Principal AI Research Engineer

Position:
Principal, AI Research Engineering

Company:
Zscaler

Compensation:
Base Pay Range $171,500 - $245,000 USD

Location:
USA; San Jose, California

Employment type:
Full-time

Work Arrangement:
Hybrid

Short Summary:
Zscaler is seeking a Principal, AI Research Engineer to join the AI & Data Protection team. This role involves leading the AI ecosystem strategy and ensuring the secure use of AI technologies within the Zero Trust Exchange platform.

Responsibilities:
- Define the AI Ecosystem Strategy by leading the vision for integrations with frontier model providers, vector database companies, and AI infrastructure leaders.
- Lead the "Secure AI" roadmap by owning the lifecycle for features that enable safe use of 3rd-party LLMs and prevent data leakage.
- Build a developer ecosystem by defining and launching APIs, SDKs, and integration patterns for "Zero Trust-native" applications.
- Drive market leadership and cross-functional partnerships to turn complex technical integrations into high-growth go-to-market motions.

Requirement:
- 8+ years of experience in technical leadership or engineering partnerships with a history of building impactful industry relationships.
- Deep technical fluency in the AI lifecycle including training vs. inference, GPU roles, context windows, and RAG architectures.
- Ability to apply first-principles thinking to fundamental security and networking challenges in enterprise LLM deployment.
- Strong bias for action with a "Ship Early, Iterate Fast" mentality and focus on delivering high-value MVPs.
- Foundational understanding of AI/ML technologies and experience leveraging, securing, or positioning AI-driven solutions.

Benefits:
- Various health plans
- Time off plans for vacation and sick time
- Parental leave options
- Retirement options
- Education reimbursement
- In-office perks, and more!