SENIOR AI ENGINEER – FULLY REMOTE | GLOBAL PAYMENTS TECHNOLOGY LEADER Location: Fully Remote Contract Type: Permanent or Long-Term Freelance (candidate preference) Language Requirement: Fluent Italian (spoken and written) THE OPPORTUNITY We are partnering with a world-leading global payments technology organisation operating in over 200 countries and territories. This is a unique opportunity to work on high-impact, enterprise-scale AI solutions that power secure, intelligent, and seamless financial experiences worldwide. You will join an advanced innovation team focused on building next-generation AI systems, including Generative AI solutions and autonomous AI Agents, deployed within secure, cloud-native environments. THE ROLE As an AI Engineer, you will design, develop and deploy scalable AI systems within a modern microservices architecture. You will work closely with cross-functional engineering, data and product teams to deliver production-grade AI capabilities embedded into mission-critical platforms. This is a hands-on engineering role requiring both strong software engineering foundations and deep applied AI expertise. KEY RESPONSIBILITIES Design and implement Generative AI solutions (LLMs, RAG pipelines, prompt engineering, fine-tuning). Develop and orchestrate AI Agents capable of multi-step reasoning and tool integration. Build scalable AI-powered microservices within cloud-native architectures. Deploy and manage AI workloads on Microsoft Azure, including AI and data services. Integrate AI services into enterprise platforms with a focus on performance, reliability and security. Collaborate with DevOps teams to implement CI/CD pipelines for AI solutions. Ensure compliance with enterprise security and governance standards. Contribute to architectural decisions and technical strategy. REQUIRED EXPERIENCE Proven experience as an AI Engineer, ML Engineer or similar role. Strong hands-on experience with Generative AI frameworks and large language models. Experience building and deploying AI Agents in production environments. Solid expertise with Microsoft Azure (Azure ML, Azure OpenAI, Functions, Kubernetes, etc.). Strong experience designing and developing microservices architectures. Proficiency in Python and modern backend development frameworks. Experience with RESTful APIs and containerisation (Docker, Kubernetes). Fluent Italian (mandatory). Strong communication skills in remote environments. NICE TO HAVE Experience in financial services or highly regulated industries. Knowledge of MLOps best practices. Experience with distributed systems and event-driven architectures. Familiarity with enterprise-scale security frameworks. WHAT’S ON OFFER Fully remote working model. Choice between permanent employment or long-term freelance engagement. Opportunity to work on cutting-edge AI innovation within a globally recognised technology leader. Enterprise-scale challenges with real-world impact. Competitive compensation aligned with experience and contract type. Interested? Contact to learn more about this fantastic opportunity!