Principal Software Engineer – AI & Software Factory Engineering

Principal Software Engineer – AI & Software Factory Engineering  

We're looking for a software engineer who likes building platform products — the tooling, automation, and AI capabilities other engineering teams build on top of. You'll write production code daily on a small, senior team delivering software factories, security automation, and AI-enabled development environments for Department of War and Federal customers. If your instinct when you see a manual process is to write code that eliminates it, this role is built for you.

MEANINGFUL WORK AND PERSONAL IMPACT

You'll work across multiple concurrent R&D and customer delivery efforts rather than a single narrow program, with the option to engage in proposals and customer demos if you want to build business acumen alongside technical depth

• Build agentic AI capabilities — tool orchestration, LLM application development, and workflow automation — using AI-assisted development daily
• Develop software that automates continuous Authority to Operate (cATO): evidence collection, compliance reporting, and policy-as-code enforcement
• Build secure-by-default CI/CD pipeline products — hardening templates, integrated security scanning (SAST, SCA, container, SBOM), and supply chain controls (signing, provenance, attestation) — that development teams across our portfolio consume
• Extend the platform with self-service capabilities: developer onboarding automation, reusable deployment patterns, and AI development tools (code assistants, model serving) — including for air-gapped environments
• Ship to and support production on hardened Kubernetes (Big Bang / Iron Bank) in CUI/IL5 environments — we run what we build

WHAT YOU’LL NEED TO SUCCEED

• Education: Bachelor's degree and 8+ years experience. In lieu of degree 12+ years of hands-on experience
• Experience: 5+ years of related experience in Software Engineering, DevOps / DevSecOps technologies; 3+ years of hands on experience with Kubernetes
• Strong development skills in Python, Go, or similar — you build tooling and applications, not just configure them
• Daily use of AI-powered development tools (code assistants, LLM-based tooling)
• CI/CD pipeline development — GitLab CI strongly preferred; Jenkins, GitHub Actions, or similar accepted
• Security scanning integration in automated pipelines (SAST, DAST, SCA, container scanning)
• Containerization (Docker, Helm, OCI artifacts) and Infrastructure as Code (Terraform and/or Ansible)
• Git-based workflows, GitOps deployment patterns, and solid Linux fundamentals
• Experience working in or deploying to classified or air-gapped environments
• Strong written and verbal communication; comfort juggling multiple projects with shifting priorities

• Security clearance level: No clearance required to start with ability to obtain and mantain a Secret clearance

• Location: Remote with travel up to 10%

• Citizenship: US Citizenship

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Hands-on experience with agentic AI frameworks or LLM APIs (tool-use patterns, orchestration, RAG)
• Platform One / Big Bang, Iron Bank, or DoW-hardened Kubernetes distributions
• DoW security and authorization frameworks (NIST 800-53, RMF, cATO)
• Software supply chain security practices (Sigstore/Cosign, Syft, in-toto)
• AI/ML infrastructure in enterprise or air-gapped environments (model serving, GPU scheduling on K8s)
• Certified Kubernetes Application Developer (CKAD) certification
• Supporting proposals, RFI responses, or customer engagements as a technical SME

GDIT IS YOUR PLACE
At GDIT, the mission is our purpose, and our people are at the center of everything we do.
● Growth: AI-powered career tool that identifies career steps and learning opportunities
● Support: An internal mobility team focused on helping you achieve your career goals
● Rewards: Comprehensive benefits and wellness packages, 401K with company match, and competitive pay and paid time off
● Community: Award-winning culture of innovation and a military-friendly workplace

OWN YOUR OPPORTUNITY
Explore a career in software development at GDIT and you’ll find endless opportunities to grow alongside colleagues who share your dedication to advancing innovation.