Principal AI Engineer

Overview

Principal AI Engineer – Mastercard

Mastercard is a global technology leader in the payments industry, connecting billions of consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments, and businesses worldwide. Artificial Intelligence is central to our strategy—making Mastercard stronger and commerce safer, smarter, and more personal.

Role Overview:
As a Principal AI Software Engineer, you will architect and deliver next-generation AI-powered platforms that drive innovation and scale across Mastercard. You will design and build intelligent systems using cutting-edge AI tools, large language models (LLMs), and emerging frameworks. This is an individual contributor role with collaboration across cross-functional teams, mentoring engineers, and influencing technical direction across the organization. You will develop Agentic AI systems, design robust backend services, and drive experimentation with novel AI capabilities to deliver secure, scalable, and ethical AI solutions.

• Architect & Build Agentic AI Systems – Design and implement advanced AI agents and supporting infrastructure powering Mastercard’s AI platform.
• Technical Leadership & Collaboration – Partner with senior engineers, data scientists, and product teams to define technical strategy and drive alignment.
• AI Experimentation & Evaluation – Lead rigorous testing and evaluation of LLMs and emerging AI technologies to identify opportunities for innovation.
• Prompt Engineering & Optimization – Develop and refine prompt strategies to maximize performance, reliability, and contextual accuracy of LLM-based systems.
• Guardrail & Safety Design – Architect safeguards to ensure AI outputs are secure, compliant, and aligned with Mastercard’s ethical standards.
• Backend Engineering Excellence – Build scalable APIs, microservices, and data pipelines that integrate with AI-powered features.
• Continuous Learning – Stay current with developments in AI, LLMs, and software engineering best practices.

• Proven experience designing and deploying AI/ML systems at scale, with deep expertise in LLMs and generative AI.
• Advanced proficiency in Python and backend frameworks (e.g., FastAPI, Flask, Node.js).
• Strong understanding of RESTful APIs, microservices architecture, and cloud platforms (Azure preferred; AWS or GCP also valued).
• Demonstrated ability to lead complex technical initiatives while remaining hands-on with code.
• Passion for AI safety, prompt engineering, and ethical AI development.
• Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with a track record of influencing across teams and disciplines.
• Commitment to staying current with the latest AI research, tools, and engineering practices.

At Mastercard, you’ll help shape the future of AI in global commerce—solving complex challenges at scale, driving financial inclusion, and reinforcing the trust and security that define our brand. You’ll work with world-class talent, cutting-edge technologies, and will make a lasting impact.

In line with Mastercard’s total compensation philosophy, the successful candidate will be offered a competitive base salary and may be eligible for an annual bonus or commissions depending on the role. Base salaries vary by location and experience.

• Benefits generally include: medical, dental, vision, disability, life insurance; FSA/HSA; paid leave (including 16 weeks of new parent leave and up to 20 days of bereavement);
  Paid Sick and Safe Time; 25 days of vacation; 5 personal days; 10 observed holidays; 401k with company match; and additional programs.

Pay Ranges

• San Francisco, California: $178,000 - $284,000 USD
• Arlington, Virginia: $170,000 - $273,000 USD
• O Fallon, Missouri: $148,000 - $237,000 USD

All activities involving access to Mastercard assets, information, and networks comes with an inherent risk to the organization and, therefore, it is expected that every person working for, or on behalf of, Mastercard is responsible for information security and must:

• Abide by Mastercard’s security policies and practices;
• Ensure the confidentiality and integrity of the information being accessed;
• Repor…