Senior AI​/ML Engineer

Ignite Digital enables national security agencies to accelerate decisions, elevate operational outcomes and achieve the outsized performance only an inside partner can deliver.

We combine mission experience, domain knowledge and technology expertise with the things partners can only know by being there every day. When agencies need a combination of tech and touch, Ignite Digital creates outcome-driving partnerships and stands with agencies to accomplish mission objectives.

Ignite Digital accelerates capability to the speed of every mission, deploying intelligent solutions and AI integration for faster, better transformation. Ignite delivers partnership beyond presentations to inspire the confidence to lead in a digital-forward world.

Ignite Digital. The Edge from Within.

• Competitive pay and benefits, including PTO
• Education stipends and referral bonuses
• Compelling work with the U.S. federal government
• Strong emphasis on volunteer and community engagement
• Opportunity to shape the future of our industry
• Supportive colleagues and management who invest in your growth

Ignite Digital is seeking a Senior AI/ML Engineer to support a U.S. Navy program in the Norfolk, VA area. The candidate will design, develop, and deploy secure AI/ML models and intelligent automation capabilities in support of Navy operational workloads, readiness analytics, enterprise data harmonization, training systems, and decision intelligence platforms.

This role is ideal for a seasoned engineer with deep technical expertise, strong mission orientation, and experience working in DoW classified environments.

• Architect, build, and deploy AI/ML models within DoWaligned environments (IL4/IL5).
• Execute endtoend data science workflows-data ingestion, cleansing, feature engineering, model development, optimization, validation, and production deployment.
• Develop secure cloud native pipelines using Azure ML, Snowflake Cortex AI, Databricks, or similar platforms aligned with Navy standards.
• Implement model governance, versioning, lineage, and audit controls consistent with Navy security requirements.
• Work with Forward Deployed Engineers, data engineers, Dev Sec Ops  teams, and Navy mission stakeholders to operationalize AI/ML capabilities.
• Support automation of analytics workflows, dashboards, semantic layers, and predictive modeling functions for operational decision support.
• Collaborate with cybersecurity teams to ensure compliance with Navy security, classification, SCIF procedures, and DD254 requirements.
• Document technical artifacts and contribute to iterative prototyping cycles used across Navy portfolios.

• 7+ years of handson experience in AI/ML model development and data engineering.
• Proficiency with Python, SQL, cloud services (Azure, AWS Gov Cloud), and AI/ML frameworks (PyTorch, Tensor Flow, Scikitlearn).
• Experience building and deploying ML models in secure DoD/IC environments.
• Experience supporting Navy, NAVWAR, NIWC, or related Defense organizations.
• Understanding of Dev Sec Ops  pipelines, CI/CD, security scanning, and automated deployment.
• Excellent communication skills and ability to work with mission users and technical SMEs.
• Experience with Snowflake AI Data Cloud, Cortex AI, Databricks, or Advana/Jupiter platforms.
• Experience supporting Navy training systems, HR modernization pipelines, readiness analytics, or C4I environments.
• Familiarity with SCCA cloud environments, Flank Speed integration patterns, and rolebased access controls.
• Experience with semantic layer development, analytics pipelines, or operational decision support systems.

• Bachelor's degree (Master's preferred) in Computer Science, Data Science, Engineering,…