Position Description

The SustAInLivWork Centre of Excellence is seeking a highly skilled Project expert performing as AI Expert to join the AI Research HUB. The Project expert performing as AI Expert will contribute to high-impact research, AI system development, methodological innovation, and cross-disciplinary collaborations in areas such as healthy living, transport, green energy, and advanced manufacturing. The role requires strong hands-on technical skills in modern AI, including deep learning, foundation models, LLMs, agents, and applied machine learning.

Location: SustAInLivWork Centre of Excellence (CoE) (Artificial Intelligence Centre of Excellence at Kaunas University of Technology (KTU)), Kaunas, Lithuania.

The role requires a physical presence at KTU, with some remote working options.

Reports to: Project expert performing as Head of the AI Research HUB of SustAInLivWork Centre of Excellence (CoE)

Type of Contract: Project-based contract, full-time employment (40 hours/week)

Remuneration package: 31,08 Eur per Hour, depending on education level, competencies, and professional experience.

Gross income (in Lithuanian, BRUTO) is the amount of salary or wages paid to an individual by an employer before any deductions are taken.

Application Start Date: 13 February 2026
Application Deadline: 13 March 2026

Start Date: As mutually agreed

Main duties and responsibilities

The Project Expert performing as AI Expert will:

• Actively contribute to the preparation of AI research proposals and commercial AI solution offers for industry partners.

• Oversee task planning and workload distribution across project teams.

• Serve as a trusted technical advisor to clients, translating complex AI/ML concepts into clear recommendations.

• Manage client expectations throughout the project lifecycle.

• Lead and mentor junior team members.

• Facilitate technical discussions with both internal teams and client stakeholders to drive decision‑making and ensure project success.

• Work with technical architects on the team to validate design and implementation approach.

• Take ownership of architecture design and development of scalable and distributed software systems.

• Own technical execution, ensuring code quality, adherence to deadlines, and efficient resource allocation.

• Data driven decision making skills with focus on achieving product goals.

• Collaborate with cross-functional teams, conduct code reviews, and provide guidance on software design and best practices.

• Develop and implement advanced AI/ML models, including deep neural networks, transformers, LLM-based systems, RAG, and AI agents.

• Design experimental setups, perform data analysis (multimodal datasets), and create intelligent systems frameworks.

• Contribute to the creation of innovative AI solutions in sustainability-driven domains (health, transport, energy, manufacturing).

• Contribute to scientific publications, reports, datasets, open-source tools, and AI model documentation.

• Support project acquisition by providing technical input for international and national proposals.

• Participate in training activities, workshops, and the CoE’s AI capacity development.

Requirements for the Candidate

Applicants should meet the following requirements:

Technical Skills:

1. Strong programming skills in Python, C#, and Java, with hands-on experience using modern machine learning frameworks such as PyTorch, TensorFlow, JAX, and Hugging Face Transformers.

2. Experience developing and fine-tuning Large Language Models (LLMs) and transformer-based architectures.

3. Practical experience building AI agents, including agentic workflows, autonomous decision-making pipelines, and tool-augmented agents.

4. Hands-on experience with Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG), vector databases (FAISS, Milvus, Pinecone), embeddings, and retrieval systems.

5. Excellent understanding of deep learning, optimization, training pipelines, evaluation metrics, and validation strategies.

6. Experience with multimodal AI (CV, NLP, tabular, sensor or IoT data).
   Familiarity with MLOps, versioning tools, reproducibility practices, and deployment (Docker, Git, APIs).

7. Understanding of federated learning, distributed learning, TinyML, or edge inference is a strong advantage.

Research & Innovation Skills:

1. Experience in scientific research, applied AI development, or R&I project work.

2. Ability to contribute to publications, technical reports, prototypes, and open-source tools.

3. Understanding of responsible AI, XAI, risk management, and compliance with the EU AI Act.

General Requirements:

1. Hold at least a Master’s degree in computer science, AI, data science, engineering, or a related field. A PhD is a strong advantage.

2. Strong analytical, problem-solving, and critical thinking skills.

3. Excellent communication skills and ability to work in teams.

4. Lithuanian language proficiency (B2–C1) is an advantage; proficiency in English (C1).

Benefits

• Opportunities for professional development and continuing education.

• Flexible working hours.

• Social guarantees (vacation, sick leave, and parental leave) and additional social benefits.

• Access to state-of-the-art research facilities and resources.

• Opportunities for networking and collaboration with leading experts in AI and sustainability.

• Additional motivational incentives in accordance with the University's applicable remuneration policy.

• Full access to funded qualification courses and professional certifications, as well as opportunities to participate in long-term international training programs, research visits, and mobility schemes at leading universities, AI institutes, and innovation centres abroad.

Method of Applications’ Submission and Closing Date for Applications

• Please submit all the required documents via KTU Career website https://karjera.ktu.edu/en-GB or by email cv@ktu.lt.

• Applications must be submitted 13 March 2026.

• The contact person who will provide information about the open contest procedure Recruitment Projects Manager Sandra Stanevičė, e-mail cv@ktu.lt.

The list of documents that each Applicant must submit:

• Curriculum Vitae (CV) clearly outlining how the applicant meets the position requirements.

• Copy of diploma(s) certifying higher education.

• Copy of PhD diploma (if applicable).

• Any other supporting documents the applicant considers relevant.

Equal Opportunity Statement: The Employer does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, colour, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, or disability status.