A new breed of GenAI Application Engineers
June 16, 2025

There’s a new breed of GenAI Application Engineers who can build more-powerful applications faster than was possible before, thanks to generative AI. Individuals who can play this role are highly sought-after by businesses, but the job description is still coming into focus. Let me describe their key skills, as well as the sorts of interview questions I use to identify them.
Skilled GenAI Application Engineers meet two primary criteria: (i) They are able to use the new AI building blocks to quickly build powerful applications. (ii) They are able to use AI assistance to carry out rapid engineering, building software systems in dramatically less time than was possible before. In addition, good product/design instincts are a significant bonus.
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Andrew Ng is one of the pioneers of modern AI. Here he outlines the kinds of qualities he sees in capable AI Engineers.