AI Solutions Architect (m/w/d)

About Passerelle:

We are the Passerelle team, an AI consultancy founded in 2025 in Berlin, originating from the trade union sector. Our name says it all: Passerelle means bridge. We aim to build precisely this bridge to the future amidst the greatest transformation of the world of work – a bridge that enables true technological progress while simultaneously creating better working conditions. We do all this under the guiding principle: Good AI. Good Work.

Founded by experienced minds from the tech and consulting world as well as applied AI science, we combine strategic C-level foresight with deep technological expertise. We guide organizations and institutions on their path into an AI-shaped future, from strategic consulting and value-oriented technical implementation to sustainable adoption in operations. Alongside our transformation mandates, we also develop our own software products for digital sovereignty.

Your Tasks:

As an AI Solutions Architect, you hold a key position with us: you are the crucial link between our strategic consulting and technological implementation. As one of the first dedicated engineering hires, you will significantly shape the development of our technical implementation capabilities and lay the technical foundation for client projects and product development, with the clear perspective of building and strategically leading an engineering team as the company grows.

Since we are a young company, there is no rigid silo thinking here. Your role thrives on a dynamic division that evolves with us:

Architecture & Prototyping (~50%):

• System Architecture: Design scalable end-to-end architectures for AI applications (e.g., RAG pipelines, multi-agent systems) and plan their integration into existing IT landscapes.
• Functional Prototypes (PoCs): Independently conceive and build prototypes to make complex use cases tangible quickly and convince client committees.
• Product Development: Contribute to the technical concept and logical structure of our own software tools for Good Work.

Technical Consulting & Delivery (~30%):

• Technology Evaluation: Independently evaluate tech stacks (e.g., commercial APIs vs. self-hosted open source, EU hosting vs. hyperscaler) and make trade-offs understandable for decision-makers.
• Interface & Client Management: Take the technical lead in projects, translate functional requirements into blueprints, and manage communication with the client's internal IT departments.
• LLMOps & Governance: Responsible for concepts for testing, monitoring, and guardrails, and implement them – together with ethics and legal expertise – based on the principle of Compliance by Design (EU AI Act, data protection).

Pre-Sales & Tech Strategy (~20%):

• Sales Enablement & Scoping: Support the founding team in pitches, translate customer needs into feasible tech concepts, and define the boundaries of what we can and want to achieve technologically.
• "Make-or-Buy" Decisions: Maintain an overview of our technical capabilities. Make informed decisions about when to develop solutions ourselves, when to purchase external services or tools, and from what point a permanent internal team expansion is strategically necessary.
• Tech Leadership as a Perspective: Act as the technical sparring partner for the founding team and, as the company grows, contribute to hiring and structuring our future engineering team.

Qualifications:

• Solid Experience: At least 5 years in software engineering, system architecture, or data/ML engineering, with demonstrable practical experience in productive GenAI systems.
• Current AI Practice & Frameworks: Demonstrable, practical experience with the productive use of GenAI (LLMs, RAG architectures, agentic patterns) in recent years. You are absolutely proficient with Python and modern frameworks like LangChain, LlamaIndex, LangGraph, and MCP.
• Hands-on Builder (T-shaped): You don't just design architectures on a whiteboard; you build working prototypes yourself. You are familiar with cloud infrastructures (AWS, Azure, GCP) as well as on-premise setups and have a conscious stance on digital sovereignty.
• Consulting Strength & Communication Skills: You have prior experience in mandate work or close client collaboration. You can translate complex deep-tech topics understandably for C-level executives, departments, and committees. You speak German and English fluently.
• Strategic Thinking: You think beyond pure code. You have a sense for feasibility, can assess resources correctly, and are eager to eventually lead a growing engineering team.
• Values: Genuine inner drive for our mission statement "Good AI. Good Work.", digital sovereignty, fair distribution of productivity gains, and co-determination.
• Nice to have: Experience in regulated or sensitive contexts; deeper MLOps experience; experience in pre-sales / solution strategy for pitches; open-source contributions or relevant publications.

Benefits:

• Real Impact & Values: A working environment that combines technological innovation with social responsibility and sustainable values. You will shape the AI transformation at the forefront according to European, democratic values.
• Visibility & Network: Mandates with top stakeholders from politics, business, and trade unions, high personal visibility.
• High Autonomy: Flat structures, a conscious absence of micromanagement, and genuine responsibility for your accounts and topics.
• Flexible Setup: Remote-first with a core team in Berlin and flexible working hours that fit your life.
• Standards: 30 days of vacation, a personal training budget, and state-of-the-art work equipment.
• Fair Compensation: A transparent salary band of €90,000 to €110,000 gross p.a. based on a 40-hour week (depending on experience).

• Long-term Perspective: Due to our agile startup phase, the position is initially limited to one year. As we are in sustainable development, a long-term collaboration is our clear goal. Permanent employment is expressly sought with appropriate business development.

The core of our work is the social partnership-based shaping of the AI transformation – from the fair distribution of productivity gains and digital sovereignty to the question of how we build a just world of work tomorrow. We are passionate about these topics and want to not only think about this bridge to the future theoretically but also build it in practice.

For this, we are looking for smart minds with values and a can-do attitude, who think outside the box and are not afraid to question assumptions. Apply explicitly even if your CV doesn't perfectly match the description – your perspective and inner drive count far more to us than a complete profile. If you're eager to co-shape a young company and leave your mark on the future of work: Join us!