AI Engineer

AI Engineer

Who we are

Makai Labs builds software that automates entire companies. We work across a diversified portfolio, which means our systems touch a wide range of domains, processes, and operational constraints. Our engineering team is small, senior, and high-output. We move fast, hold high standards, and trust each other to take ownership without being managed.

What we're looking for

Makai Labs is hiring a AI Engineer to help build AI systems for enterprise automation. This is a hands-on builder role where you’ll work closely with our engineering and design teams to prototype, ship, and improve AI-powered products and internal tools. You’ll have the opportunity to own smaller projects end to end while contributing to larger client and platform initiatives.

Responsibilities will include

• Build and improve AI-powered applications and internal tools
• Rapidly prototype, experiment, and iterate across client and internal projects
• Implement workflows that use LLMs, retrieval systems, agents, and structured outputs
• Contribute to shared platform work and reusable tooling
• Turn prototypes into reliable, client-ready systems
• Conduct research, benchmarking, testing, and evaluation of new approaches
• Own smaller projects or sub-projects with guidance from the team
• Take ownership of deliverables and help deliver work that meets client needs
• Write and maintain clear internal documentation

Ideal Experience

• Senior in college, recent graduate, or early-career engineer
• Background in computer science (bonus if you also have business exposure)
• Experience building AI applications through internships, coursework, research, or personal projects
• Experience running AI experiments and iterating quickly
• Strong Python skills

What we value

• Initiative and willingness to learn quickly on the job
• Bias toward action and comfort with fast iteration
• Interest in staying current with AI advancements and applying them in practical systems
• Wants to solve hard problems

Nice To Haves

• Experience with APIs, backend services, or workflow automation
• Familiarity with FastAPI, Flask, or similar backend frameworks
• Familiarity with React and TypeScript
• Familiarity with Docker and local development environments
• Familiarity with testing in Python or TypeScript
• Experience working with retrieval systems, embeddings, or search
• Experience working with OCR, document processing, or PDF workflows
• Experience with fine-tuning, benchmarking, or serving LLMs
• Experience in fast-paced, high-accountability team settings

Core values for Makai employees

• Have a strong work ethic
• Be self-sufficient and self-driven with an ownership mentality, no matter your role
• Be a flexible thinker
• Be congenial and a team player
• Always be of service to each other and our clients, partners, and neighbors

Benefits

• Fully remote role, Eastern time zone
• Opportunities to work in-person with local colleagues
• Generous PTO
• Full health insurance premium reimbursement
• 401(k) matching
• Career growth & development opportunities