Senior AI/ML Engineer - Google Dialog flow, voice bot

Optum is a global organization that delivers care, aided by technology to help millions of people live healthier lives. The work you do with our team will directly improve health outcomes by connecting people with the care, pharmacy benefits, data and resources they need to feel their best. Here, you will find a culture guided by inclusion, talented peers, comprehensive benefits and career development opportunities. Come make an impact on the communities we serve as you help us advance health optimization on a global scale. Join us to start Caring. Connecting. Growing together.

Are you a seasoned technical leader ready to shape the future of healthcare communications? Join Optum Technology's Conversational AI Engineering team in Hyderabad as a Senior AI/ML Engineer. In this senior technical role, you will leverage 10 to 15 years of deep software and AI/ML engineering expertise to design and deliver custom, enterprise-scale Conversational AI platforms. You will lead the architecture, deployment, and optimization of state-of-the-art voice bots and interactive voice response (IVR) systems that automate complex transactions and transform patient pathways. Utilizing Google Dialogflow CX, the Google Agent Development Kit (ADK), and cloud-native Google Cloud Platform (GCP) microservices, you will collaborate with cross-functional teams to build next-generation conversational agents. If you are passionate about driving architectural excellence, optimizing complex NLP models, and leveraging modern generative AI-assisted engineering practices, this is the perfect opportunity to innovate at scale.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Design, develop, and deploy complex AI-powered conversational solutions to address enterprise challenges with an emphasis on the responsible use of AI
• Lead the architecture and customization of robust voice bots, chatbots, and IVR-based communication paths using Google Dialogflow CX and the Google Agent Development Kit (ADK)
• Train, fine-tune, and optimize Natural Language Processing (NLP) and Natural Language Understanding (NLU) models for intent classification, entity extraction, and dialogue management to ensure high performance and accuracy
• Use enterprise-approved AI tools to streamline workflows, automate complex development tasks, and drive continuous integration and deployment (CI/CD) pipelines
• Evaluate emerging AI/ML trends, conversational frameworks, and cloud-native architectures to inform technical roadmap design and strategic innovation
• Collaborate closely with cloud architects and product owners to design and implement secure, scalable end-to-end conversational workflows and microservices integrations
• Mentor junior and mid-level engineers, championing clean code practices, robust version control, and comprehensive architecture documentation
• Comply with the terms and conditions of the employment contract, company policies and procedures, and any and all directives (such as, but not limited to, transfer and/or re-assignment to different work locations, change in teams and/or work shifts, policies in regard to flexibility of work benefits and/or work environment, alternative work arrangements, and other decisions that may arise due to the changing business environment). The Company may adopt, vary or rescind these policies and directives in its absolute discretion and without any limitation (implied or otherwise) on its ability to do so

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree (BE/BTech) in Computer Science, Engineering, or a related technical field, or 12+ years of equivalent software development/AI engineering experience
• 10+ years of professional software engineering experience, with a strong focus on AI/ML, Natural Language Processing (NLP/NLU), or Conversational AI systems
• 8+ years of software development experience writing production-grade code using Python 3.x
• 5+ years of experience building scalable, cloud-native solutions leveraging Google Cloud Platform (GCP) or other major public cloud services (e.g., AWS, Azure)
• 5+ years of experience utilizing Git, GitHub, and establishing automated CI/CD pipelines for AI/ML deployments
• 3+ years of hands-on experience designing, developing, and deploying conversational agents using Google Dialogflow CX
• 1+ years of experience with Google Agent Development Kit (ADK) or conversational frameworks

Preferred Qualifications:

• Active and proficient use of generative AI tools (such as GitHub Copilot or Microsoft 365 Copilot) to accelerate coding efficiency, workflow automation, and ensure high-quality software delivery
• Experience building and scaling voice bots or IVR systems integrated with enterprise-grade contact center platforms (e.g., Genesys, Avaya)
• Deep understanding of event-driven architectures and real-time API-based backend integrations
• Background in developing conversational solutions within the healthcare domain or large-scale transactional environments
• Proven ability to guide engineering teams, establish technical best practices, and present architectural solutions to senior leadership

At UnitedHealth Group, our mission is to help people live healthier lives and make the health system work better for everyone. We believe everyone - of every race, gender, sexuality, age, location and income - deserves the opportunity to live their healthiest life. Today, however, there are still far too many barriers to good health which are disproportionately experienced by people of color, historically marginalized groups and those with lower incomes. We are committed to mitigating our impact on the environment and enabling and delivering equitable care that addresses health disparities and improves health outcomes - an enterprise priority reflected in our mission.