AI Product Engineer
Building AI products powered by LLMs: RAG systems, AI assistants, intelligent automation
AI Product Engineer is a role in the ML & AI Engineering family. It has 53 skills across 5 levels (from Junior to Principal). 114 skills are mandatory. Key domains: Programming Fundamentals, Backend Development, Database Management.
Skill Matrix
53 skills × 5 levels. Click on a cell for details.
AI-Assisted Development
9 skills| Skills | Jun | Mid | Sen | Lead | Princ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GitHub Copilot | A | W | A | E | E |
| Cursor IDE | A | W | A | E | E |
| ChatGPT / Claude | A | W | A | E | E |
| Claude Code / Agentic Coding | A | W | A | E | E |
| Prompt Engineering for Code | A | W | A | E | E |
| AI Code Review | A | W | A | E | E |
| AI Test Generation | A | W | A | E | E |
| Model Context Protocol (MCP) | A | W | A | E | E |
| AI Agents for Development | A | W | A | E | E |
API & Integration
4 skills| Skills | Jun | Mid | Sen | Lead | Princ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| REST API Design | A | W | A | E | E |
| GraphQL Design | A | W | A | E | E |
| WebSocket API Design | A | W | A | E | E |
| API Documentation | A | W | A | E | E |
Architecture & System Design
1 skills| Skills | Jun | Mid | Sen | Lead | Princ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| System Design Fundamentals | A | W | A | E | E |
Backend Development
5 skills| Skills | Jun | Mid | Sen | Lead | Princ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Python Web Frameworks | A | W | A | E | E |
| Node.js Frameworks | A | W | A | E | E |
| Apache Kafka | A | W | A | E | E |
| Redis | A | W | A | E | E |
| Task Queues | A | W | A | E | E |
Cloud & Infrastructure
6 skills| Skills | Jun | Mid | Sen | Lead | Princ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Docker | A | W | A | E | E |
| Kubernetes Core | A | W | A | E | E |
| Terraform | A | W | A | E | E |
| Serverless Functions | A | W | A | E | E |
| AWS | A | W | A | E | E |
| Network Fundamentals | A | W | A | E | E |
Database Management
2 skills| Skills | Jun | Mid | Sen | Lead | Princ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PostgreSQL | A | W | A | E | E |
| Database Indexing | A | W | A | E | E |
DevOps & CI/CD
2 skills| Skills | Jun | Mid | Sen | Lead | Princ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GitHub Actions / GitLab CI | A | W | A | E | E |
| Feature Flags | A | W | A | E | E |
Machine Learning & AI
6 skills| Skills | Jun | Mid | Sen | Lead | Princ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Model Serving | A | W | A | E | E |
| LLM Applications | A | W | A | E | E |
| RAG Architecture | A | W | A | E | E |
| Vector Databases | A | W | A | E | E |
| AI Agent Frameworks | A | W | A | E | E |
| LLM Evaluation | A | W | A | E | E |
Observability & Monitoring
3 skills| Skills | Jun | Mid | Sen | Lead | Princ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Structured Logging | A | W | A | E | E |
| Prometheus & Grafana | A | W | A | E | E |
| OpenTelemetry | A | W | A | E | E |
Programming Fundamentals
8 skills| Skills | Jun | Mid | Sen | Lead | Princ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Algorithms & Complexity | A | W | A | E | E |
| Data Structures | A | W | A | E | E |
| OOP & SOLID Principles | A | W | A | E | E |
| Design Patterns | A | W | A | E | E |
| Multithreading | A | W | A | E | E |
| Async Programming | A | W | A | E | E |
| Code Quality & Refactoring | A | W | A | E | E |
| Type Safety & Type Systems | A | W | A | E | E |
Security
2 skills| Skills | Jun | Mid | Sen | Lead | Princ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| OWASP & Application Security | A | W | A | E | E |
| Secure Coding Practices | A | W | A | E | E |
Testing & QA
3 skills| Skills | Jun | Mid | Sen | Lead | Princ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unit Testing | A | W | A | E | E |
| Integration Testing | A | W | A | E | E |
| E2E Testing | A | W | A | E | E |
Version Control & Collaboration
2 skills| Skills | Jun | Mid | Sen | Lead | Princ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Git Advanced | A | W | A | E | E |
| Code Review | A | W | A | E | E |
FAQ
What skills are needed for the AI Product Engineer role?
The AI Product Engineer role requires 53 skills, of which 114 are mandatory. Skills are distributed across 5 levels: from Junior to Principal. See full matrix.
How to advance to the next level in the AI Product Engineer role?
Use the Grade Calculator to assess your current level and get personalized recommendations. The system will show which skills need to be developed for the next level.
How does the community define requirements for the AI Product Engineer role?
Role requirements are shaped by the community through a proposal system. Any member can suggest changes that go through voting and expert review.