Senior Data Engineer with AI

Title: Senior Data Engineer with AI Location: Dallas, Texas, United States Type: Contract/Full time USC only. Job Summary Rockwoods is seeking a Senior Data Engineer with AI with a specialized focus on the intersection of Data Infrastructure and AI. The ideal candidate doesn't just build pipelines; they build the backbone for intelligent systems. You will be responsible for architecting large-scale data environments that fuel LLM integrations and production-grade AI models. Key Responsibilities • Design, build, and scale production-grade data pipelines specifically optimized for AI workflows, including data ingestion for LLM fine-tuning and RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) patterns. • Seamlessly integrate AI APIs (OpenAI, Hugging Face, Anthropic) into existing data transformation and downstream usage layers for real-world projects. • Lead the cleaning, transformation, and feature engineering of large-scale datasets to ensure they are structured specifically for high-performance AI model training and inference. • Deploy and support AI solutions in production environments, managing the end-to-end lifecycle including monitoring, scaling, and resolving real data issues. • Develop and maintain dbt-based transformation layers and optimize Snowflake performance for both analytical and AI-driven workloads. • Implement robust API and event-driven ingestion pipelines with a focus on data quality, validation, and reliability across the entire AI data lifecycle. What We’re Looking For • 6–10+ years of hands-on data engineering experience with deep expertise in Python, dbt, and Snowflake. • Proven track record of integrating LLM/AI APIs into complex data pipelines for data ingestion, transformation, or downstream usage. • Demonstrated ability to deploy and support AI solutions in production, including active monitoring and scaling of models and data flows. • Advanced experience in preparing and structuring large-scale data (cleaning, transformation, and feature engineering) specifically for AI model usage. • Strong mastery of Airflow or similar orchestration tools to manage complex AI data workflows. • Solid understanding of data modeling and a proven track record of building production-grade pipelines that handle real-world data issues. Why Rockwoods • Strong pipeline of modern data platform work • Direct exposure to real client systems • Opportunity to grow into architecture roles • Execution-focused culture-less process, more impact