Director of AI Engineering, Internal Products
Via Open · verified Oct 22, 2026 At a glance
Director-level AI Engineering role at Via. New York · full-time · $250,000–$290,000 base.
aimlroles summary, based on the employer's posting.
What you'll do
- Build and ship internal software yourself, using AI coding agents to take ideas through to production
- Create systems with Finance, HR, Ops, Sales and Marketing, including tools that help field teams handle exceptions and act on live insights
- Develop an AI-enabled platform for employee-built software, covering integrations, access controls, infrastructure, testing, release and governance
- Set the team’s architecture and engineering practices, then hire and grow engineers as the function expands
- Work with company leaders to find valuable uses for software and AI and assess when to build rather than buy
What you bring
- You have led engineers, made architecture choices and delivered production software that people rely on
- You can build hands-on with AI coding agents and carry a solution from an initial idea into production
- You understand how to apply security, access controls, integrations, observability, testing and maintainability to systems
- You can turn unclear business needs into useful products and shift between technical work and direct collaboration with business teams
Who this fits
This director role suits a hands-on engineering leader who will start by building and later recruit and develop a team. You’ll move between product work, technical direction and partnering with business teams. The role is based in New York.
From the employer
Via is on a mission to create public transportation systems that provide far greater access to jobs, healthcare, and education. Our platform serves as the technology backbone for modern transit networks, transforming antiquated and siloed public transportation systems into smart, data-driven, and efficient digital networks. With hundreds of agency partners around the world, Via is recognized as the leading transportation technology and service provider globally.
As the Director of AI Engineering, Internal Products at Via, you'll lead an engineering team that builds high-impact internal products using AI-native development practices, while pioneering a platform that enables people across the company to create their own software with AI agents. We call these empowered employees “nano engineers.” This is an opportunity to shape a new engineering discipline, solve problems across the business, and multiply our capacity to innovate.
About the Role:
- Hands-on from day one: You’ll personally build and ship products, leveraging AI coding agents to move from idea to production, while gradually building and leading a team as the function grows.
- Build products that make our business run better - work closely with Finance, HR, Ops, Sales and Marketing to build internal systems that make business impact, build tools tools that help field teams surface operational insights, resolve exceptions and make better decisions in real time
- Rethink software development in the age of AI, using coding agents, AI-assisted development, automated testing, and new engineering workflows to accelerate the journey from identifying a problem to delivering a solution
- Lead the development of our AI-powered internal development platform, building the integrations, permissions, infrastructure, testing, deployment, and governance needed to make employee-created software reliable and useful
- Recruit, develop, and lead exceptional engineers, and define the architecture, engineering standards, operating model, and culture that will allow the team to scale its impact
- Partner with leadership across the company to identify the highest-impact opportunities for software and AI, and challenge conventional assumptions about what to build versus buy
About You:
- An exceptional engineering leader with a strong technical foundation and experience building and shipping production software; you’ve led engineers, made sound architectural decisions, and delivered systems that people depend on.
- A hands-on AI-native builder. You’re excited to start by building products yourself - writing code, working with AI coding agents, and taking solutions from idea to production. As the function grows, you’ll recruit and develop a team around you, gradually expanding its capacity and impact.
- A pragmatic systems thinker who understands security, permissions, integrations, observability, testing, and maintainability, and knows how to apply the right level of rigor to each use case
- A product thinker who cares about the problem being solved, not just the technology, and can turn ambiguous needs into useful products
- Comfortable with ambiguity; you’re happy to move between strategy, architecture, hands-on building, and working directly with business teams
- An organizational multiplier, excited about enabling other people to solve problems independently
Compensation and Benefits
- Base Salary Range: $250,000 - $290,000 per year plus variable pay and equity as part of a total compensation package. Final compensation will be determined by the candidate’s experience, knowledge, and skills.
- Comprehensive health coverage, with low-cost dental and vision plans.
- A 401(k) with company match and vesting.
- Fully paid parental leave for new parents, with extended leave options.
- Additional benefits (mental health, pet insurance, and other wellness perks).
- 20 days of paid time off (PTO) annually.
There has never been a more exciting time to be on the cutting edge of public mobility. Ready to join the ride?
Via is an equal opportunity employer.