AI Systems Engineer (Multi-Agent & Conversational Intelligence)

Posted 2 hours ago

Worldwide

Summary

We are building a consumer-facing mobile product that blends habit formation, interactive systems, and AI-driven conversational experiences. The product uses a multi-agent AI architecture, where distinct AI "characters" (each with defined roles, tone, and expertise boundaries) guide users through different domains of the experience. We're looking for an AI Systems Engineer to own the design, reliability, and evolution of this conversational layer. This role is NOT for someone who wants to quickly build another chatbot. This role is for someone who is looking for a slightly crazy opportunity at the edge of innovation, working with an extensively-connected, world-renowned team of neurologists, marketers, public health advocates, designers, and developers. CORE RESPONSIBILITIES MULTI-AGENT ROUTING AND ORCHESTRATION Design and maintain logic that routes user queries to the appropriate AI agent based on: - Topic detection - Direct addressing - Conversation continuity Ensure agents stay within clearly defined expertise boundaries Implement smooth, explainable handoffs between agents when topics shift Prevent "agent drift" or overlapping responsibilities AGENT BEHAVIOUR, TONE AND GUARDRAILS Implement and refine: - Agent-specific personalities - Tone and response constraints - Few-shot prompting patterns Ensure responses are: - Supportive, accurate, and grounded - Non-diagnostic and non-alarmist - Consistent with each agent's intended role Balance expressiveness with reliability and safety KNOWLEDGE RETRIEVAL AND CONTEXTUAL ANSWERING Own the retrieval pipeline for expert reference materials (e.g. documents, guides, research summaries) Ensure retrieved information is: - Relevant - Used selectively (not dumped verbatim) - Appropriately contextualised Reduce hallucinations through retrieval discipline and prompt design Support real-time updates to the knowledge base without redeploying code CROSS-FUNCTIONAL COLLABORATION You will collaborate with: - Mobile engineers (to expose AI capabilities cleanly in the app) - Interactive / game developers (to trigger AI responses from system events) - Product and content teams (who manage agent configuration and reference materials) REQUIRED SKILLS Strong experience building LLM-powered systems beyond basic chat Hands-on experience with: - Multi-agent or tool-routed AI systems - Prompt engineering with guardrails - Retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) Deep understanding of: - Context window tradeoffs - Hallucination mitigation - AI safety in user-facing products Ability to explain technical decisions clearly to non-technical teammates Pragmatic, product-minded approach (clarity and trust over novelty) BONUS SKILLS Experience with: - Conversational UX - Voice/text-to-speech systems - Health-, education-, or behaviour-change products Familiarity with game-adjacent or interactive AI use cases Strong opinions on AI reliability and user trust (with the ability to justify them) WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE After the first 1-2 months: - Agent routing is predictable, explainable, and testable - Responses feel intentional and bounded, not "chatbot-like" - Content updates can be made safely without breaking behaviour - Failures are obvious and controlled, not silent After 3-4 months: - The AI layer becomes a durable, extensible product asset - New agents, features, and tiers can be added without re-architecture - AI costs and performance are predictable - Users trust the system and use it every day

  • More than 30 hrs/week
    Hourly
  • 6+ months
    Duration
  • Expert
    Experience Level
  • $50.00

    -

    $75.00

    Hourly
  • Remote Job
  • Ongoing project
    Project Type
Skills and Expertise
Mandatory skills
Python
Prompt Engineering
Activity on this job
  • Proposals:50+
  • Interviewing:
    0
  • Invites sent:
    0
  • Unanswered invites:
    0
About the client
Member since Jan 2, 2017
  • United States
    Redondo Beach6:15 AM
  • $198K total spent
    104 hires, 23 active
  • 4,152 hours
  • Health & Fitness
    Small company (2-9 people)

Explore similar jobs on Upwork

Electrical Engineering
Computer Network
Embedded System
Electronics
Mechanical Design
Mechanical Engineering
Fire Protection Engineering

How it works

  • Post a job icon
    Create your free profile
    Highlight your skills and experience, show your portfolio, and set your ideal pay rate.
  • Talent comes to you icon
    Work the way you want
    Apply for jobs, create easy-to-by projects, or access exclusive opportunities that come to you.
  • Payment simplified icon
    Get paid securely
    From contract to payment, we help you work safely and get paid securely.
Want to get started? Create a profile

About Upwork

  • Rating is 4.9 out of 5.
    4.9/5
    (Average rating of clients by professionals)
  • G2 2021
    #1 freelance platform
  • 49,000+
    Signed contract every week
  • $2.3B
    Freelancers earned on Upwork in 2020

Find the best freelance jobs

Growing your career is as easy as creating a free profile and finding work like this that fits your skills.

Trusted by

  • Microsoft Logo
  • Airbnb Logo
  • Bissell Logo
  • GoDaddy Logo