Who we are:

Pluto Health is on a mission to connect people with the care they need when they need it. Pluto bridges AI and health services, unifying health information from siloed sources and identifying the best next steps for patients in minutes. Our team creates personalized plans and collaborates to address health needs alongside our enterprise partners. Whether it involves preventive health care, at-home tests, or access to lifesaving clinical studies, we aim to provide the necessary resources to patients at the time of need through our trusted network of partners, including retail pharmacies, payers, and clinicians.

NOTE: This role is a Durham, NC based role. Candidates will be expected to be in our Durham, NC office 2-3 days per week.

About the Role:

We’re seeking a VP of Engineering with deep AI/ML experience, strong healthcare domain knowledge, and the ability to remain close to the technical work when needed. You will lead and grow a high-performing engineering organization, oversee the evolution of our platform, and ensure our technical vision aligns with our mission and business strategy.

This is a role for a seasoned and versatile technical leader, someone who’s not only architected and scaled secure, compliant systems in healthcare, but also built and deployed real-world AI/ML applications. You bring strategic thinking, a track record of delivering complex products, and the ability to inspire both engineers and stakeholders.

What You’ll Do:

• Set and drive the engineering vision, strategy, and roadmap in alignment with company objectives
• Lead and scale high-performing teams across AI/ML, infrastructure, and full-stack engineering
• Guide the design and implementation of production-grade AI/ML solutions across the product
• Stay close to the codebase—reviewing architecture, contributing to models, or debugging when needed
• Ensure our systems meet the highest standards for security, compliance (HIPAA/PII/PHI), and reliability
• Partner closely with product, clinical, and data science teams to translate care gaps into engineered solutions
• Continuously improve engineering processes with a bias toward fast iteration, automation, and quality
• Use data to track engineering velocity, reliability, and impact—and adjust course accordingly
• Foster an inclusive and innovative engineering culture with strong mentorship and technical rigor
• Recruit, retain, and develop top engineering talent as we continue to grow

Who You Are:

• 10+ years of experience in engineering leadership roles, including at high-growth startups
• Demonstrated ability to deliver production-grade AI/ML solutions end-to-end, from model development to deployment and optimization, beyond oversight roles.
• 5+ years working within the healthcare ecosystem (payers, providers, digital health, or life sciences)
• Comfortable navigating health data standards, interoperability (e.g., HL7, FHIR), and regulatory frameworks
• Strong understanding of cloud architecture, containerization, infrastructure as code, and DevOps practices
• Experienced in building secure, scalable, and resilient systems in AWS, GCP, or similar environments
• Proven track record of technical decision-making and hands-on problem-solving
• Effective communicator with the ability to distill technical complexity for cross-functional audiences
• Understanding of Python, TypeScript, Go, Swift, and Kotlin
• Passionate about our mission and excited to shape the next generation of health coordination technology

What You Get:

• Join one of the fastest-growing, venture-backed health tech companies
• Work alongside a world-class team
• Be part of the solution: improve the way care is delivered for millions of patients
• Competitive salary and employee equity options
• Comprehensive benefits including health, dental, and vision coverage
• Flexible PTO policy, 10 company paid-holidays and a 4% matched 401(k)