Cisco is hiring a Hybrid Lead Machine Learning Engineer to act as a hands-on technical leader for AI Defense. In this role, you will own systems that detect, validate, and stop threats to AI, while helping shape LLM inference and model-hosting strategy for enterprise workloads.

Location and Work Style

Milpitas, CA (hybrid)

Application window expected to close on: 11/22/2026

Compensation

Estimated salary range: USD 197,500 - 322,900 per year

The starting salary range posted for U.S. and/or Canada reflects the projected range for new hires, not including incentive compensation*, equity, or benefits.

Role Summary

You will define and drive the architecture for scalable, high-performance platform services that protect AI applications and agents in real time. The position combines engineering execution with technical strategy across platform architecture, production delivery, and mentoring within the organization.

Responsibilities

Define and drive the architecture of scalable, high-performance platform services that protect AI applications and agents in real time.
Stay hands-on in design and implementation, leading on the most complex and ambiguous technical problems.
Shape LLM inference and model-hosting strategy, balancing latency, cost, and scale for enterprise workloads.
Partner with Product, Threat Research, and Ops to deploy production-grade features and capabilities with operational excellence.
Serve as a technical thought leader and mentor by raising the engineering bar and communicating complex strategy and trade-offs to senior leadership.

Requirements

Bachelor's in Computer Science and 10+ years, or Master's and 8+ years, or PhD and 3+ years of software engineering experience, including architecting and delivering large-scale distributed systems.
Experience with cloud-native backend development and modern cloud infrastructure.
Prior experience with technical leadership across teams while remaining hands-on.

Preferred Qualifications

Experience with LLM inference, generative AI systems, or AI/ML infrastructure.
Background in security products or AI security.
Experience delivering SaaS and hybrid enterprise deployments.

Meet the Team

Cisco’s AI Defense secures the next generation of enterprise AI platforms, autonomous agents, and foundation models.
The team includes distributed systems engineers, security researchers, and AI practitioners working in an agile, high-velocity, collaborative environment.
You will join as a technical leader shaping product architecture and team culture.
The role is positioned as an opportunity to define industry standards for AI security at Cisco’s global enterprise scale.

Benefits

Medical, dental and vision insurance
401(k) plan with a Cisco matching contribution
Paid parental leave
Short and long-term disability coverage
Basic life insurance
Restricted stock units (eligible to receive, vesting following continued employment)
10 paid holidays per full calendar year, plus 1 floating holiday for non-exempt employees
1 paid day off for employee’s birthday, paid year-end holiday shutdown, and 4 paid days off for personal wellness determined by Cisco
Non-exempt employees: 16 days of paid vacation time per full calendar year (accrued at 4.92 hours per pay period for full-time employees)
Exempt employees: flexible vacation time off program with no defined limit on eligible vacation time, subject to availability and business limitations
80 hours of sick time off provided on hire date and each January 1st thereafter, and up to 80 hours of unused sick time carried forward to the next calendar year
Additional paid time away may be requested for critical or emergency issues for family members
Optional 10 paid days per full calendar year to volunteer
For non-sales roles, annual bonuses may be available subject to Cisco’s policies
Employees on sales plans may receive performance-based incentive pay on top of base salary, subject to the applicable Cisco plan

U.S. State Salary Ranges

New York City Metro Area: USD 216,300.00 - 322,900.00
Non-Metro New York state & Washington state: USD 197,500.00 - 287,300.00

Notes for U.S. and/or Canada Applicants

U.S. employees are offered benefits, subject to Cisco’s plan eligibility rules. Additional details are available on the Cisco careers site.

Lead Machine Learning Engineer

Job Description