Forward Deployed (Chief) AI Engineering Expert (m/f/d)

We help the world run better At SAP, we keep it simple: you bring your best to us, and we'll bring out the best in you. We're builders touching over 20 industries and 80% of global commerce, and we need your unique talents to help shape what's next. The work is challenging – but it matters. You'll find a place where you can be yourself, prioritize your wellbeing, and truly belong. What's in it for you? Constant learning, skill growth, great benefits, and a team that wants you to grow and succeed.      What you'll build   In this role, you set the technical direction for AI engineering across strategic customer engagements and enterprise-wide initiatives. As a (Chief) Expert (f/m/d), you are the deepest technical authority on AI engineering within the team — defining how AI-native applications are architected, built, and operated at scale. Embedded directly within SAP's most complex customer environments, you act as a senior technical anchor, a thought leader, and a force multiplier for delivery teams. You are accountable for the architectural integrity of AI solutions, the elevation of engineering quality across programs, and the direct influence you have on SAP's AI product and platform strategy through field intelligence. In this role, you will:

Define and govern AI engineering architectures, reference designs, and standards that shape how AI-native applications are built and operated across the organization. Act as the highest-level technical escalation point for complex AI engineering challenges, guiding critical design and implementation decisions across programs. Embed directly with SAP's most strategic customers to understand their most complex AI challenges and co-design transformational solutions that create lasting enterprise impact. Drive alignment between customer business strategy, AI product roadmaps, and engineering execution — bridging vision and delivery. Lead the evaluation and adoption of emerging AI capabilities including foundation models, agentic frameworks, multi-modal systems, and responsible AI practices. Mentor and elevate engineering talent across the team, establishing best practices, guardrails, and a culture of technical excellence. Partner with product, research, and go-to-market leadership to translate field learnings into product improvements, reusable assets, and strategic differentiation. Influence long-term AI technology direction by contributing to internal and external thought leadership, standards bodies, and architectural review forums.

Deepest level of professional expertise in AI engineering, with extensive experience designing and delivering production-grade AI-native applications at enterprise scale. Proven ability to act as a technical strategist and authority — defining AI engineering reference architectures, standards, and long-term technical roadmaps. Mastery of large language models, RAG architectures, agentic systems, vector databases, and cloud-native AI deployment patterns. Strong problem-solving skills, critical thinking, and design thinking practices; proven ability to inspire teams and institutionalize development guardrails across delivery organizations. Exposure to SAP AI technologies such as SAP AI Core, Vectorization, Joule Studio, RPT-1, and Business Data Cloud is a strong advantage. Proven ability to work in an Agentic AI context — shaping AI agents that act autonomously within defined boundaries and deliver measurable outcomes in customer-centric environments. Strong track record of leading complex, cross-functional programs spanning multiple delivery teams and technology domains. Ability to influence and advise senior stakeholders and executives on high-impact technical and strategic decisions. Recognition as a thought leader in AI engineering — contributing to knowledge sharing, best practices, and innovation internally and externally. Excellent communication and collaboration skills,