadmaps and mentor junior staff.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills; able to convey complex ideas to technical and non-technical audiences.
Hazardous Working Conditions/Environment
Not applicable.
Additional Information
This position requires the ability to obtain and maintain a federal security clearance.
A security clearance background investigation includes review of your employment, education, financial, and criminal history, as well as interviews with you and your personal references, neighbors, and co-workers to determine trustworthiness, reliability, and loyalty to the United States. The investigation also examines your foreign connections, drug and alcohol use, foreign influence, and overall conduct.
Requirements:
U.S. Citizenship
Background Investigation: Applicants selected will be subject to a Federal background investigation and must meet eligibility requirements for access to classified matter in accordance with 10 CFR 710, Appendix B.
Drug Testing: All Security Clearance positions are Testing Designated Positions, which means that the applicant selected for hire is subject to pre-employment drug testing, and post-employment random drug testing. In addition, applicants must be able to demonstrate non-use of illegal drugs, including marijuana, for the 12 consecutive months preceding completion of the requisite Questionnaire for National Security Positions (QNSP).
Note: Applicants will be considered ineligible for security clearance processing by the U.S. Department of Energy if non-use of illegal drugs, including marijuana, for 12 months cannot be demonstrated.
"Referral Eligible”
Testing Designated Position
This position is a Testing Designated Position (TDP). The candidate selected for this position will be subject to pre-employment and random drug testing for illegal drugs, including marijuana, consistent with the Controlled Substances Act and the PNNL Workplace Substance Abuse Program.
Company DescriptionAbout PNNL
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) is a world-class research institution powered by a highly educated, diverse workforce committed to the values of Integrity, Creativity, Collaboration, Impact, and Courage. Every year, scores of dynamic, driven people come to PNNL to work with renowned researchers on meaningful science, innovations and outcomes for the U.S. Department of Energy and other sponsors; here is your chance to be one of them!
At PNNL, you will find an exciting research environment and excellent benefits including health insurance, and flexible work schedules. PNNL is located in eastern Washington State—the dry side of Washington known for its stellar outdoor recreation and affordable cost of living. The Lab’s campus is only a 45-minute flight (or ~3 hour drive) from Seattle or Portland, and is serviced by the convenient PSC airport, connected to 8 major hubs.
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Event Type
Job Posting
TimeMonday, 17 November 20254:39pm - 4:39pm CST
LocationHall 6
United States of America
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
In-person
Full Time
Permanent