Lead AI Scientist

ZS is a place where passion changes lives. As a management consulting and technology firm focused on improving life and how we live it, we transform ideas into impact by bringing together data, science, technology and human ingenuity to deliver better outcomes for all. Here you’ll work side-by-side with a powerful collective of thinkers and experts shaping life-changing solutions for patients, caregivers and consumers, worldwide. ZSers drive impact by bringing a client-first mentality to each and every engagement. We partner collaboratively with our clients to develop custom solutions and technology products that create value and deliver company results across critical areas of their business. Bring your curiosity for learning, bold ideas, courage and passion to drive life-changing impact to ZS.

ZS's Insights & Analytics group partners with clients to design and deliver solutions to help them tackle a broad range of business challenges. Our teams work on multiple projects simultaneously, leveraging advanced data analytics and problem-solving techniques. Our recommendations and solutions are based on rigorous research and analysis underpinned by deep expertise and thought leadership.

What you'll do: 

• Design, implement, and optimize LLM architectures, including small language models (SLMs), retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), and transformer-based systems.
• Fine-tune and customize pretrained LLMs for domain-specific applications and enterprise-scale use cases.
• Architect Agentic AI systems capable of autonomous decision-making, reasoning, and adaptive interaction across workflows.
• Work closely with AI clients on their solutions both on AI engagements and as part of a broader engagements
• Work with EC colleagues, ADS track members, and broader ZS client teams in delivery
• Develop your own expertise in AI, pursing a path of internal and external thought leadership
• Mentor junior AI team members on their technical skills and expertise
• Help grow the AI EC to build an amazing team of deep AI experts

What you’ll bring:

• 5+ years of experience building and deploying AI/ML solutions
• Bachelor's Degree or higher in AI, Data Science, Computer Science or related major
• In-depth experience with LLM fine-tuning, Transformer architectures, and Generative AI frameworks.
• Proficiency in RAG design, prompt engineering, and SLM integration strategies.
• Strong programming proficiency (Python, PyTorch, TensorFlow, or similar).
• Understanding of modern AI infrastructure (e.g., distributed training, GPU optimization, MLOps for LLMs).
• Familiarity with evaluation metrics for generative systems and conversational agents.
• Experience integrating GenAI systems into enterprise or production-grade applications.
• Awareness of data privacy, governance, and compliance in AI-driven environments.
• Fluency in English
• Client-first mentality
• Intense work ethic
• Collaborative spirit and problem-solving approach