AI Architect, Distinguished Software Engineer (VP Level)

Job ID 10134028 Location Seattle, Washington, United States / San Francisco, California, United States / New York, New York, United States Business Disney Entertainment and ESPN Product & Technology Date posted Nov. 12, 2025

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Job Summary:

Disney Entertainment & ESPN Technology

On any given day at Disney Entertainment & ESPN Technology, we’re reimagining ways to create magical viewing experiences for the world’s most beloved stories while also transforming Disney’s media business for the future. Whether that’s evolving our streaming and digital products in new and immersive ways, powering worldwide advertising and distribution to maximize flexibility and efficiency, or delivering Disney’s unmatched entertainment and sports content, every day is a moment to make a difference to partners and to hundreds of millions of people around the world.

A few reasons why we think you’d love working for Disney Entertainment & ESPN Technology

Building the future of Disney’s media business: DE&E Technologists are designing and building the infrastructure that will power Disney’s media, advertising, and distribution businesses for years to come.
Reach & Scale: The products and platforms this group builds and operates delight millions of consumers every minute of every day – from Disney+ and Hulu, to ABC News and Entertainment, to ESPN and ESPN+, and much more.
Innovation: We develop and execute groundbreaking products and techniques that shape industry norms and enhance how audiences experience sports, entertainment & news.

Job Summary:

You will define and evolve the end‑to‑end architecture of Disney’s Ads Technology Platform—spanning ad serving, programmatic exchange and unified selection, identity & privacy, forecasting & pacing, measurement, and AI‑driven optimization. In this strategic role, you will shape the long-term technical direction of our ad-serving, targeting, bidding, and measurement systems, driving innovations that impact billions of ad impressions and generate critical revenue for the business. As a technical leader at the highest level of our engineering organization, you will partner with senior engineers, product leaders, and business stakeholders to define and realize a scalable, privacy-safe, and intelligent ads platform. You’ll be responsible for driving architectural excellence across distributed systems, machine learning infrastructure, real-time decision engines, and data platforms.

You will collaborate with stakeholders to understand software engineering and data needs and establish architecture standards. You will act as subject matter expert and be responsible for working with a talented team of software and data engineers to drive delivery of solutions for our business and technical partners. You will also provide mentorship and professional growth with the goal to build our next generation of engineering leaders.

Responsibilities and Duties of the Role:

Architect end-to-end AdTech platforms for real-time ad decisioning, pricing, and forecasting.
Build scalable data pipelines for audience segmentation, targeting, and measurement.
Lead the design of ML models and APIs for creative optimization and outcome-based targeting.
Partner with product, data science, and sales teams to maximize yield and advertiser outcomes.
Set best practices for data governance, model monitoring, and responsible AI.
Mentor engineers and influence technical strategy across teams.
Drive innovation by evaluating emerging technologies and recommending adoption where appropriate, both in software development and data management.
Oversee the evaluation and selection of tools, frameworks, and platforms to support both software development and data management efforts.
Ensure compliance with regulatory requirements and industry standards related to both software and data architecture, as well as data governance and security.
Act as a technical evangelist, promoting a culture of excellence and thought leadership within the organization, encompassing both software engineering and data management domains.
Participate in executive-level discussions and decision-making processes related to technology strategy and investment, providing insights and recommendations for both software and data architecture initiatives.
Database Design: Design and implement database structures, ensuring scalability, performance, and adherence to industry best practices.
Data Integration: Develop strategies for seamless data integration across various systems and platforms, promoting interoperability and data consistency.
Data Security: Establish and enforce data security measures, including access controls, encryption, and compliance with privacy regulations.
Performance Optimization: Monitor and optimize database performance, addressing issues related to speed, efficiency, and reliability.
Metadata Management: Oversee the management of metadata, ensuring accurate documentation and understanding of data elements, relationships, and lineage.
Training and Education: Conduct training sessions for staff on software and data-related tools, best practices, and data governance principles.
Documentation: Maintain comprehensive documentation for software and data architecture, including data models, schemas, and architecture decisions.

Required Education, Experience/Skills/Training:

Bachelor's in Computer Science, Information Technology, Data Science, or a related field.
15+ years of engineering experience, with 5+ in AI/ML and AdTech data systems.
Strong coding skills.
Expertise in big data & streaming frameworks and cloud platforms.
Hands-on experience with ML frameworks.
Proven ability to design high-scale, real-time systems in AdTech, MarTech, or related domains.
Excellent communicator who can bridge technical and business needs.

The hiring range for this position in Seattle, WA is $304,900.00 to $408,900.00 per year. The base pay actually offered will take into account internal equity and also may vary depending on the candidate’s geographic region, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience among other factors. A bonus and/or long-term incentive units may be provided as part of the compensation package, in addition to the full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the level and position offered.

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About Disney Entertainment and ESPN Product & Technology:

At Disney Entertainment and ESPN Product & Technology, we’re blending imagination and innovation to reimagine the ways people experience and engage with the world’s most beloved stories and products. Our work is wide-ranging and deeply sophisticated. We create amazing experiences, transform the future of media, and build products and platforms that enable the connection between people everywhere and the stories and sports they love.

Disney’s ability to marry world-class technology with one-of-a-kind creativity makes us unique. It is at the heart of our past, present, and future. We are Storytellers and Innovators. Creators and Builders. Entertainers and Engineers.

About The Walt Disney Company:

The Walt Disney Company, together with its subsidiaries and affiliates, is a leading diversified international family entertainment and media enterprise that includes three core business segments: Disney Entertainment, ESPN, and Disney Experiences. From humble beginnings as a cartoon studio in the 1920s to its preeminent name in the entertainment industry today, Disney proudly continues its legacy of creating world-class stories and experiences for every member of the family. Disney’s stories, characters and experiences reach consumers and guests from every corner of the globe. With operations in more than 40 countries, our employees and cast members work together to create entertainment experiences that are both universally and locally cherished.

This position is with Disney Streaming Technology LLC, which is part of a business we call Disney Entertainment and ESPN Product & Technology.

Disney Streaming Technology LLC is an equal opportunity employer. Applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, gender expression, national origin, ancestry, age, marital status, military or veteran status, medical condition, genetic information or disability, or any other basis prohibited by federal, state or local law. Disney champions a business environment where ideas and decisions from all people help us grow, innovate, create the best stories and be relevant in a constantly evolving world.

DISABILITY ACCOMMODATION FOR EMPLOYMENT APPLICATIONS

The Walt Disney Company and its Affiliated Companies are Equal Employment Opportunity employers and welcome all job seekers including individuals with disabilities and veterans with disabilities. If you have a disability and believe you need a reasonable accommodation in order to search for a job opening or apply for a position, visit the Disney candidate disability accommodations FAQs. We will only respond to those requests that are related to the accessibility of the online application system due to a disability.

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Explore this Location Seattle, WA

With a thriving food-and-drink scene, eclectic neighborhoods and a stunning coastal setting, Seattle is a dynamic urban enclave nestled in the Pacific Northwest. The city is bounded by Lake Washington in the east and Puget Sound to the west, an ideal location for water recreation and sight-seeing cruises.