AI Software Architect, Forward Deployed

The Role

You are the technical spine of Adobe's Forward Deployed Engineering org. You own system design, platform standards, and the technical relationship with our largest enterprise customers — from C-level executives to their engineering teams. You don't just advise; you write production code, set the architecture, and ensure every engagement builds durable capability — not throwaway consulting artifacts.

You'll work directly with global brands transforming their content supply chains with generative AI. You'll design end-to-end GenAI systems — from RAG pipelines and agent orchestration to production-grade API integrations — and establish the reusable patterns and frameworks that make every subsequent engagement faster. You are the person who ensures this org operates like a product engineering team, not a services shop.

You set the technical bar for everyone around you.

What You'll Do

• Own system architecture end-to-end. Design production GenAI applications from prototype through scale — data pipelines, model orchestration, API integrations, infrastructure. You build the thing AND design the system.

• Set platform standards. Define and maintain reusable frameworks, reference architectures, shared libraries, and CI/CD patterns. Every engagement compounds into organizational capability because of you.

• Ship production code. You lead by building. You write code, review PRs, and set the engineering standard. Minimum 40% of your time is hands-on.

• Interface with C-level customers. Translate business problems into technical architectures. Run technical discovery. Earn trust with both the CTO and the engineers in the room.

• Drive the product feedback loop. Turn field-proven patterns into actionable product roadmap input. You are the bridge between customer reality and product strategy.

• Raise the bar. Mentor FDE Engineers. Define what "great" looks like. Enforce engineering rigor across engagements — code quality, testing, documentation, observability.

What You Bring

• You've built and shipped GenAI products in production. Not demos. Not POCs that died. Real systems handling real traffic — RAG pipelines, agent workflows, model orchestration, multi-modal processing. You can whiteboard the architecture AND debug the deployment.

• Deep AI/ML engineering foundation. You understand the ML behind the tools: transformer architectures, diffusion models, embeddings, vector databases, fine-tuning, prompt engineering. You don't just call APIs — you understand why they work and when they won't.

• Production engineering rigor. Full-stack (React/Next.js, Node.js/Python, PostgreSQL or equivalent). Strong distributed systems instincts. You think in CI/CD, observability, error budgets, and scalable infrastructure (Docker, Kubernetes, cloud-native).

• AI-native builder. You use Cursor, Claude Code, Copilot, or equivalent daily. You've built MCP servers, custom agents, or agentic workflows. AI tools are how you work, not something you've read about.

• 8+ years of shipping production software. At least 3 years building AI/ML systems. Product engineering background strongly preferred over consulting/services.

• Executive communication. You can present to a CMO and pair-program with a junior engineer in the same afternoon. Clear, low-ego, high-signal communication.

• Startup speed in enterprise context. You've operated in fast-moving environments — founded a company, been an early engineer, or led a 0-to-1 product launch. You don't wait for permission.

What Sets You Apart

• You've contributed to open-source AI projects or built tools others use

• You've published technical writing (blog, talks, papers) that demonstrates depth

• You have experience with creative/content production workflows (asset management, DAM, content supply chain)

• You've built multi-agent systems or complex agentic architectures in production

About Adobe

Adobe empowers everyone to create through innovative platforms and tools that unleash creativity, productivity and personalized customer experiences. Adobe’s industry-leading offerings including Adobe Acrobat Studio, Adobe Express, Adobe Firefly, Creative Cloud, Adobe Experience Platform, Adobe Experience Manager, and GenStudio enable people and businesses to turn ideas into impact, powered by AI and driven by human ingenuity.

Our 30,000+ employees worldwide are creating the future and raising the bar as we drive the next decade of growth. We’re on a mission to hire the very best and believe in creating a company culture where all employees are empowered to make an impact. At Adobe, we believe that great ideas can come from anywhere in the organization. The next big idea could be yours. 

Let’s Adobe together

At Adobe, we believe in creating a company culture where all employees are empowered to make an impact. Learn more about Adobe life, including our values and culture, focus on people, purpose and community, Adobe for All, comprehensive benefits programs, the stories we tell, the customers we serve, and how you can help us advance our mission of empowering everyone to create.

Adobe is proud to be an Equal Employment Opportunity employer. We do not discriminate based on gender, race or color, ethnicity or national origin, age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic. Learn more.

Adobe aims to make our Careers website and recruiting process accessible to any and all users. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation to navigate our website or complete the application process, email [email protected] or call +1 408-536-3015. 

AI Use Guidelines for Interviews:
Our interviews are designed to reflect your own skills and thinking. The use of AI or recording tools during live interviews is not permitted unless explicitly invited by the interviewer or approved in advance as part of a reasonable accommodation. If these tools are used inappropriately or in a way that misrepresents your work, your application may not move forward in the process.

At Adobe, we empower employees to innovate with AI — and we look for candidates eager to do the same. As part of the hiring experience, we provide clear guidance on where AI is encouraged during the process and where it’s restricted during live interviews. See how we think about AI in the hiring experience.