About Zinkworks

Zinkworks partners with leading Telecommunications and Financial Services organizations to modernize legacy systems, migrate mission-critical platforms to the cloud, and engineer AI-driven automation. From OSS transformation to rApp development and network intelligence, our teams simplify complexity and turn it into competitive advantage. Based in Ireland and operating across the EU, UK, and US, Zinkworks combines deep domain expertise with delivery excellence to help clients modernize faster and operate smarter.

About the role

Zinkworks builds software and AI for the world’s largest telco operators. We are extending our Autonomous Networks product portfolio, a set of AI-native products that take operators from today’s reactive network operations to tomorrow’s autonomous ones. We’re hiring an AI Architect to be the senior AI voice across that portfolio.

This role will sit in our Product Direction Team. This team will set the direction the rest of the product organization builds against. Your job is the AI side of that direction, internally, externally, and in front of customers.

As part of our continued growth, we are expanding our Autonomous Networks product portfolio - a suite of AI-native products designed to help telecommunications operators transition from reactive network operations to fully autonomous networks.

We are seeking an experienced AI Architect to join our Product Direction Team and play a pivotal role in shaping the AI strategy, architecture, and technical direction of our Autonomous Networks portfolio.

Key Responsibilities

Define and own the AI strategy for the Autonomous Networks product portfolio.
Shape the AI roadmap, ensuring the right capabilities are delivered at the right time and to the highest standards.
Establish AI quality frameworks, evaluation methodologies, and governance standards across products and AI agents.
Define best practices for agentic AI systems, LLM-powered applications, retrieval systems, and AI-driven automation.
Partner with Product, Engineering, and Solution Architecture teams to ensure AI initiatives align with business objectives and customer needs.
Act as the senior technical AI advisor during customer engagements, supporting pre-sales and solution discussions.
Develop and maintain AI use cases, reference architectures, and innovation initiatives in collaboration with commercial teams.
Represent Zinkworks at industry conferences, customer events, research forums, and partner engagements.
Build relationships with universities, research institutions, technology partners, and industry bodies.
Stay at the forefront of AI advancements and identify opportunities to incorporate emerging technologies into the product portfolio.

Skills & Experience

Essential

10+ years of experience in software engineering, AI, machine learning, or related technical disciplines.
Proven experience delivering AI solutions into production environments at scale.
Deep understanding of modern AI technologies and architectures.
Hands-on experience with:
- Large Language Models (LLMs)
- Agentic AI systems and multi-agent architectures
- Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG)
- AI evaluation and observability frameworks
- Prompt engineering and AI system optimisation
- MLOps and AI deployment patterns
- Cloud-native AI platforms and services
Strong architectural and systems design expertise.
Ability to define technical strategy and influence senior stakeholders.
Experience engaging directly with customers and translating complex AI concepts into business value.
Excellent communication and presentation skills.
Demonstrated thought leadership through publications, conference speaking, community engagement, or industry contributions.

Desirable

Experience within Telecommunications, OSS/BSS, Network Operations, or Autonomous Networks.
Familiarity with TM Forum Autonomous Networks frameworks and industry initiatives.
Experience with Google Cloud Platform (GCP).
Experience with agent frameworks such as Google ADK, LangGraph, CrewAI, AutoGen, or similar technologies.
Experience collaborating with academic or research institutions.
Knowledge of network automation, analytics, or network intelligence platforms.

Technologies & Ecosystem

While this role is focused on strategy and architecture rather than day-to-day implementation, you will work closely with technologies including:

Large Language Models (LLMs)
Agentic AI and Multi-Agent Systems
Google Cloud Platform (GCP)
Google ADK
Vector Databases and Retrieval Systems
AI Evaluation and Observability Platforms
Machine Learning and MLOps Tooling
Cloud-Native Software Architectures

You will play a key role in shaping the future technology stack and identifying new capabilities that support our Autonomous Networks vision.

Inclusion & Diversity at Zinkworks

At Zinkworks, we are deeply committed to fostering a culture of diversity, inclusion, and belonging. We believe that our strength lies in the unique backgrounds, perspectives, and experiences of our team members. By embracing an inclusive environment, we empower innovation and collaboration across all levels of our organisation. Based in Ireland, we are proud to support and engage with our local communities through meaningful initiatives that promote equity and opportunity. Our commitment extends beyond the workplace, as we actively contribute to creating a more inclusive and connected society for all.

AI Architect

Job Description