Principal, Software Engineer - MLE, People.AI

Principal, Software Engineer - MLE, People.AI

  • Location BENTONVILLE, AR
  • Career Area Software Development and Engineering
  • Job Function Software Engineering and Architecture
  • Employment Type Regular/Permanent
  • Position Type Salary
  • Requisition WD2161217

What you'll do at

Position Summary...

About Walmart

Walmart employs more than 2.3 million associates worldwide, with 1.6 million associates in the U.S. Each year, Walmart hires 500,000 applicants to fill thousands of job profiles from engineers, designers, and marketers to pilots and buyers. We promote over 300,000 people annually to positions of greater responsibility.

About People Technology Team

The Enterprise People Technology team supports the successful deployment and adoption of new People technology across the enterprise. As a Fortune #1 company, our work impacts millions of associates globally. We strive to continuously improve people technology and products to help managers and associates focus on what matters most - supporting our customers and members. People Technology is a significant segment of Walmart Global Tech’s Enterprise Business Services, invested in building a compact, robust organization that includes service operations and technology solutions for Finance, People, and the Associate Digital Experience.

About People.AI Team

The People.AI team is responsible for developing and deploying AI/ML solutions supporting the Walmart associates globally. In this role, you will build an LLM-powered intelligent experience within a chatbot or business application to enhance associate experience and productivity. You will design and build an intelligent conversational interface that improves communication, automates tasks, accesses data and insights, and provides personalized Q&A support to associates, ultimately creating a more efficient and engaging work environment.

What you'll do...

  • Design, develop, and deploy LLM-powered intelligent applications that enhance productivity and engagement for Walmart associates across the globe.
  • Build and integrate enterprise-grade conversational agents and AI copilots into chatbots, internal portals, and business applications to automate tasks, improve communication, and provide real-time, contextualized support.
  • Leverage state-of-the-art LLMs and frameworks like LangChain, LangGraph to create dynamic, natural language interfaces over enterprise data.
  • Implement retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) pipelines using vector databases such as Milvus or FAISS to enable deep integration with Walmart’s knowledge ecosystem.
  • Enhance the clarity, conciseness, and readability of generated knowledge Q&A to ensure it is well-suited for voice-based service agents.
  • Build developer-friendly tools and reusable frameworks that abstract key aspects of ML and LLM system complexity—enabling developers without prior ML experience to quickly build high-quality, scalable AI solutions with minimal friction, while maintaining reliability, governance, and performance standards.
  • Act as a platform enabler and technical collaborator, working closely with Data Scientists, Software Engineers, Product Managers, and MLOps/DevOps teams to streamline model deployment, monitoring, and lifecycle management.


What You Will Bring

  • Expert-level proficiency in programming languages such as Python or Java, with a strong track record of delivering high-performance, production-grade code for machine learning applications.
  • Proven experience designing, developing, and operationalizing end-to-end ML systems, including data ingestion, feature engineering, model training, deployment, and monitoring.
  • A solid understanding of core machine learning principles, including various model families (e.g., tree-based models, deep neural networks), feature selection techniques, and practical challenges such as data quality, bias, and concept/data drift.
  • Deep experience in Linux-based development environments, along with containerization using Docker and orchestration with Kubernetes for scalable ML service deployment.
  • Hands-on experience working with cloud platforms like Google Cloud Platform (GCP) or Microsoft Azure, with familiarity in their AI/ML tools, infrastructure components, and DevOps ecosystems.
  • Proficiency in building and scaling API-based services and distributed systems, and in managing workflows using tools such as Apache Airflow or similar orchestration frameworks.
  • Strong working knowledge of SQL and modern data engineering practices, enabling seamless integration of ML pipelines with batch and streaming data sources.
  • Proficient in version control with Git, and experienced in collaborating within agile, cross-functional software teams.
  • A deep grasp of software engineering best practices, including API design, automated testing, CI/CD pipelines, and observability for ML-driven systems.
  • Clear and confident communication skills, with the ability to understand cross-functional requirements and translate them into scalable technical solutions.
  • 8+ years of industry experience, with a demonstrated ability to take ownership of complex projects and deliver impactful AI/ML solutions from concept to production.
  • A mindset grounded in intellectual curiosity, with a passion for MLOps, cloud-native technologies, and driving innovation in scalable AI infrastructure.

At Walmart, we offer competitive pay as well as performance-based bonus awards and other great benefits for a happier mind, body, and wallet. Health benefits include medical, vision and dental coverage. Financial benefits include 401(k), stock purchase and company-paid life insurance. Paid time off benefits include PTO (including sick leave), parental leave, family care leave, bereavement, jury duty, and voting. Other benefits include short-term and long-term disability, company discounts, Military Leave Pay, adoption and surrogacy expense reimbursement, and more.

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You will also receive PTO and/or PPTO that can be used for vacation, sick leave, holidays, or other purposes. The amount you receive depends on your job classification and length of employment. It will meet or exceed the requirements of paid sick leave laws, where applicable.

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For information about PTO, see https://one.walmart.com/notices.

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Live Better U is a Walmart-paid education benefit program for full-time and part-time associates in Walmart and Sam's Club facilities. Programs range from high school completion to bachelor's degrees, including English Language Learning and short-form certificates. Tuition, books, and fees are completely paid for by Walmart.

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Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on your job classification and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may be subject to a specific plan or program terms.

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For information about benefits and eligibility, see One.Walmart.

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The annual salary range for this position is $110,000.00-$220,000.00

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Additional compensation includes annual or quarterly performance bonuses.

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Additional compensation for certain positions may also include:

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- Stock

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Minimum Qualifications...

Outlined below are the required minimum qualifications for this position. If none are listed, there are no minimum qualifications.

Option 1: Bachelor's degree in computer science, computer engineering, computer information systems, software engineering, or related area and5 years’ experience in software engineering or related area.
Option 2: 7 years’ experience in software engineering or related area.

Preferred Qualifications...

Outlined below are the optional preferred qualifications for this position. If none are listed, there are no preferred qualifications.

Master’s degree in computer science, computer engineering, computer information systems, software engineering, or related area and 3 years' experience in software engineering or related area., We value candidates with a background in creating inclusive digital experiences, demonstrating knowledge in implementing Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.2 AA standards, assistive technologies, and integrating digital accessibility seamlessly. The ideal candidate would have knowledge of accessibility best practices and join us as we continue to create accessible products and services following Walmart’s accessibility standards and guidelines for supporting an inclusive culture.

Primary Location...

2501 Se J St, Ste A, Bentonville, AR 72716-3724, United States of America

About Walmart

At Walmart, we help people save money so they can live better. This mission serves as the foundation for every decision we make, from responsible sourcing to sustainability—and everything in between. As a Walmart associate, you will play an integral role in shaping the future of retail, tech, merchandising, finance and hundreds of other industries—all while affecting the lives of millions of customers all over the world. Here, your work makes an impact every day. What are you waiting for?

Walmart Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer- By Choice. We believe we are best equipped to help our associates, customers, and the communities we serve live better when we really know them. That means understanding, respecting, and valuing unique styles, experiences, identities, abilities, ideas and opinions- while welcoming all people.

Hello, NW Arkansas

With over 200 miles of trails, an emerging locally-sourced food scene, the world-renowned Crystal Bridges Museum—NWA has something for everyone.

Discover NW Arkansas
Northwest Arkansas
NWA Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art

All the benefits you need for you and your family

  • Multiple health plan options, including vision & dental plans for you & dependents
  • Financial benefits including 401(k), stock purchase plans, life insurance and more
  • Associate discounts in-store and online
  • Education assistance for Associate and dependents
  • Parental Leave
  • Pay during military service
  • Paid Time off - to include vacation, sick, parental
  • Short-term and long-term disability for when you can't work because of injury, illness, or childbirth

Eligibility requirements apply to some benefits and may depend on your job classification and length of employment. Benefits are subject to change and may be subject to specific plan or program terms. For information about benefits and eligibility, see One.Walmart.com/Benefits.

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