Wells Fargo

Lead Applied AI Engineer

Wells Fargo$159K — $305K *
Finance & Insurance
5 - 7 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 5+ years of experience in Specialty Software Engineering or equivalent
  • 5+ years in software engineering with 3+ years in production machine learning or AI applications
  • Hands-on experience in deploying machine learning models, preferably transformer-based
  • Strong full-stack engineering skills capable of end-to-end software delivery
  • Solid grasp of AI evaluation, observability, and deployment guardrails
  • Excellent collaboration and technical communication skills
  • Prior experience in financial services or regulated enterprise domains

Responsibilities

  • Deliver production-ready agentic AI solutions from inception to operation
  • Partner deeply with business teams to enhance their workflows with AI
  • Build solutions rapidly by leveraging platform capabilities
  • Apply cutting-edge AI techniques for practical application
  • Ensure production quality and compliance of deployed AI agents
  • Contribute to platform improvements for future deliveries
  • Communicate technical progress effectively to stakeholders

Benefits

  • Health benefits
  • 401(k) Plan
  • Paid time off
  • Disability benefits
  • Life and accident insurance
  • Parental and critical caregiving leave
  • Tuition reimbursement
  • Scholarships for dependent children
  • Adoption reimbursement
  • Commuter benefits
  • Discounts and savings programs
Full Job Description

The Opportunity

We are seeking a Lead Applied AI Engineer to be the technical engine of that delivery: someone who takes the reusable components and platform capabilities we build internally and turns them into shipped, production agentic solutions inside the bank’s most important operational domains.

This is a hands-on builder’s role with significant scope; and it is emphatically not a proof-of-concept job. You will own solutions end to end: from sitting with business teams to understand how their work really flows, to designing the agentic architecture, to shipping systems that meet the bank’s reliability, security, and compliance standards and deliver measurable outcomes. The right candidate is creative, moves fast, communicates as fluently with operations leaders as with platform engineers, and has a track record of turning ambiguous business problems into working software in weeks.

What You’ll Do

  • Deliver agentic AI solutions in production. Design, build, and ship AI agents for a partner business domain using the team’s internal platform and reusable components — owning the solution from first workshop to production operation.

  • Partner deeply with the business. Embed with business organizations to understand their workflows, data, and operational touchpoints; identify where agentic AI delivers measurable improvement; and translate domain knowledge into technical designs.

  • Build quickly and iterate. Compose solutions from platform capabilities rather than rebuilding from scratch; prototype fast, validate with users, then harden for production. Speed with rigor is the job.

  • Apply state-of-the-art techniques. Use foundation models, LLM orchestration, retrieval, and transformer-based approaches for sequential and transactional data — choosing the simplest technique that ships.

  • Own production quality. Build the evaluation, observability, and guardrail systems for everything you ship; ensure deployed agents meet the bank’s reliability, security, and compliance standards.

  • Strengthen the platform. Contribute improvements, patterns, and reusable components back to the platform team so every delivery makes the next one faster.

  • Communicate outcomes. Translate technical progress into presentable results — supporting partner stakeholder reviews and executive demos with clarity and credibility.

Required Qualifications

  • 5+ years of Specialty Software Engineering experience, or equivalent demonstrated through one or a combination of the following: work experience, training, military experience, education

  • 5+ years of software engineering experience, with at least 3 years applying machine learning or AI to production systems.

Desired Qualifications

  • Hands-on experience building and deploying machine learning models, including transformer-based architectures or foundation models, in a production environment.

  • Strong full-stack software engineering skills—comfortable across data, models, services, and integration; able to ship end-to-end.

  • Solid understanding of modern AI evaluation, observability, and guardrails for production deployment.

  • Excellent collaboration, technical communication, and problem-solving skills, with a track record of shipping software that touches real users in real production environments.

  • Prior experience in financial services applications (e.g., banking operations, complaints, wholesale operations) or comparable regulated enterprise domains.

  • Experience working under Model Risk Management or compliance governance for production AI deployment.

  • Experience working with large-scale transactional or sequential data.

  • Experience working in a partner-facing engineering engagement model with business organizations.

Job Expectations and Core Values:

  • Be Humble: You're smart yet always interested in learning from others.

  • Work Transparently: You always deal in an honest, direct, and transparent way.

  • Take Ownership: You embrace responsibility and find joy in having the answers.

  • Learn More: You regularly self-educate and improve your skill set.

  • Show Gratitude: You show appreciation and respect to those you work with.

Pay Range

Reflected is the base pay range offered for this position. Pay may vary depending on factors including but not limited to demonstrated examples of prior performance, skills, experience, or work location. Employees may also be eligible for incentive opportunities.

$159,000.00 - $305,000.00

Benefits

Wells Fargo provides eligible employees with a comprehensive set of benefits, many of which are listed below. Visit  for an overview of the following benefit plans and programs offered to employees.

  • Health benefits
  • 401(k) Plan
  • Paid time off
  • Disability benefits
  • Life insurance, critical illness insurance, and accident insurance
  • Parental leave
  • Critical caregiving leave
  • Discounts and savings
  • Commuter benefits
  • Tuition reimbursement
  • Scholarships for dependent children
  • Adoption reimbursement

Posting End Date:

30 Jul 2026

*Job posting may come down early due to volume of applicants.

About Wells Fargo

Wells Fargo Careers

Joining Wells Fargo means becoming part of a distinguished financial institution that has been a cornerstone of innovation and leadership in the banking industry. At Wells Fargo, we offer a plethora of job opportunities designed to empower your career growth and development in a diverse and inclusive environment.

Work You’ll Do

At Wells Fargo, you will be part of a team that values diversity and is committed to fostering an inclusive culture. We are looking for professionals who are eager to drive innovation and lead with integrity. Our employees are our greatest asset, and we invest in their professional growth through comprehensive leadership and diversity training programs that are recognized industry-wide.

Explore a Multitude of Career Paths

Whether you're interested in a position in finance, IT, customer service, or management, Wells Fargo has career opportunities in various fields. Our team members benefit from job stability, competitive benefits, and a culture that values and rewards performance and dedication.

Internship Programs

Kickstart your career with a Wells Fargo internship. Our programs provide invaluable industry exposure, professional skills development, and networking opportunities that often lead to full-time employment offers. Interns at Wells Fargo work on real projects, solve actual challenges, and gain the mentorship of seasoned professionals.

Professional Growth and Development

We believe in nurturing the potential of our employees. Wells Fargo offers robust training programs and resources to help every team member excel in their current roles and prepare for future challenges. Growth at Wells Fargo is not just about climbing the career ladder but expanding your skills and expertise to add value to our team and customers.

Benefits and Rewards

Wells Fargo is committed to the well-being of our team members. We offer a comprehensive benefits package that includes health care, retirement plans, and generous paid time off. Additionally, we provide unique perks like employee discounts, adoption assistance, and tuition reimbursement.

Join Our Team

Discover the opportunities waiting for you at Wells Fargo by exploring open positions that match your skills and interests. We are continuously hiring and looking for individuals who bring creativity, passion, and a drive to serve our customers.

Stay Connected

Keep up to date with the latest from Wells Fargo Careers by subscribing to our job alert emails. Tailor your subscription to receive updates that align with your career preferences and get insider tips on crafting the perfect resume and acing your interview.

Networking and Innovation

At Wells Fargo, networking and innovation go hand in hand. We encourage our employees to connect across departments and roles to foster new ideas and strategies that lead to groundbreaking solutions.

Empower Your Career

Step into a role at Wells Fargo where your skills will be honed, your achievements recognized, and your career can flourish. We're not just filling positions; we're building leaders who are equipped to navigate the complexities of the financial world. Join Wells Fargo today and be part of a team that’s redefining the future of banking.
Learn more about Wells Fargo
Size
246,577 employees
Market Cap
$155.2 billion
Industry
Net Income
$3.3 billion
Founded
1852
5 Year Trend
-5.9%
NASDAQ

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