Sr. Software Engineer - AI Innovation Team

Is it surprising to hear that a financial institution of 1.5 million members and over $30 billion in managed assets say that success comes from focusing on people, not profits?

Our “people helping people” philosophy has guided us since 1935, driving our deep commitment to serving our members, communities, and each other. When you join our team, you become part of a purpose-driven organization where your work makes a real difference.

While we’re proud of our history, we’re even more excited about our future. With business and technology transformation on the horizon, there’s never been a better time to be part of BECU.

You bring more than your expertise to your role, and that matters here. Your story, perspectives, and lived experiences help shape belonging at BECU and deepen how we connect with and support our employees, our members, and our communities.

PAY RANGE

The Target Pay Range for this position is $141,800.00-$173,300.00 annually. The full Pay Range is $110,100.00 - $204,900.00 annually. At BECU, compensation decisions are determined using factors such as relevant job-related skills, experience, and education or training. Should an offer for employment be made, we will consider individual qualifications. In addition to your salary, compensation incentives are available for the hired applicant. Incentives are performance based and targets vary by role.

BENEFITS – because people helping people starts with supporting you

• 401(k) Company Match (up to 3%)

• 4% annual contribution to your 401(k) by BECU

• Medical, Dental and Vision (family contributions as well)

• PTO Program + Exchange Program

• Tuition Reimbursement Program

• BECU Cares volunteer time off + donation match

IMPACT YOU’LL MAKE:

As a Sr. AI Software Engineer, you’ll play a key role in bringing advanced AI capabilities into applications that matter. You’ll design and optimize scalable, secure, and maintainable software solutions while shaping how AI technologies are adopted across our organization. From integrating machine learning models and generative AI services to guiding best practices and architecture decisions, your work will directly influence performance, innovation, and long-term technical direction.

To join our dynamic team, we require candidates to be residents of WA, OR, ID, AZ, TX, GA, SC, VA, CA, or NC. If you’re located in Washington state and within a reasonable driving distance from Tukwila, we are requesting that you come into our HQ on Tuesdays & Wednesdays.  For those candidates that live outside the commute distance of TFC and in any of our approved remote work locations, this role will be remote. Remote or onsite, we are committed to ensuring you are fully engaged and included in our collaborative environment.

WHAT YOU’LL DO:

• Build AI‑Powered Features:  Develop and implement moderate to complex application features and services, including high‑impact components that integrate AI/ML models or AI service APIs.
• Design Scalable Systems: Design scalable maintainable, and secure solutions, ensuring AI systems align with long-term strategies and enterprise standards.
• Champion Engineering Excellence: Write high quality, well‑tested code and guide peers in adopting best practices for AI workflow integration, model interaction, and external AI‑ service management.
• Troubleshoot AI Performance:  Conduct advanced troubleshooting of AI r‑elated issues, such as model performance degradation, inference bottlenecks, prompt optimization challenges, and data pipeline inconsistencies.
• Drive Innovation Opportunities: Identify transformative opportunities in AI integration patterns, automation strategies, development tools, and deployment pipelines. Mentor junior staff in AI technologies, coding practices, and decision-making.
• Ensure Quality & Reliability:  Perform unit testing and identify defects in traditional and AI-augmented code paths to strengthen shared ownership of application and AI integration quality.
• Collaborate Cross‑Functionally:  Partner with cross functional teams to evaluate new AI capabilities, assess technical feasibility, and contribute to the roadmap for AI‑enabled features and platforms.
• Share Knowledge: Share knowledge and best practices within the team by documenting patterns for AI integration, participating in learning sessions, and supporting a continuous learning environment around evolving AI technologies.

QUALIFICATIONS:

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science or equivalent experience.
• Minimum 5 years of experience designing software and writing production code in a team environment.
• Proficiency in one or more major stacks (e.g., Node.js, TypeScript/React, Python), including demonstrated experience integrating AI/ML services into production applications.
• Experience with SQL and cloud platforms (Azure/AWS/GCP), including services used in AI/ML solution development, deployment, monitoring, and optimization.
• Strong understanding of secure coding standards, test‑driven development, and responsible AI practices, including validating, monitoring, and safeguarding model outputs.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills with the ability to mentor staff and contribute to technical strategy, standards, or best practices.
• Proficient in using AI-augmented workflows to streamline coding, debugging, and documentation using AI coding assistants.

Desired Qualifications

• Experience designing AI enabled ‑architectures or leading AI feature development in production environments.
• Knowledge of containers and orchestration (Kubernetes preferred).
• Experience with CI/CD tools (Azure DevOps, GitHub Actions, Jenkins, TeamCity).
• Deep understanding of TDD and testing methodologies.
• Proficiency with Git and branching standards.
• Knowledge of ML Ops, vector databases, embedding pipelines, or advanced prompt engineering techniques.

WHAT YOU’LL GAIN:

• Meaningful Impact: Shape how AI capabilities are embedded into real-world enterprise applications.
• Technical Growth: Work with evolving AI technologies, from generative AI to modern ML pipelines and cloud platforms.
• Leadership Opportunities: Mentor others, influence coding standards, and help define the technical direction for AI initiatives.
• Collaborative Culture: Partner with cross-functional teams to solve complex problems and drive innovation together.
• Continuous Learning: Stay at the forefront of AI advancements through hands-on experimentation and shared knowledge.

JOIN THE JOURNEY:

If you’re passionate about building intelligent systems, solving complex challenges, and helping teams unlock the power of AI, this is your opportunity to make a lasting impact. Bring your expertise, curiosity, and drive to help shape the future of AI enabled innovation.

EEO Statement:

BECU is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, veteran status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other protected status.