AI Expeditionary Principal Investigator

Summary: Serve as a hands-on AI practitioner and technical advisor to the AI & Technology Integration Lead, bridging program needs and technology teams. Assess AI value at customer sites, demonstrate capabilities, and shape roadmaps and team structures for AI-enabled intelligence, unmanned systems, and training soluti...

Job Title: AI Expeditionary Principal Investigator

Job Category: Science

Time Type: Full time

Minimum Clearance Required to Start: TS/SCI

Employee Type: Regular

Percentage of Travel Required: Up to 25%

Type of Travel: Local

Anticipated Posting End: 1/30/2027

The Opportunity:

CACI's Mission & Engineering Support (M&ES) line of business is building an AI Expeditionary Team to help our programs and customers move from AI curiosity to operational AI capability. We are seeking a hands-on AI practitioner to serve as an Expeditionary Principal Investigator and a trusted technical advisor to the division's AI & Technology Integration Lead.

You will be the bridge between program needs and technology teams. You will go to customer sites, listen, assess where AI can add value, demonstrate what is possible, and bring that understanding back to the broader company. There it informs roadmaps, estimates and team formation. We sell expertise, not just products: a successful prototype is one slice of a larger customer strategy, and your work shapes the plan, team structure and transition path that turn it into a lasting capability.

You will work within the context of the division’s technology roadmap, whose current themes include AI-enabled intelligence analysis and operations, ship digital twins, unmanned systems (UXS/CUXS) development and integration, AI-enabled model-based systems engineering, computer vision for full-motion video, AI-enabled geospatial and training solutions, and modernization of our training academies using advanced RAG and agentic pipelines. You will also help shape CACI’s AI Transformation Framework and the AI Expeditionary Team itself.

Responsibilities:

*Required:*

• U.S. citizenship and the ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government Top Secret SCI security clearance.
• Bachelor's degree in computer science, data science, statistics, mathematics, engineering or another technical discipline. An equivalent combination of education and experience may be considered. A master's or doctorate is a plus.
• Typically 7+ years of related experience with a bachelor's degree, 5+ with a master's or 3+ with a doctorate.
• Demonstrated experience as a technical lead, principal investigator, lead architect or comparable role with responsibility for technical scope, delivery and outcomes.
• Deep, hands-on experience building generative AI systems, including LLM applications, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) and agentic workflows, together with a solid foundation in applied machine learning and evaluation methods.
• Experience leading customer-facing discovery or assessment work: engaging stakeholders, eliciting and documenting technical requirements, and turning them into a clear plan.
• Strong Python skills and experience with modern AI/ML tooling such as PyTorch, Hugging Face, scikit-learn, LangChain/LangGraph or comparable frameworks.
• Experience delivering integrated systems, not only standalone models, including APIs, data services, cloud deployment and testing.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with a demonstrated ability to brief non-technical audiences, customers and senior leaders and to turn requirements discussions into clear technical plans.
• Project management skills sufficient to plan and run small multi-person efforts, along with the ability to work independently and to lead through influence.
• Willingness to work on site at DTC and to travel to customer sites, including extended visits.

Qualifications:

*Desired:*

• Active Top Secret SCI clearance; experience delivering capabilities for the Department of Defense, Intelligence Community or other U.S. Government customers.
• Experience building rough-order-of-magnitude (ROM) estimates and staffing plans for technical efforts, and contributing to proposals or technical volumes.
• Experience transitioning prototypes into production or operational use, particularly in secure or classified environments.
• Experience with model adaptation or fine-tuning, LLM evaluation, red-teaming, and AI safety or guardrails.
• Familiarity with AWS or other cloud platforms, containers (Docker, Kubernetes), CI/CD, and graph, vector or relational databases.
• Exposure to AI-enabled training and content generation, computer vision, geospatial analytics, digital twins or model-based systems engineering.
• Experience in Agile and DevSecOps environments, adapting process appropriately for exploratory work.
• Evidence of broader impact: patents, publications, conference talks, reusable platforms or internal communities of practice.

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What You Can Expect:

A culture of integrity.

At CACI, we place character and innovation at the center of everything we do. As a valued team member, you’ll be part of a high-performing group dedicated to our customer’s missions and driven by a higher purpose – to ensure the safety of our nation.

An environment of trust.

CACI values the unique contributions that every employee brings to our company and our customers - every day. You’ll have the autonomy to take the time you need through a unique flexible time off benefit and have access to robust learning resources to make your ambitions a reality.

A focus on continuous growth.

Together, we will advance our nation's most critical missions, build on our lengthy track record of business success, and find opportunities to break new ground — in your career and in our legacy.

Pay Range:

There are a host of factors that can influence final salary including, but not limited to, geographic location, Federal Government contract labor categories and contract wage rates, relevant prior work experience, specific skills and competencies, education, and certifications. Our employees value the flexibility at CACI that allows them to balance quality work and their personal lives. We offer competitive compensation, benefits and learning and development opportunities. Our broad and competitive mix of benefits options is designed to support and protect employees and their families. At CACI, you will receive comprehensive benefits such as; healthcare, wellness, financial, retirement, family support, continuing education, and time off benefits.

The proposed salary range for this position is:
$108,400 - 227,500 USD

*CACI is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy, sexual orientation, age, national origin, disability, status as a protected veteran, or any other protected characteristic.*