Software Development Manager, Life Sciences Applied AI

Amazon is hiring a Software Development Manager, Life Sciences Applied AI in Seattle, United States. It pays $185k-$250k a year and Level rates it ; you can apply on Amazon.

Level's read on this job

On Level's scale, this role is Builds AI ●●●●: the job is building AI systems.
Tools and skills the posting cites include AWS, AI agents and machine learning.
Level classifies it as a senior role.
Level lists 20,000+ other open roles at Amazon.

AI in this role

Lead software development for an AI agent platform focused on orchestrating clinical trials in the life sciences sector.

AWS

ai-agentsmachine-learningsoftware-architectureleadership

AWS Applied AI Solutions (AAIS) is building toward a future where every business innovates with Amazon AI teammates. To get there, we build AI solutions that improve human capabilities and transform entire business functions. We create end-to-end products that surprise and delight out-of-the-box, making complex things easy and hard things possible, with no cloud experience required. We start with customers who embrace the future and build bridges to meet the rest where they are. We pursue ambitious opportunities with conviction, and we are looking for builders who share that mindset.

Every year clinical trials take 7+ years and cost over a billion dollars to bring a single drug to market. We're changing that.

AWS Life Sciences is building a first-of-its-kind AI agent application that orchestrates a fleet of AI agents to reimagine the entire clinical trial lifecycle. This isn't incremental improvement. This is a paradigm shift.

We're looking for a Software Development Manager who wants to build something that has never existed before - and save lives doing it.

What Makes This Role Different:

• Ground floor massive impact. You won't inherit a legacy system. You'll define the architecture, the culture, and the product from Day 1.
• AI agents not just AI features. We're building autonomous AI teammates that work alongside clinical teams to accelerate every phase of the trial process.
• Real customers real urgency. You'll work directly with pharmaceutical and biotech companies running active trials. The feedback loop is fast, the stakes are high, and the impact is tangible.
• Startup energy Amazon scale. Move fast with a small elite team - backed by the full power of AWS infrastructure and AI services.
What You'll Own:

• Technical vision & architecture - Design and evolve the AI agent orchestration layer that powers the platform's core capabilities
• Team building - Recruit, mentor, and lead a high-performing engineering team of builders who thrive on ambiguity
• Customer obsession - Partner directly with beta customers product managers and UX designers to translate clinical trial pain points into elegant agent-driven solutions
• Regulatory rigor - Ensure AI explainability auditability and compliance with FDA and ICH-GCP standards - because in healthcare trust is non-negotiable
• Operational excellence - Own the end-to-end delivery of production-grade AI agents deployed into customer AWS environments
You're the Right Fit If You...:

• Have a proven track record of shipping innovative software products from 0→1
• Bring deep technical leadership - you can whiteboard an agent architecture and review a pull request in the same afternoon
• Have built and scaled high-performing engineering teams that punch above their weight
• Thrive in ambiguity and speed - you see a startup-like environment as a feature, not a bug
• Are passionate about AI and believe agents will fundamentally reshape how industries operate
• Lead with customer obsession - you start with the customer problem and work backwards
• Bonus: Experience in life sciences healthcare or regulated industries
Why Now? AI agents are redefining what's possible in clinical trials. The window to lead this transformation is open - and we need a builder who's ready to walk through it.

Join us. Build AI agents that accelerate cures. Change an industry.

About the team
Amazon values diverse experiences. Even if you do not meet all of the preferred qualifications and skills listed in the job description, we encourage candidates to apply. If your career is just starting, hasn't followed a traditional path, or includes alternative experiences, don't let it stop you from applying.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) is the world's most comprehensive and broadly adopted cloud platform. We pioneered cloud computing and never stopped innovating — that's why customers from the most successful startups to Global 500 companies trust our robust suite of products and services to power their businesses.

We value work-life harmony. Achieving success at work should never come at the expense of sacrifices at home, which is why flexible work hours and arrangements are part of our culture. When we feel supported in the workplace and at home, there's nothing we can't achieve in the cloud.

Here at AWS, it's in our nature to learn and be curious. Our employee-led affinity groups foster a culture of inclusion that empower us to be proud of our differences. Ongoing events and learning experiences, including our Conversations on Race and Ethnicity and AmazeCon conferences, inspire us to never stop embracing our uniqueness.

We're continuously raising our performance bar as we strive to become Earth's Best Employer. That's why you'll find endless knowledge-sharing, mentorship and other career-advancing resources here to help you develop into a better-rounded professional.

Basic qualifications

- 3+ years of engineering team management experience
- 7+ years of working directly within engineering teams experience
- 3+ years of designing or architecting (design patterns, reliability and scaling) of new and existing systems experience
- 8+ years of leading the definition and development of multi tier web services experience
- Knowledge of engineering practices and patterns for the full software/hardware/networks development life cycle, including coding standards, code reviews, source control management, build processes, testing, certification, and livesite operations
- Experience partnering with product or program management teams

Preferred qualifications

- Experience in communicating with users, other technical teams, and senior leadership to collect requirements, describe software product features, technical designs, and product strategy
- Experience in recruiting, hiring, mentoring/coaching and managing teams of Software Engineers to improve their skills, and make them more effective, product software engineers
- AI/ML systems experience — hands-on experience building or leading teams that deliver AI agent architectures, LLM-powered applications, or multi-agent orchestration systems
- Life Sciences or Healthcare domain experience — familiarity with clinical trial workflows, regulatory frameworks (FDA, EMA, ICH-GCP), or experience working with pharma, biotech, or CRO customers

Amazon is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected veteran status, disability, or other legally protected status.

Our inclusive culture empowers Amazonians to deliver the best results for our customers. If you have a disability and need a workplace accommodation or adjustment during the application and hiring process, including support for the interview or onboarding process, please visit https://amazon.jobs/content/en/how-we-hire/accommodations for more information. If the country/region you’re applying in isn’t listed, please contact your Recruiting Partner.

The base salary range for this position is listed below. Your Amazon package will include sign-on payments and restricted stock units (RSUs). Final compensation will be determined based on factors including experience, qualifications, and location. Amazon also offers comprehensive benefits including health insurance (medical, dental, vision, prescription, Basic Life & AD&D insurance and option for Supplemental life plans, EAP, Mental Health Support, Medical Advice Line, Flexible Spending Accounts, Adoption and Surrogacy Reimbursement coverage), 401(k) matching, paid time off, and parental leave. Learn more about our benefits at https://amazon.jobs/en/benefits.

USA, WA, Seattle - 184,900.00 - 250,200.00 USD annually

How we rate this

Software Development Manager, Life Sciences Applied AI at Amazon rates 85 out of 100 for how much of the daily work is AI. That makes it Builds AI (AI Level 4 of 4). The level is about AI in the job, not seniority.

Classification

Builds AI. The job is building AI systems.

●●●● Builds AI80 to 100
●●●○ Works on AI60 to 79
●●○○ Uses AI40 to 59
●○○○ Little AI0 to 39

Levels come from how often the tools, models and workflows of the role are named in the posting itself. Read the description and count the AI tools, models and workflows it names.

Key facts

Software Development Manager, Life Sciences Applied AI is an open job at Amazon.
Level rates this role AI Level 4 of 4: Builds AI.
The listed salary is $185k-$250k a year.
The role is based in US, WA, Seattle.
The job was posted on September 8, 2026.
Seniority: senior.
Applications are handled by Amazon. Apply on Amazon

Prepare for this job

Built from this posting and from similar jobs on Level.

Skills and AI tools this role asks for

AI agentsMachine learningSoftware ArchitectureLeadershipAWS

Questions you could be asked

How do you decide when an AI agent can act on its own versus asking for approval first?
Tell me about a project where machine learning was part of your work. What did you do?
Tell me about a project where software architecture was part of your work. What did you do?
Tell me about a project where leadership was part of your work. What did you do?
Walk me through how you've used AWS in your day-to-day work.

Adapt your resume

List these exact terms on your resume: AI agents, Machine learning, Software Architecture, Leadership, and AWS. An applicant tracking system matches the wording, not the idea.
Attach one line of real, concrete experience to at least one of them. A tool named with nothing behind it rarely survives a human read.
Lead with what you built, trained or shipped. This role is judged on the AI system itself, not the tools around it.

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