Applied AI Engineer Jobs in Virginia

Applied AI Engineer jobs in Virginia are among the most actively recruited technology roles in the state, concentrated in defense contracting, federal government services, and commercial cloud infrastructure, with openings at every level from associate engineer through principal and staff positions. Northern Virginia, particularly the Tysons and Reston corridors, and Richmond serve as the primary hiring hubs, anchored by major employers like Booz Allen Hamilton, Leidos, and Amazon Web Services. The most in-demand specialties are machine learning deployment, large language model integration, and AI systems engineering for government and enterprise applications. Find a role that fits below and apply directly.

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Overview

Open roles18
Top employerAmazon Web Services
Top cityArlington, VA
Cities hiring7
Work type40% Remote
Top industryTechnology

Showing 5 of 18+ Applied AI Engineer jobs

Senior Public Sector Partner Solutions Architect, Applied AI Partner Solutions Architecture
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Added 3d ago
Senior Public Sector Partner Solutions Architect, Applied AI Partner Solutions Architecture
Amazon Web Services
Arlington, Virginia
Customer Service
Customer Success
Customer Support
$154k - $208k/yr

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Director, Applied AI & Data Science
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Added 3d ago
Director, Applied AI & Data Science
Vantor
Herndon, Virginia
Cloud Engineering
Data Engineering
Data Science
$182k - $266k/yr
Doctoral degree in statistics
1,001-5,000

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Intern, Research - Applied AI & Software Development
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Added 4d ago
Intern, Research - Applied AI & Software Development
Virginia Tech Applied Research Corporation
Arlington, Virginia
Biotech & Life Sciences
Laboratory Research
Research & Academia
Hybrid
11-50

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Applied Scientist, Agentic AI, AWS Governance
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Added 1w ago
Applied Scientist, Agentic AI, AWS Governance
Amazon Web Services
Arlington, Virginia
Clinical Trials
Laboratory Research
Research & Academia
$143k - $193k/yr
Doctoral degree in Computer Science

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Principal Applied Scientist, Mission AI Lab, AWS Region Services
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Added 1w ago
Principal Applied Scientist, Mission AI Lab, AWS Region Services
Amazon Web Services
Arlington, Virginia
Customer Support
Software Engineering
Technical Program Management
$199k - $269k/yr
Doctoral degree in Computer Science

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See All 18 Applied AI Engineer Jobs in Virginia

Find roles in Virginia that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.

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Applied AI Engineer Jobs by City in Virginia

Where Virginia roles are concentrated, by current openings.

Arlington
6 jobs
Herndon
3 jobs
McLean
1 job
Richmond
1 job
Amsterdam
1 job
Chesapeake
1 job
Charlottesville
1 job

Applied AI Engineer Job Market in Virginia

A snapshot from current Virginia openings, updated as new roles post.

Who's Hiring

Amazon Web Services5 open roles
Groundswell3 open roles
Nebius1 open role

Top Industries Hiring

  • Technology & Software
  • Distribution & Wholesale

What Virginia Employers Look For

The qualifications that appear most often in applied AI engineer jobs across Virginia.

  • Bachelor's or master's degree in computer science, AI, machine learning, or a related engineering field
  • Demonstrated experience building and deploying production machine learning or AI systems
  • Proficiency in Python and AI frameworks such as TensorFlow, PyTorch, or Hugging Face
  • Experience with cloud platforms, particularly AWS, Azure, or Google Cloud AI services
  • Active or eligible security clearance preferred for many Virginia defense and federal contractor roles
  • Familiarity with MLOps practices, model monitoring, and CI/CD pipelines for AI workloads

Applied AI Engineer Jobs in Virginia: Frequently Asked Questions

How do you become a applied ai engineer in Virginia?

Applied AI engineering in Virginia has no state-issued license, so the path runs through education and demonstrated technical skill. Most Virginia employers expect at least a bachelor's degree in computer science, data science, or a related field, with a master's degree preferred for senior roles at defense contractors and federal agencies. Building a portfolio of deployed AI projects and earning cloud certifications from AWS or Google strengthens candidacy considerably in Virginia's market.

How much do applied AI engineers make in Virginia?

Applied AI engineers in Virginia earn a median of about $136,460 a year, based on May 2025 Bureau of Labor Statistics wage data, ranging from around $83,350 for the lowest 10% to over $211,930 for the top 10%. Pay rises with experience, specialty, and employer.

Which companies hire applied ai engineers in Virginia?

Employers hiring applied ai engineers in Virginia right now include Amazon Web Services, Groundswell, and Nebius, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of November 2026. Virginia's high concentration of defense contractors and federal IT services firms means many openings are tied to government program work, making it a particularly deep market for applied AI engineering talent.

Which Virginia cities have the most applied ai engineer jobs?

Arlington, Virginia, and Herndon have the most applied ai engineer openings in Virginia. Northern Virginia's concentration of defense agencies, cloud infrastructure campuses, and federal contractors drives the majority of demand, while Richmond's growing financial services and technology sector accounts for a meaningful share of commercial AI engineering roles.

Are there remote applied ai engineer jobs in Virginia?

Yes, and more than most fields. About 80% of applied ai engineer openings tied to Virginia are remote or hybrid as of November 2026, reflecting how naturally suited the work is to distributed environments. Model development, experimentation, and MLOps work tend to be the most remote-friendly tasks, while roles requiring access to classified systems or secure government facilities require on-site presence.

How can I get hired as a applied ai engineer in Virginia with little or no experience?

The most realistic entry path is a junior or associate AI engineer role at one of Northern Virginia's large federal IT contractors, where structured onboarding programs exist for candidates coming straight from university. Booz Allen Hamilton and Leidos both run new-graduate technology development programs that place candidates with AI and data science backgrounds onto applied projects. A strong GitHub portfolio demonstrating deployed machine learning projects, combined with an AWS or Google Cloud certification, gives entry-level candidates a practical edge over those relying on coursework alone.

Where can I find and apply to applied ai engineer jobs in Virginia?

You can find and apply to applied ai engineer jobs in Virginia on Migrate Mate, which lists current Virginia openings. Search the listings for roles that match your experience and specialization, then apply directly to the ones that fit.

See All 18 Applied AI Engineer Jobs in Virginia

Find roles in Virginia that match your experience and apply in just a few clicks.

Find Applied AI Engineer Jobs