Artificial Intelligence Subject Matter Expert (CBP)

U.S. Customs and Border Protection runs continuous operations across more than 300 land, air, and sea ports of entry, plus Border Patrol stations and the Air and Marine Operations Center. Applying artificial intelligence in that environment is not the same problem as applying it somewhere the cost of a wrong answer is a bad recommendation. A model that runs against operational data here has to be accurate, explainable, and safe under federal accreditation, or it does not ship, no matter how well it performs in a lab. You are the technical authority on what that requires. You will design, test, and align AI and machine learning models so they perform reliably in a professional operational setting, working alongside program leadership, engineering teams, and the security staff who have to sign off on what you build before it runs against real data. Two things are worth knowing before you apply. This role exists to bring rigor, not to chase what is newest. And a meaningful part of the job is being the person in the room who can tell the difference between a model that looks impressive in a demo and one that is actually safe to run.

Responsibilities

Design, test, and align AI and machine learning models so they perform reliably in a professional operational setting; Work alongside program leadership, engineering teams, and security staff; Explain model behavior to people who did not build it; Monitor model behavior after deployment and catch drift or degraded performance; Document and understand failure modes before a model goes live; Produce documentation and evidence for security or accreditation reviews; Tell engineering teams early what an AI capability will need to clear review; Build technical judgment into the program and advise on whether AI is the right tool for a problem

Requirements

Active Top Secret with SCI eligibility, ability to obtain and maintain a CBP Background Investigation (CBP BI) and EOD; U.S. Citizenship required; 5+ years in ML, Data Science, or AI engineering; 2+ years focused on Generative AI and LLMs; Deep expertise in machine learning, deep learning, and statistical modeling; Hands-on experience with LLM frameworks, vector databases, and prompt engineering; Advanced Python proficiency; production-grade software development experience; MLOps and cloud AI platform experience (Azure AI, AWS Bedrock, Google Vertex AI); Proven track record taking AI solutions from PoC to production; Experience in assessing cyber risk and functionality of AI solutions; Experience in incorporating automation and artificial intelligence into cyber programs; Experience with data analytic software such as Splunk, Cribl, Elastic and Sentinel

Nice to have

Active CBP BI strongly preferred; Open-source contributions or published AI research; Experience with edge/low-latency model optimization; Certifications in AI Ethics, Responsible AI, or Cloud AI Architecture; Familiarity with adversarial AI testing and red-teaming; Experience taking a machine learning model from prototype to production system real people depended on; Experience in a regulated or federal environment where model decisions had to be explainable and defensible; Experience catching a model failure before it reached a decision that mattered; Comfortable across the model lifecycle: data, training, validation, deployment, monitoring; Active CBP BI, fitness determination at another DHS component, or active DoD clearance; Ability to talk about limits of a model as clearly as capabilities

Benefits

Health Insurance; Life Insurance; Paid Time Off; Holiday Pay; Short-term and long-term Disability; Retirement; Learning and Development opportunities; Optional benefit elections; $10,000 signing bonus for candidates with an active CBP BI, payable after 90 days