Senior Data Engineer, AI Platform
Senior Data Engineer building and scaling Zip's Data & AI Platform using cloud data platforms (Snowflake, Databricks), Python, SQL, Kafka, and vector search/RAG to power analytics, ML, and GenAI workloads for a Buy Now, Pay Later company.
- Compensation
- $134K–$168K / yr
- Location
- United States
- Work setup
- Remote
- Seniority
- Senior
- Employment
- Not specified
- Experience
- 8+ years
- Category
- Data engineering
- Posted
Skills
Must have
- 8+ years of experience designing, building, and operating enterprise-scale data platforms
- Deep expertise with modern cloud data platforms (Snowflake, Databricks, Microsoft Fabric, BigQuery, Redshift, or similar)
- Advanced SQL and Python skills
- Strong experience in data modeling, ELT/ETL development, dbt, and orchestration frameworks (Airflow, Dagster, or equivalent)
- Experience building scalable streaming and event-driven architectures (Kafka, Azure Event Hubs, Spark, or similar)
- Strong understanding of modern data architecture patterns (dimensional modeling, semantic layers, data governance, metadata management, platform observability)
- Experience supporting AI/ML workloads through AI-ready data models, vector search, metadata enrichment, RAG, and knowledge retrieval systems
- Experience with lakehouse technologies and open table formats (Apache Iceberg, Delta Lake, or similar)
- Hands-on experience with cloud platforms (Azure preferred; AWS or GCP also acceptable)
- Strong engineering mindset with testing, CI/CD, infrastructure automation, and operational excellence
- Proven ability to lead technical initiatives, mentor engineers, and collaborate effectively across technical and business teams
- Strong sense of ownership and accountability for data accuracy, consistency, reliability, and quality
Nice to have
- Experience building enterprise AI platforms, Agentic AI solutions, or LLM-powered applications
- Experience integrating enterprise LLM platforms (Azure OpenAI, OpenAI, Anthropic, Google Gemini)
- Familiarity with vector databases (Pinecone, Weaviate), AI search technologies, MLOps/LLMOps, and modern AI infrastructure
- Experience implementing data governance, metadata, lineage, and data catalog solutions
- Experience in fintech, payments, procurement, risk, compliance, or enterprise SaaS environments
Full description
- Shape the data platform powering analytics, machine learning, Generative AI, and Agentic AI for millions of customers and internal teams.
- Build scalable, cloud-native data infrastructure across batch, streaming, structured, and unstructured workloads using modern engineering best practices.
- Partner with Data Science, Machine Learning, Product, and Engineering leaders to deliver AI-ready data products that accelerate innovation across the business.
- Influence the future of Zip's Data & AI Platform by driving architecture, mentoring engineers, and establishing the foundations for enterprise-scale AI.
- Remote-first opportunity for US-based employees with the option to work in-person out of our Manhattan office.
About us
We are Zip, a global Buy Now, Pay Later company providing fair and seamless solutions that simplify how millions of people pay. Our journey began in Australia, and we’ve grown significantly since coming to America.
We exist to create a world where people can live fearlessly today, knowing they’re in control of tomorrow. Focused on product innovation that puts people at the center, we put the financial well-being of our customers and merchant partners at the heart of everything that we do.
We’re proud to be a values-led business. They guide us in everything we do - how we work together and create game-changing experiences for our customers and fellow Zipsters.
About the Role
Zip is building the next generation of AI-powered experiences for customers, employees, and partners. As a Senior Data Engineer on the Data & AI Platform team, you will design, build, and scale the data foundation that powers analytics, machine learning, Generative AI, and Agentic AI across the organization.
You will develop secure, scalable, and reliable data platforms that support structured and unstructured data processing, real-time and batch workloads, AI-ready data products, and intelligent retrieval capabilities. Working closely with Data Scientists, ML Engineers, Software Engineers, Product teams, and business stakeholders, you will help create a modern data ecosystem that accelerates innovation while maintaining the highest standards of quality, governance, and operational excellence.
This is a high-impact role with the opportunity to shape the future of Zip’s AI and data platform strategy.
What You'll Do
- Design, build, and scale Zip’s enterprise Data & AI Platform supporting analytics, machine learning, Generative AI, and Agentic AI initiatives.
- Develop scalable data pipelines and architectures for structured, unstructured, batch, and real-time data workloads.
- Build AI-ready data products, semantic models, and retrieval capabilities that enable intelligent agents and AI-powered applications.